Duty free/sim card at LCCT, Concorde vs. Crown Regency

Hi!

Need some tips from the experts in this forum -

1) I will be arriving in KL by Air Asia at LCCT. Is there any duty free shop at LCCT (both at arrival and departure lounges)?

2) Can I buy a malaysian sim card at LCCT when I arrive at 11.00 pm?

3) Which would be a better place to stay - Concorde at KLCC or Crown Regency suites in terms of -

a) Access to KLCC malls and nightlife

b) Hotel friendliness if I end up in picking a female friend from a nightclub

c) Commuting to Sepang circuit for formula 1 races

4) Will there be sale going on during 1st-5th April at the malls?

5) Is there any place to buy discounted formula 1 merchandise?

Duty free/sim card at LCCT, Concorde vs. Crown Regency

1) Yes, but the duty free shops are pretty crappy and they sell cheap stuff; not the usual high-end brands and there are only 2-3 shops, as far as I remembered.

2) Most probably at the supermarket at LCCT. If not, you can just hop down to KLCC suria mall the next day and get a phone card (they open at 10am)

3) Both are very close to each other, maybe 100m apart?

a)Both are close to KLCC mall, the CR is closer by 100m. The CR is right between Beach Bar and Modestos. Both are popular hangouts for SPGs or Sarong Party Girls, esp the Beach bar.

The Concorde is right next to the Hard Rock Cafe, which has pretty good burgers. Also a very popular hangout for SPGs.

b) No idea what you mean with hotel friendliness; but don%26#39;t expect the bellboy to smile and be friendly when they see a indecently dressed drunkard lady or guest coming in. They will probably try to get you out of sight from the other guests as soon as possible; but its none of their business who you bring to your room as long as the bills are paid.

c) Both are the same, I presume you will take the mrt to KL Sentral then the KLIA Express or KLIA transit to KLIA and the shuttle bus. Concorde is right in front of the Bukit Nanas Station which goes directly to KL Sentral.

4) Currently a GrandPrix going on till 11th april.

5) Sorry, I can%26#39;t help.

Concorde and CP are both pretty old. Maybe the CP has the advantage because the rooms are much larger and some have good views of the twin towers; whereas the Deluxe rooms at the concorde are really small and all the rooms either face the mrt line or the forest.

Duty free/sim card at LCCT, Concorde vs. Crown Regency

I feel I%26#39;m going to regret this but I have to ask (I%26#39;ve done a quick forum search and can%26#39;t spot an easy answer) ... SPGs?

We%26#39;re staying in the Concorde for the specific reason that it has forest views, but would like to know an SPG should I spot one - my goodness, I might even be one and not know it!

Thanks a lot, Global Traveller. Really appreciate the help.

A Sarong Party Girl, is a local girl who is attracted to a white-man.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarong_party_girl

You wrote Sri Lanka, not sure if you are white...if not...bad luck.

Hi, on item (5),yes,on board Air Asia,if you are Williams fan.

then at departure hall of LCCT,also F1 merchandise.

yes, there are duty free shop,selling typical cigarettes, chocolates, liquor in LCCT;though for liquor,selection is limited.both available at arrival and departure lounges.

Yes, there is a convenience store in LCCT to get the phone SIM card- there are three main cellular operators- maxis(hotlink), celcom(Xpax) and Digi.

as for item(3)-as advised precisely by earlier threads.Hope you really pick up a female friend-the third gender is also popular around this area.

With present global economic contractions, there will be sales-presently a lot of retails shops are having sales now.

As for commuting to Sepang for F1,both locality provides easy access onto the monorail to KL Sentral,then the ERL transit to KLIA,then free shuttle bus to the circuit.

colors, you are welcomed! But as maic and mkiara mentioned (they certainly know lots about this area!); be careful who you ';pick-up';; there are plenty of Ah Kuas or tranvestites around the beach bar; and they do look pretty convincingly lady-like.

Pandachris, no worries there; but the rooms at the Concorde are pretty old and worn down. You might see a few pretty things tagging along with 60 plus balding old western men in the lobby and along the corridors; but that%26#39;s the closest you will get to the ';action';, have fun in KL everyone and happy planning!

Well I%26#39;m not an SPG, by any stretch of the imagination. I%26#39;m a bit short of 60 but I%26#39;ll be travelling with my own ';action'; so won%26#39;t have cause to embarrass myself.

I%26#39;ll add that to my list of SPG expansions, allong with Self-propelled Gun and Special Patrol Group.

As long as Concorde is reasonably clean, then we%26#39;ll be happy. Hotels are not one of our reasons for travelling, they%26#39;re just there to assist with the real stuff. I%26#39;ll be in Bukit Nanas park with my binoculars about 5 minutes before sunrise to see if I can find 20 new bird species before breakfast.

*Starwood Preferred Guest* People ask me for my SPG CARD when I dine at the hotels and check in with them.

have you tried the Bird Park in KL?? Those poor creatures have a higher chance of a longer life inside cages than outside in the city!

Heheh.

I don%26#39;t really %26#39;do%26#39; zoos and the like. I can be convinced of the conservation value of certain establishments or indeed the value of other organisations, such as those that rescue and care for donkeys, orang utans etc. but I have little interest in seeing wild creatures in captivity.

From what I%26#39;m told the birds in the Bukit Nanas park do pretty well. I%26#39;ve never done any serious birding in a major city in the tropics before, so it could be quite an experience.

Hi all!

This is fun! I never knew SPG has such a wide range of meaning. So I went to wiki and here are some more Submersible Pressure Gauge, Special Protection Group (the organization responsible for protecting the Prime Minister of India and the Prime Minister%26#39;s family), Service Provider Gateway (a provisioning gateway in a telecoms network), Slumber Party Girls, Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (a missionary society of the Church of England, from 1701 to present), State Protection Group (a unit of the New South Wales Police Force) ..... guys do you need more?

Anyways, back to my point 3 -

Maic - I am not white, so what happens next? Does it mean I am likely to get negative responses from all SPGs?

mKiara - Thanks for the info. Good to know I can get a sim card at LCCT. Hope they remain open at 11 pm!

Global Traveller - Thanks for the wishes. Seems like I will need plenty of them for my mission since you have already warned me of Ah Kuas! Any suggestions/tips in this regard are welcome.

Need some more help -

a) I already booked myself at Novotel for 1st-3rd April. Got an Executive room at RM 150/night in their ';1 million room sale';. What are ';must do';-s around the hotel (including SPG options!!!)?

b) I am now looking for hotel for 3 nights from 3rd to 6th April. I found a deal at Istana hotel at RM 330/night. How is the hotel location and comfort wise? Also there is a deal at Sheraton Imperial which is arouns RM 430/night. Though its expensive, I heard its one of the nicest hotel? Any views?

c) Any other suggestion for a good hotel at a decent price if I want to be around the SPG hotspots? Feel free to share your views.

Lastly, this forum is cool. And guys I really appreciate your time and excellent feedbacks. Lets keep it this way!

Cheers