I usually choose this hotel whenever I visit Penang, but this time I was disappointed. The bedsheets and quilt had an unpleasant odor, as if they had not been changed. As it was already late at night, I informed the staff the next morning, but they did not seem concerned. I hope the hotel can pay closer attention to cleanliness and guest comfort.

Attentive and friendly staff Clean and stylish old colonial vibe Sea front location Very large room with spacious bathroom and sea view balcony Huge choice of food at breakfast Complimentary tea and coffee in lounge

Lot of hot breakfast dishes were quite cold A la carte menu was a little limited, restricted range of Malaysian food and European food not always great A bit of a walk. Crossing main road to get into Georgetown.

It is an amazing hotel and great location for exploring Georgetown. The breakfast is out of this world and staff in the dining area could not be more helpful and welcoming.

I was actually disappointed with the check in, there was no real welcome or information given about the hotel itself. I was unaware that the drinks in the fridge were complimentary. Furthermore, paying 600MYR as a security deposit on check in when I had already paid for the accomodation to me is ridiculous. Plus being told on check out the money would be back with me in 7 days is unacceptable! I am used to credit card details being held but not being put through unless necessary. I was actually disappointed with the overall service and friendliness, despite paying a lot for a room.

Ideally located with warm friendly staff and wonderful facilities.

No secure WIFI - in this day and age, secure WIFI service is a must as everyone is “connected”.

The hotel itself is a historical building. Its gallery details the history of the hotel from the beginning up to now with lots of photos and interesting exhibits. The location of hotel is perfect , especially if this is your first trip to Penang, because the most popular sightseeing spots and famous local food stalls are nearby. The hotel breakfast is abundant and fresh with both Malay and western food and fruit.

This hotel was the perfect place to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary. We stayed 4 nights and the E&O did not disappoint. We stayed in the Victory Annexe on the 15th floor and felt that this was probably a better option than staying in the Heritage Wing. While the breakfast buffet in the 6th floor was nowhere near as extensive as the ground floor Sarkies bar, we preferred it because the views from the terrace were great. Pool was fantastic, although occasionally all the sun lounges were taken. Service, as expected in a hotel like this, was exemplary. Our room was huge and when check out time came we did not want to leave.

The decor and ambience of the hotel. The breakfast buffet. The location was convenient

It was quite expensive. Disappointing that there was no access to the pool in the Annexe Wing when staying in the Victory wing. Unexpected additional fees where quite high increasing the overall booking cost by $500 AUD

We loved everything about the E&O - it’s now my favourite hotel of all time! The level of service from every member of staff is outstanding and the hotel itself is so beautiful. We stayed in the Heritage Wing with a seaview room and it was perfect in every way. Breakfast in Sarkies was superb and evening drinks and canapés was really sociable with lovely food and drunks. Farquhar’s Bar was also great and we loved sitting outside in the evening after dinner.

There wasn’t one thing we didn’t like.

A beautiful historic hotel with uninterrupted views across the coast. The pool area and bar areas were just stunning. Great cocktails in Farquhar’s bar. The breakfast buffet was extensive and we were advised what options were vegan suitable. Very friendly staff who could not do enough for you and they did try and sort any issues we had with the room.

Note if you’re staying in the victory annexe you will have specific pool access to the 6th floor pool, not to the pictured pool, which was a little unclear on booking. We also found the cleaning and room upkeep substandard - marked and worn shower screen, broken bath outflow which flooded the bathroom, room floor and rug unclean on arrival and covered in other peoples hair, dusty up-skirts and furniture. 18% service and taxes charged on whole stay on checkout - happy to pay this but should be mentioned at check in when pre-charge is made to card.

We love the location of the property; right on the edge of the waterfront was very nice. We also enjoyed the view from our room's balcony as it had a direct view of the Gurney Drive skyline and waterfront.

Being a five-star hotel, I felt its staff was not as friendly/helpful as other competitive hotels on the Penang island. There was a door staff who spent time playing with his smartphone and ignored us, not opening the door and not greeting us. Even though this is a minor issue, it has a poor reflection on the hotel's image and experience of a high-end hotel. I wished the hotel gym is 24 hours instead of opening from 7 am, which for some of us early birds is not convenient.