Luxury hotel brand Waldorf Astoria to open in Kuala Lumpur in January 2027
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The prestigious Waldorf Astoria hotel has opened for reservations in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, marking the brand’s first operations in Malaysia.
Reservations for the hotel, part of the chain named after the flagship in Park Avenue, New York, can be made for dates from January 2027, said its operator Hilton in a news release on June 28.
Checks showed the earliest date available for reservation is Jan 3, 2027.
The hotel is located in Jalan Raja Chulan within KL’s Golden Triangle district, a short distance from city landmarks including the Bukit Bintang shopping district and the Petronas Twin Towers, at one point the world’s tallest buildings. The hotel is also within walking distance of the Pavilion shopping mall.
Waldorf Astoria KL will house 268 suites with an ample amount of living space and floor-to-ceiling views of the Malaysian capital’s skyline.
Entry-level one-bedroom suites come in at around 80 sq m and start from RM2,180 (S$690), while the prime three-bedroom Waldorf Astoria suite unfolds across 745 sq m, a sizeable step up from other suite offerings in KL.
Amenities include a spa featuring vitality pools and herbal steam rooms, an outdoor pool bar and a fitness centre with anti-gravity treadmills, and a cryotherapy cabin.
Luxury dining
The Waldorf Astoria KL hotel is built on the site of the former Hotel Istana and will also feature restaurants backed by considerable star billing.
Garima Arora, chef-owner of Bangkok’s Gaa and the first Indian woman to earn two Michelin stars, will start Yaari serving modern Indian culinary creations.
French chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, whose eponymous restaurant Jean-Georges in New York City holds two Michelin stars, will also debut three signature restaurants: JG KL, abc kitchens KL, and The Bar by JG.
JG KL is set to offer cuisine with French, American and Asian influences, said Hilton, while The Bar will fuse “French elegance with South-east Asian energy” over small plates and its curated beverage selection.
Peacock Alley, the Waldorf Astoria’s signature lounge concept, will also exist in KL, offering afternoon tea and its famed Waldorf fruit and nut salad.
The KL hotel is owned by Tradewinds and had initially been planned for 2024. It recently made similar debut openings in Japan’s Osaka with similar ultra-luxury accommodation in cities like Bangkok and Shanghai.
The KL operation touts a tranquil, elegant space shaped by “layan tetamu”, a conceptualised version of Malaysian hospitality rooted in sincerity and personalised service.
The Waldorf Astoria Hotels and Resorts brand was named after the flagship art deco hotel in Manhattan, New York, that has existed in its current guise since its reopening in 2025, having undergone multiple rounds of redevelopment and renovations.
Owned by China’s state-run Dajia Insurance Group, the New York hotel’s earliest incarnation was built in the 1809s and later demolished to make way for the Empire State Building.