Hotel Mercure Simatupang (Jakarta) - Hotel Review

In March 2017, I stayed for a long weekend in Mercure Simatupang in Cilandak (South Jakarta). The hotel is part of the Mercure brand, an international collection of midscale properties managed by the French group Accor.

TB Simatupang Road is considered the second business district in Jakarta after the Golden triangle (Sudirman - Gatot Subroto - Rasuna Said). It is growing fast, attracting large corporations from the Oil & Gas sector in particular. At the moment there are about 10 skyscrapers and probably just as many being constructed. It is not surprising that the largest station of the upcoming MRT project will be located in Lebak Bulus, just 500 meters from Mercure Simatupang. Works are still in progress and they can cause some traffic jams.

Naturally, the hotel caters mostly to a business crowd, including some long staying guests. It is conveniently located right on TB Simatupang Road, and also right on the Jakarta Outer Ring Road which connects the airport to Bekasi through South Jakarta.

On weekends, leisure guests take over. They enjoy the proximity to famous malls like CITOS (1,5 kilometers), Pondok Indah (5 kilometers) or Gandaria (9 kilometers). It is also relatively easy to visit other popular neighborhood in Jakarta: Kemang is 7 kilometers away and Blok M, 9 kilometers. Finally, Mercure is sandwiched between two golf courses, Propcon Cilandak (2 kilometers) and Pondok Indah Padang (5 kilometers). 

One of the strong points of Mercure Simatupang compared with its competitors is that there is a rooftop bar on its 19th floor.

Called Karumba Rooftop Rum Bar, it is a colorful venue with a Carribean theme, just next to the swimming pool. It does not get packed so it is nice for drinks from sunset to late evening. Rum cocktails are their specialties (Pina Colada, Cuba Libre, Punch, etc ≈ IDR100,000-120,000++ each). They have a DJ on Saturday and live music 3 nights per week (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday).
Later in the evening, you can move to CITOS mall (10 minutes by taxi). There are a few open-air cafés and, more importantly, Jenja Nightclub which I ranked number one in Jakarta in 2017.

Service and Welcome
As usual in Indonesia, the service in Mercure is professional and extremely friendly. To be honest, though, I didn't encounter any specific issues so my interactions with the staff were limited to polite greetings.

The check-in only took a few minutes and you get a complimentary drink voucher to use in one of the F&B outlets. In the room, a member of the housekeeping team will leave a welcome note on the bed with a number to call should you need anything.

During my stay, I met several times with the French GM. She is very active in the hotel and she is easy to talk to. Don't hesitate to ask her about the things to do nearby if you get the chance to see her.

Rooms
The hotel has 231 rooms designed in a modern style with a wooden floor and contemporary furniture. The only Indonesian touch is the drawing of daily life in Jakarta just above the bed. The rest corresponds to what you would expect from a 4-star hotel: A comfortable king-size bed, a flat-screen TV, a mini-fridge, quiet AC, fast WIFI, excellent soundproofing and a working desk. The only thing that I was missing was a bathtub.

Between the bedroom and the shower, there is a transparent glass wall that you can, fortunately, cover with a curtain in case you are sharing the room with a colleague.

There are 4 rooms categories with prices ranging from 85$ to 150$ per night: Standard, Superior, Privilege and One-Bedroom Suites. Apart from the difference in size, the latter have a small kitchen which can be very useful for long-stay guests.

Breakfast
The buffet breakfast is served in the Graffiti restaurant on the ground floor from 6AM to 10AM. As a French, I was happy to eat plenty of pastries like croissants, pains au chocolat and danishes. You also have a generous choice of Indonesian and Asian food, an egg station, toasts and jams, baguettes, pancakes, fruits, cereals, muesli, yogurts, cheese, etc.

Facilities