Tom Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre was where we headed to during our recent visit to JB. One of the main reasons why we wanted to stay here was because of its central location. Holiday Inn JBCC is located just across from immigrations at CIQ, right above Komtar JBCC, next to City Square JB and if you want, you can also make a 15 minutes walk to R&F Mall. All your shopping and entertainment needs, just minutes away by foot at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre!
First Impressions of Holiday Inn JB City Centre
As we drove over to Holiday Inn JBCC this time, we found that we had to drive to the parking space of Komtar JBCC and head all the way up to level 7. Here, you’ll find an open space parking that is under not sheltered – exposed to the sun. But if you approach the friendly security guard upfront, he will remove the barrier and allow you to park in the sheltered area – if there’s space available. The lobby of Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre is on the 8th floor. Hence, after you’re parked, you’ll have to walk up a flight of stairs (or take the lift) to level 8…
At level 8, you’ll find the check-in counters, a bar as well as the in-house restaurant, Dine @ Eight, where the daily breakfast buffet is served. After a smooth check-in, we got our key cards and also found out that to validate our parking, we’d just have to pass our Touch ‘N’ Go card to the concierge and they will validate our parking at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre. Yes, parking at Holiday Inn JBCC is free/complimentary for guests. Soon, it was time to check out our King Standard City Room…
Staying at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (JBCC)
At 28SQM, the King Standard Room at Holiday Inn JB City Centre is actually very spacious. We love it that the room is very well-appointed with classy lightings in the bathroom. The bed was firm – the type that we enjoy and there’s view of Johor Bahru skyline as well. One of the favourite part of the room was the shower amenities. Even though it was Dove, the smell was fragrant and luxurious. We also noticed that the room was lined with relatively new wall papers, modern ones at that and there was also no cracks nor cob webs that we’d usually notice even with upscale hotel brands. Kudos to the maintenance and housekeeping teams on this!
Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (JBCC) Facilities – Gym and Rooftop Swimming Pool
As the sun was out, we quickly headed to the roof top swimming pool of Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (JBCC) at level 32. On the same level, the gym is also located. We particularly enjoyed the roof top swimming pool because of the views of the waters around Johor Bahru. From here, you can also see all the way out to R&F Mall with Singapore in the distance. There are also some cabana and seats at the swimming pool area where you can chill out. A jacuzzi pool (though not heated), rounded up the facilities here.
At the gym (also located at level 32), we found the equipment to be up-to-date. There’s treadmills, gym machines and also free weights. The best part was probably the unblocked views. As you jogged, you’ll be able to enjoy views of Johor and also determine when it’s time to head home because you do have a good view of the customs area as well 😅
Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (JBCC) Facilities Dine @ Eight Breakfast and Dinner Buffet
Thanks to great folks at Holiday Inn JBCC (shout-out to Angelyn and team!), we were hosted to a dinner buffet at Holiday Inn JBCC’s in-house restaurant, Dine @ Eight…
Dinner Buffet at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru Dine @ Eight
We were shown to our seats close to the desserts and drinks area where we had a good overview of the entire restaurant. Here’s what available at the weekend dinner buffet at Dine @ Eight (Holiday Inn Johor Bahru)…
After going through the selection of foods at Dine @ Eight’s weekend dinner buffet. We were pretty impressed by the variety that Holiday Inn Johor Bahru offers for their dinner buffet. For instance, you’ll be able to enjoy Western selection such as pizza, pasta, fried and grilled meats. For Asian selection, you can find sushi, curries and also satay. There’s a good selection of salads, fruits and desserts that can go well with the bean-grounded coffees. Excellent selection of food indeed.
In terms of the taste department, we loved the satay. Grilled freshly by the chefs on-site, you’ll be able to taste the smokiness which goes so well with the peanut sauce. We also enjoyed the asian selection such as the Penang Curry, Phad Thai as well as the stir-fried seafood. Also, we loved the oxtail soup and asari clam soup too. Lastly, the desserts were good. Especially the matcha cakes. If we had a gripe, that would probably the sushi rice that was a tad too moist and that the sashimi selection was not available during our visit.
Overall, it was a good place to try out a good variety of food and also enjoy the classy ambience in an upscale restaurant.
The next morning…
Breakfast Buffet at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru Dine @ Eight
After a night of feasting, it was another morning of feasting for the 2bearbears at Holiday Inn JBCC’s breakfast buffet! 😂
As you can see from the photos above, the breakfast selection is again very extensive. You’ll be able to find something for the kids, including tater tots, scrambled eggs and pancakes as well as Western selection of sausage and pastries. For the Asian selection, you’ll find noodles (fried and soupy version) along with their famous nasi lemak and sambal. One of our favourite was the prata (aka parantha) that are made on-the-spot in the restaurant. At the egg station, you can order any style of eggs as you wish – from sunny side up to omelets with the ingredients of your choice…
As you can see, we REALLY love the parantha (prata) made in-house at Dine @ Eight. Remember to take the curry and add the sambal to add that extra kick to your breakfast!
Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre (JBCC) – Location Location Location
As we mentioned before, and we must mention again, Holiday Inn Johor Bahru is conveniently located to so many malls in the vicinity!
We love it that everything is so nearby when you stay at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre. You are right above Komtar JBCC, next door to City Square Mall. With just these two malls, you can get all your shopping, dining and entertainment needs (movies, cat cafe, Kidz Republic Indoor Theme Park). You’re also not too far from R&F Mall if you want to do some dining and grocery shopping away from the crowds. Even Johor Premium Outlet, Bangkok Family Spa and Hidden Garden by the Sea are just 20 minutes away by car. Awesome!
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All in all, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay at Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre. We were pampered by the luxuries at the hotel that included great shower amenities, excellent buffet breakfast, splendid views from the rooftop swimming pool and gym as well as the proximity to all of Johor Bahru City Centre’s offerings. If you’re thinking of doing a stay at Johor, Holiday Inn Johor Bahru City Centre should definitely be one of your top choice for a relaxing getaway to Johor!
