The Empire Brunei

“Seven stars? More like Four.”

This resort is somewhat of an empty suit. Looks nice from the outside, but lacking the details of a five star hotel. I drove up to reception and waiting for a valet to come and take my car, none ever came. There is a nearby parking lot so I headed over there. Found a ramp down to underground… more

This resort is somewhat of an empty suit. Looks nice from the outside, but lacking the details of a five star hotel. I drove up to reception and waiting for a valet to come and take my car, none ever came. There is a nearby parking lot so I headed over there. Found a ramp down to underground parking so drove down and parked. Could not find the elevator that goes up to the lobby and with not a soul around had no option but to haul my suitcase up a lengthy flight of stairs. Reaching the top, a member of staff asked if they can help me with my bag. Don't need it now I said. Was shown to my room and was told that everything in the minibar fridge was complementary. Once the staff member left I thought that I could really go for a cold one so happily cruised over the the fridge and found it to contain in its entirety, two bottles of water...that's it...no sodas, no juices, just two bottles of water. Brunei or is a dry country so wasn't expecting any alcohol but come on. My room was large, bed comfortable, ocean view from my balcony lovely. Odd thing with the bathroom, the lights automatically turn on when you enter but stay on for thirty minutes after you leave so if you wake up in the middle of the night you have to close the bathroom door so as to not flood your room with light. Why? The resort grounds are well kept and the pool areas attractive. They have oversized golf carts to shuttle you around the grounds. Overall, it's a nice looking facility. Before staying here someone told me it's a seven star hotel. I wish I could run into them again and say, no it isn't, it's not even a five star.

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“Huge resort, beautiful room and scenery, no beach to lay around though”

I spent two nights at the Empire end of May. The hotel is huge, the driver told me above 500 rooms. Of these, maybe 30 or so were occupied which gives you a little bit of a Shining feeling (some of the hotel areas were completely closed). My room was very nice, had a view of the ocean though relati… more

I spent two nights at the Empire end of May. The hotel is huge, the driver told me above 500 rooms. Of these, maybe 30 or so were occupied which gives you a little bit of a Shining feeling (some of the hotel areas were completely closed). My room was very nice, had a view of the ocean though relatively far away. I wanted to spend some time on the beach so I asked for one of the sunbeds to be carried there. Was beautiful. But afterwards I was told that the hotel does not advice to do so as there are crocodiles in the water :-) Breakfast was very good, dinner less so.

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“Peaceful stay”

Stayed here last year for a birthday trip. Had arranged for a pick up service and this made the trip to the hotel very smooth. We had booked deluxe rooms because we wanted easy access to the lobby and swimming pools. This turned out to be a good choice as we did not need a buggy except to the gym. … more

Stayed here last year for a birthday trip. Had arranged for a pick up service and this made the trip to the hotel very smooth. We had booked deluxe rooms because we wanted easy access to the lobby and swimming pools. This turned out to be a good choice as we did not need a buggy except to the gym. The rooms were super spacious, albeit dated facilities. Time to include more modern touches like Nespresso machine and TVs with streaming. This would align with the overall luxurious decor of the hotel with its gold trimmings and high ceilings. The swimming pools was really the standout. It was large and we could rent kayaks for the Grand Lagoon. Recommended to swim there and watch the sunset. We had breakfast one morning at the Lobby lounge. Though service was good, food was nothing to shout about. The lunch we had at Pantai was great though. Overall, would recommend for those seeking a tranquil experience. But one would need to manage expectations. This is not a flashy type of resort, but you will come home feeling refreshed.

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“I have to give a massive shoutout to the hotel breakfast”

This luxury resort, converted from a former royal palace, faces an endless ocean horizon and a pristine private beach, backed by a thousand-year-old tropical rainforest. The four massive marble pillars in the lobby are actually inlaid with real gold! I also have to give a massive shoutout to the h… more

This luxury resort, converted from a former royal palace, faces an endless ocean horizon and a pristine private beach, backed by a thousand-year-old tropical rainforest. The four massive marble pillars in the lobby are actually inlaid with real gold! I also have to give a massive shoutout to the hotel breakfast! I had the absolute best hash browns of my entire life here! They dice the potatoes into perfect little cubes and pan-fry them slowly in a mini cast-iron skillet until they are ultra-crispy on the outside and incredibly soft on the inside. If you ever visit, you absolutely must order a portion to try!

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