HUTTON LODGE- PENANG HOTEL REVIEW

2012/04/06

Hutton Lodge- Penang

HUTTON LODGE- A PENANG HOTEL REVIEW

I eagerly walked over to Hutton Lodge, promoted as a budget hotel and set in a renovated colonial building in the heart of Georgetown’s cultural center on Jalan Hutton. I’d already walked past the place once, so I knew it was a large pale yellow mansion, set off the road by its front courtyard.

Hutton Lodge lobby

Upon arrival, I walked into the large front lobby, which has the casual, airy feel of British colonial days with its high ceilings, white walls, dark wood windows, and rattan furniture. A lovely breeze blows through all day long.

Hutton Lodge- single room with attached bathroom

Besides Hutton Lodge’s bright airy colonial atmosphere, the second thing that caught my attention was: clean. The entire hotel is spotless, from the rooms sporting white linens and dark blue carpeting, to the bare hallways, to the squeaky clean blue-tiled common bathrooms. In fact, I later learned that I wasn’t the only one who’d noticed Hutton Lodge’s wonderful cleanliness. They’d won an award for ‘cleanest hotel’ by Hostel Bookers! Ah, ha! Bravo.

The building has other great colonial charms. Besides the airy front lobby and wood shuttered windows, there’s a spacious private courtyard on the side, part in open sunshine, part shaded under a side roof, that looks like it was formerly a drive-through car port.

Hutton Lodge- side patio

The hotel is a curious blend of ‘accommodation class’ which is hard to define. It’s something like an upscale, quieter backpackers’ with its common bathrooms/showers and a few dorm rooms. On the other hand, there are plenty of single and double rooms. Some have private bathrooms, others use the common toilets. Although Hutton Lodge lists itself as a budget hotel, by my own standards of ‘budget’ in SE Asia (under /up to $10 US per night) I’d list it as more of a mid-range hotel. That also better fits is immaculate cleanliness and colonial flare.

Hutton Lodge- common bathrooms

As I mentioned before, rooms are all spotlessly clean, decently sized, and pleasant. Staff are low-key, helpful, and pleasant. The common sitting areas in the front lobby and side patio are quite relaxing and pleasant… save for the TV, which got turned up to a pretty high volume for nobody except the staff a few times. Some staff even got to talking quite loudly at one point, which I found distracting. There’s a distant buzz of traffic outside, but it’s kept at bay by the large outer courtyard. Otherwise, I found Hutton Lodge to be a quiet, relaxing place to stay in central Georgetown, within easy walking distance of most cultural attractions, street foods, and nightlife.

Hutton Lodge- hallway

Drinks, snacks, and ice cream are available at normal street prices. Reception can arrange transport and tours. Stored luggage service. Books, magazines, explanations of the building’s history, and internet access are located in the lobby. A minimal breakfast of tea, coffee, and juice with basic toast and a slice of local sweet bread is included in the room rates. Note that Hutton Lodge is a no smoking establishment. At night, the doors close at midnight.

For current rates and more information, check out Hutton Lodge website.