Quirky Sekeping Kong Heng hotel in Ipoh, Malaysia, comes with a warning: it’s not for everyone

Where is it? Few hotels hesitate to sing their own praises. A property warning that it may not be to everyone’s taste is a rare animal indeed. So full marks to Sekeping Kong Heng (“bright prosperous”) for kicking off its web­site’s FAQ by advising potential guests to “read on to find out if [we] are compatible”.

Located in the heart of the old town of Ipoh – birthplace of actress Michelle Yeoh Choo Kheng and Mohammad Nor bin Khalid, aka Lat, Malaysia’s wittiest popular cartoonist – Sekeping Kong Heng traces its genesis to the 1920s, when it was a hostel for a nearby theatre that catered to the mainly Chinese populace. After falling into disuse, the building was sensitively restored and expanded a decade ago, emerging as a cross between an upmarket youth hostel and a bare-faced chic boutique.

It takes its cue from the Kong Heng “coffee shop” (more like a cafe) at street level – rumbustious, utterly authentic and light years removed from the insipidness that is Starbucks. In short, the hotel is exotic, eclectic, mildly eccentric and quite the most appealing pied-à-terre in Ipoh.

What’s the accommodation like? There are 32 rooms strung between the main building and an adjacent new block, the kips ranging from single-bed pods with a shared bathroom and family rooms (above) to small, self-contained flats. Guests should expect a shelf of paper­backs rather than flat-screens, and bare walls whose white­wash has been allowed to fade into pastels.

The most charis­matic room (below) mea­sures about 200 square metres, with solid wooden floors, arched windows and two glass boxes – each contain­ing a double mattress and curtains – sus­pended from the ceiling and reached via a ladder. A pair of bathrooms spreads across one end of the room. Staircases connect the floors of the main building, although a dedicated lift copes with heavier luggage.