Hotel Name: Hotel CIQ
Address: No. 52/54, Jalan Lumba Kuda, Johor Bahru, Malaysia.
I stayed at the Hotel CIQ in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. I was already in JB and I needed to extend my stay, so I was looking for something near the main train station (JB Sentral). I booked it online for $18.27 USD, plus there is the 10 MYR ($2.40 USD) government hotel tax that is not collected online.
Even though the hotel is technically close to the train station, the roads there lead you on quite a circuitous journey. CIQ is named after the Johor Bahru Customs, Immigration, and Quarantine Complex, which is next to the train station. Being a quarantined border crossing the roads into the complex are fenced off. What should be a simple walk is instead a long detour to get from the station. Despite the poor layout of JB’s roads, it was still a useful location for me, once I worked out how the roads work.
The hotel is in a row of undeveloped shophouses. Being so close to the train station whole area is rapidly modernising with new apartments nearby. I suspect this road will be redeveloped in the next decade.
I got a single room with a private bathroom. The room was tiny; just enough space for a single bed and a place to put my bag. I didn’t mind as I just wanted a private room for the night. The bed was comfortable and the room was air conditioned. Having a big window made a big difference to making the room acceptable as a small space.
There was a little table at the end of the bed. It would have been useful to have a shelf under the table as there was not much room for anything else.
The bathroom was clean and in good condition, and it was useful despite the size. Once again just a little improvement of adding a shelf at the sink for toiletries would make a big difference to usability.
There is free wifi at the hotel, and I had no problem connecting in my room. There is no breakfast service here so I went nearby to a Indian restaurant. There are coffee and snacks available in the foyer.
Here is the walk from the hotel to the station. You have to go to the entrance of a skywalk, which then connects you to the station.
Overall this was a good place to stay if you are just wanting the cheapest hotel in Johor Bahru. The guesthouse I stayed at previously was good but it was a bit far out of the central area. This is a good option for budget travellers who are going to get the shuttle to Woodlands or the train to Kuala Lumpur.
A note that there are other CIQ hotels on Jalan Wong Ah Fook, Jalan Trus, and Jalan Meldrum.
Book the Hotel CIQ online or search for more hotels in Johor Bahru.
