Inside the 'world's first' five-star cat hotel

Spa and grooming services, temperature controlled rooms and a “dating service” for female cats are among the luxury offerings at Malaysia’s Catzonia – the “world’s first” five-star hotel for cats. Manned by feline-loving staff, the 35-bedroom cattery in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur promises to pamper pets while their owners are away.

(The 35-room hotel is manned by feline-loving staff CREDIT: EPA/Fazry Ismail)

Cats can stay in one of four room categories, including a VVIC (Very Very Important Cat) room – the hotel’s most luxurious offering. The VVIC room can fit up to 10 adult cats (or one mother cat and her kittens) and comes with three “king”-sized beds, a mini-playground, and a separate toilet.

The other rooms, which can accommodate between three and seven cats, come with either a “queen”, “double” or “single” bed and up to three feeding and cleaning sessions per day. Some have a shower facility and, weirdly, Wi-Fi, while all rooms come with air-conditioning.

The VVIC and VIC rooms also come with CCTV, allowing anxious cat owners to monitor their pets 24 hours a day by using a phone app.

Cats can also indulge in a range of grooming options including a “medicated grooming” service, which uses a special shampoo that help cure cats' skin and clear out the fleas.

The feline guests can enjoy stays between three hours and a year at Catzonia. The rooms are priced from RM 25 (£4.50) per night. “We believe, the cats need holidays too. They always prefer to be treated as a boss. It means the environment must be felt like home, always being cuddled and hugged, and most importantly they don't want to feel lonely," the hotel claims on its website.

(Anxious owners can monitor their cats via the hotel's CCTV cameras CREDIT: EPA/Fazry Ismail)

Catzonia is the latest among a host of cat and other pet-friendly hotels around the world.

Closer to home the Longcroft luxury cat hotel in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire features a luxurious hotel suite complete with four-poster bed, state-of-the-art sound system and fine dining, including an “A La Cat” menu developed by a feline nutritionist, which boasts treats such as white fish, ethically fished yellowfin tuna or chicken liver balls.

The luxury cat hotel chain opened a second branch in Royston in 2014.

Across the pond, the Barkley Pet Hotel & Day Spa sits across the street from the Four Seasons hotel in Los Angeles. While guests at the Four Seasons can order breakfast in bed, have a massage or take a swim in the pool, pets staying at the Barkley can do the same and more. Guest suites for dogs at the Barkley provide individual climate and lighting control, soothing music and frequently freshened air. Cats have smaller suites but are entertained by television screens featuring birds in flight and tropical fish swimming in a tank.

For those who take their pet's diet as seriously as they take their own, Barkley staff will order in steak from the Four Season's room service menu. There's ahi tuna sushi for the cats that don't like their dinner from a tin.

The Barkley also offers pet hotels in Mumbai, India and Cleveland, Ohio.

Ref: Inside the 'world's first' five-star cat hotel (telegraph)