Escaping from the bustling and busy city areas of Kathmandu to the foothills of Shivapuri Hills, you will find Hotel Sabrina by Kalash Group. At first glance, the hotel seems like any other boutique hotel located at the sub-urbans of the city but upon closer look, the hotel is much more than what meets the eye. Roughly about 10 minutes away from the city’s tourist hub – Thamel, this B & B hotel provides more than your standard Bed and Breakfast. With numerous services and facilities, this newly established hotel has already started getting fame among both the local and foreign tourists.

THE LOCATION

Located in Ganesh Chowk, Budhanilkantha, the circumambient Shivapuri and Nagarjun Hill provide a view of luscious greenery and the suburbs at the foothills. Many historical and religious landmarks; Budhanilkantha Temple, Boudhanath Stupa, Krishna Mandir, Kapan Monastery to name a few, are situated nearby the hotel within 5 km radius. Along with them, the hotel faces the Shivapuri-Nagarjun National Park, a renowned park for the outdoor activities among both local and foreign tourists. This makes the location of Hotel Sabrina an ideal place for a getaway as it provides a blended and balanced experience of city life as well as the serenity of nature.

SUITES AND ROOMS

The rooms at the Hotel Sabrina are categorized into three types; deluxe rooms, premium rooms and presidential suite. There are in total 37 rooms with 16 rooms of deluxe and premium rooms.

Although the rooms may vary, they all share warm and welcoming impression. The ambiance of the hotel is carried out to these rooms where the decor and interiors are just right and fit in the rooms really well. The rooms have three walls completely white and the one behind the bed head rest is grey with zig-zag patterns. This blend of light colors match well with the wooden panel floors and the dark wood furniture in the room. The addition of dark wood furniture further adds a depth to these rooms making the room have vibrancy even in light colors of the walls.

Talking about the interiors, the lights and lighting in the rooms play a crucial role to why these rooms have their charms. With three different settings and options of the color of the lights you are able to adjust the lighting of the room according to your liking. The lights could be changed to either white, light blue, or deep blue. Also with adequate lights placed in the rooms you will have no problems with the brightness of the rooms.

The rooms are available either in twin bed or in queen size double beds as per the requirements of the guests. These rooms, generally for 2 adults and a child, is spacious enough to be comfortable, however, the premium rooms are more spacious compared to the deluxe rooms. The beds are comfortable with assortment of pillows from very soft to firm. These variations of pillows are a plus point as the guests are able to sleep in the pillows they prefer.

Most of these rooms come with a balcony overlooking wither the surrounding hills or the city and all the rooms have attached bathrooms available which comes stocked with toiletries and fresh towels of various sizes. The rooms also comes with a AC, a 42 inch television, a closet, coffee and tea making facilities, a mini fridge and a safe deposit box. You will be able to find spare towels, slippers, bath robes in the closet as well. All the rooms have complimentary wifi access. However, the rooms which do not have a balcony are complete no smoking rooms and even in the rooms to balcony access you are asked not to smoke inside the room itself.

Next is the presidential suites, which the hotel takes a great pride in. these are very well deigned rooms busting with elegance and class. The suite is a lot bigger than the other choices of rooms in the hotel which further enhances the charm of the room. The hotel has gone with the elegant theme of white colors as the paint in the walls and curtains. The queen size double bed sits in the middle of the room facing the 42 inch TV. The closets and other furniture in the rooms are in white or either light colors to compliment the entirety of the room. The presidential suite also comes with a lavish bathroom that has its own Jacuzzi.

With how the rooms are and all the features of these rooms, the hotel despite being new has palced its name as one of the better B&B hotels of the city.

THE H20 FITNESS CENTER

It is not possible nor is it feasible to get a gym membership when you are travelling for just a few days or weeks. So it might have always been a struggle to have a good exercise routine when you are out travelling. However, Hotel Sabrina has taken this into consideration as they have their own fully equipped fitness center, which comes with a fully equipped gym, a steam bath room, a working sauna and the best of all, an infinity pool.

The H20 Fitness gym comes with all the necessities of a normal gym; treadmills, dumb-bells, exercise balls and others. This gives a great opportunity to the guests to work out and stay fit even in the holiday days.

During the hot weather, a nice and chill pool really sets off the popularity of the place. Although, Hotel Sabrina is getting popular on their own with their great service and hospitality, it would not be fair to say the infinity pool did not lend a hand in that fame. The pool is 4.5 feet and overlooks the magnificent view of the green hills and the suburbs. The pool adds an interesting and cool flair to the entirety of the hotel. A swimming pool is great when it clear and clean, and that is exactly what the hotel has achieved to do. You can easily see the amount of care and dedication of the staff there to look after the pool as on our visit there the pool was well maintained and kept as clean as possible.

The steam bath and sauna are other great additional services provided by the hotel. These two are a great way for recreational purposes at the hotel and the guests could enjoy them after a good work out or relaxing swim.

THE SKYLINE RESTAURANT

The rooms at the Hotel Sabrina are categorized into three No hotel is complete without the food it serves its guests and that is where The Skyline Restaurant come in. situated at the upper floors of the hotel, the restaurant has been capturing the essence of the hotel successfully. The restaurant has an outdoor/indoor vibe and offers a view of the beautiful hills and the suburbs during the day. The décor of the restaurant has followed the theme of the hotel as it too plays with lighter and darker color in its ambiance. The furniture in the dining is in darker which complements the tile floors and wooded pillars in the restaurant. The restaurant has an open kitchen, meaning the diner get to see how their food is being prepared.

Talking about the food, the restaurant follows both buffet system and a la carte. While their buffet will provide you with the standard deal, but, if you want to indulge in other cuisines, a la carte menu provides a great deal of variation of cuisines from Western cuisine to Asian. However on special days, the restaurant hosts special events such as family barbeque and other similar events and a new terrace restaurant is soon to open featuring local and global BBQ varieties. Right next to the kitchen is the bar, where they serve from coffee to beverages to cocktails.

As a B&B hotel, they have a great range of breakfast for the guests. From continental to full English/Irish to Asian buffet, the breakfast buffet does not fail to deliver. These buffet have something for everyone may it be sausages to hash browns to puri tarkari.

The hotel also caters to parties and ceremonies in their banquet hall which is located below the reception floor. The ample space and the ambiance of the hall match the spirit of the hotel indefinitely.

All in all, a great hotel. Hotel Sabrina, although a new establishment, is definitely an elevated choice of hotel inside the city. With their great services, dedicated staff and a whole lot of features are what make this hotel splendid. Our stay at the hotel was a delight and an experience to last for a long while. Definitely a place to consider if you are travelling in the city.

WORDS BY BAIBHAV SHRESTHA

PHOTOS BY GAURAV XHOMPATE SUNUWAR