'What a horror story': Singaporean discovers JB hotel room door can be unlocked without key card

After enduring a five-hour traffic jam at the Causeway last Thursday (April 6), Lawrens Tan was looking forward to a good night's sleep in Johor Bahru.

But the 44-year-old creative director said he was forced to stay awake in his $110-a-night hotel room, due to a faulty door lock that was only rectified the next day.

"What a horror story," Tan quipped in a TikTok video he posted on Sunday about his stay there. 

In an interview with AsiaOne on Monday, Tan shared that he drove his wife, daughter and domestic helper for a three-day vacation to Johor Bahru, which ended last Saturday. 

It was the first time the whole family was staying overnight across the border, the man said, adding that he paid around $430 for two rooms at the popular KSL Hotel & Resort.

Joining other travellers who were also heading to Malaysia during the Good Friday long weekend, the family only managed to check in at 10pm.

To Tan's horror, he found that he was able to open his hotel room door by simply turning the door knob, instead of having to use the key card to unlock the door first. 

'I hope it doesn't happen to anyone else': Hotel guest

Realising it was no laughing matter, Tan shared that he approached the hotel reception for help.

But no one came to fix the door, the man said, adding that a staff member also told him that the hotel was fully booked.

In his TikTok video, Tan showed how he used several clothes hangers to "lock" the door.

"I hope it doesn't happen to anyone [else]," he said.

[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@lawrenstan/video/7219667358992911618?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7161994054723814913[/embed]

Likening his first night in Johor Bahru to a scene from a movie, Tan shared how he even laid an ironing board against the hotel room door – something he learnt from social media.

"[My wife and I] didn't sleep well due to the fear for our safety," the man said. "After breakfast the next day, we highlighted the issue again and the hotel took action."

"The lock was fixed in a few minutes, but I would think twice about staying in this hotel again."

Tan's TikTok video has since garnered more than 130,000 views.

A quick check online showed that KSL Hotel & Resort has a four out of five rating on Google Reviews. 

Several guests praised the hotel's convenient location – it's just directly below a shopping centre. 

But others were dissatisfied with the condition of the rooms, with some commenting that the hotel is in need of a major uplift. 

AsiaOne has contacted KSL Hotel & Resort for comment.

Another nightmare vacation in JB 

In another nightmare vacation in Johor Bahru recently, a Singaporean said he found cockroaches in his hotel room.

In a TikTok video he uploaded on March 4, small cockroaches can be seen crawling on the mattress and inside the minibar in the room.

In his video, 21-year-old student Jaren Lam identified the hotel as Thistle Johor Bahru.

[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@mmmmm_jl/video/7206355271113821441?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7161994054723814913[/embed]

Jaren told AsiaOne that he and his girlfriend only discovered the cockroaches after waking up to something "crawling".

He also said that their bags were open as well, and he was "pissed" that their room was "filled with cockroaches or bugs".

In response to AsiaOne's queries, a spokesperson for Thistle Johor Bahru said that the video has now been brought to their attention and the hotel would be investigating the matter.

ALSO READ: Woman gets antsy about 'extra guests' in Airbnb condo she rented in JB

chingshijie@asiaone.com

No part of this story or photos can be reproduced without permission from AsiaOne.