This is the first time I am staying in an Islamic nuance hotel, Kuala Radja. I got that first impression directly when entering the hotel room. One of the rules of the hotel is the guests can not wear clothes that are not covering Aurat (human body parts that Islam thinks should be covered) outside the hotel room. Well that was the general Islamic Sharia rule that is implemented in Aceh actually. Another thing was a sticker put on the mirror saying a quote from Qur’an about prohibition to do sexual act out of marriage. The last ones were prayers writings put on top of the bed for Before and After Sleeping.
I got a Deluxe Room with 1 Double Bed cost around IDR 300K per night. The room was old and not too fancy, but quite spacious and having enough necessity: TV, fridge, bathroom with hot shower and toiletries. They provided free small breakfast such as fried rice, breads, green bean porridge and fruits. And the most important thing is… free wifi in the room! Not bad for that price.
(picture taken from its website)
What I most like is the location near the city center. It’s located on a main big road where many government offices are there, but not noisy. It’s about 2.6km to Mosque Baiturrahman, 3.2km to Museum Tsunami and 10.3km to Sultan Iskandar Muda International Airport.
Maybe I like it also because of sentimental reason that this hotel is really nearby my ex-high school, hehe. There was local supermarket chain called Pante Pirak on the right side of the hotel, and 2 other 2-stars hotels on the left side. So if you can’t find a room in this hotel, you can go easily to the next 2 hotels, vice versa. Kuala Radja Hotel is nice but nothing special. If I come back to Banda Aceh again, I might want to try another hotels nearby 😛