Here’s My Experience of a Night of Terror in a Melaka Hotel… Should I Be Asking for a Refund?

By Syakir Roslan • 15 Feb 2023 in Horror/Mystery

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For illustrative purposes (source: Office Holidays)

Melaka. A beautiful city teeming with history, gorgeous locations, delicious food, some of the friendliest people you’ll ever meet and… ghosts?

Earlier this week, The Melaka Association of Hotels (MAH) addressed the issue of hotel patrons seeking refunds following claims of paranormal sightings.

For illustrative purposes (source: KapanLagi Plus)

The Star reported that many guests believe they saw “ghostly figures” in their rooms. MAH’s Melaka chapter exco member, Sazali Sabri, stated that these rumours were baseless and had been floating around for many years.

According to him, no concrete evidence had ever been found to support the claims and feels that some guests would only bring forth these issues after securing places to stay at which were closer to the city.

In regards to getting refunds, Sazali said that it would depend on the discretion of the hotel management should such an incident occur.

So What’s Up With All The Sightings?

For illustrative purposes (source: Youtube – Fiksyen Shasha)

Now I don’t know bout you but for me growing up, it’s always been embedded in my mind that Melaka as a whole is just keras (haunted).

Just off stories told by friends, family and even Malaccans themselves, The Historic State seems like a place that’s “spiritually active” despite its beauty and charm.

For illustrative purposes (source: Mashable SEA)

Growing up Asian, a large percentage of us are just superstitious by default and I’m guilty of falling into that stereotype.

You accept it but don’t really live in paranoia of being messed with by pesky ghouls. As the old folks say, jangan tegur (ignore and hope you don’t get eaten). But I didn’t think too much of it…

…Until It Happened To Me

Back in 2019, two family members and I went on vacation and stayed at a hotel in Melaka for two days. The main criteria of our hotel search was that it had to have a waterpark. It did. We didn’t go.

It seemed like a regular hotel when we checked in and the rooms were pretty affordable. I noticed how there weren’t many guests but figured that most people would have probably booked rooms in better hotels (respectfully).

That night, while the three of us were chilling and listening to some music, we suddenly heard:

3 Loud Knocks

For illustrative purposes (source: Penunggu – Jangan Sampai Terganggu)

They came from inside the bathroom. I was a little tired so I thought my mind was just playing tricks on me. That was until I looked to my cousin whose face was frozen in astonishment with eyes glued to the bathroom door.

I asked him if he’d heard what I did and was met with a jaw-opened nod. Mind you, this was only the first night! Since it was the holidays, we weren’t going to let a couple of mysterious knocks ruin our night so we thought nothing of it.

But that was just the beginning.

The Empty Lobby

The photo above depicts The Overlook Hotel from the classic horror hit, The Shining. Why am I showing you this? Because this was the exact vibe of the hotel lobby when I went down to buy snacks that very same night.

Sadly, the hotel’s convenience store was closed but what really tripped me out was the fact that the ENTIRE FLOOR was empty. Nobody was manning the concierge nor was there a guest in sight.

The only thing that filled the air was the sound of emptiness. Thankfully, that was the end of the spooky shenanigans or so I thought until I laid my eyes on…

The Lady By The Balcony

For illustrative purposes (source: Storyblocks)

On the second night, my cousin and I went out to a little balcony attached to our room for a quick smoke. As we were outside, I peered down and saw a lady in white.

Not hantu white but more of a business casual vibe to be honest.

She was staring expressionlessly which weirded me out so I just smiled and nodded. As she left, I asked my cousin what the lady’s deal was. He paused before looking at me and said “What lady?”.

So is Melaka truly haunted? A quick Google or YouTube search will reveal that YES IT IS NEVER BOOK A ROOM THERE OMG.

In all seriousness, Melaka in its entirety is among the loveliest places to stay at for a getaway. If you’re superstitious, just remember that everywhere’s haunted 👻 But if you’re not, more power to you!

Despite my weird little experience, I’d head on another trip to Melaka in a heartbeat. As far as hotel refunds go, if the disgruntled patrons are unionising, I want in (gotta get that guap back).