The Sunway Resort Lagoon Hotel by John Borthwick

It looks like the set for "Gidget Goes to Persepolis" or perhaps "The Valley of the Kings Goes to Vegas." It's hard to encompass all the cultural allusions poured into the giant Sunway Lagoon complex — a resort-cum-waterpark-plus-shopping mall-with-convention centre — at Petaling Jaya, 30 minutes drive from Kuala Lumpur.

Mock-Moorish domes shade rampaging concrete elephants, while faux bronze tigers pursue petrified deer — and you're still in the driveway. The lobby, a postmod caravanserai of copper-bronze tones and marble sheen, is a little more tranquil. Lurking in corners is an amount of female statuary whose neo-Classical flourishes are coyly undraped, but not so far as to offend neo-Islamic fundamentals. If it all sounds like Cecil B. de Mille's architect on a date with H. Rider Haggard's interior decorator, this may be an injustice. The creativity, playful historicism and even tastefulness of much of the interior redeems this five-star hotel from being "Son of Sun City".

Sunway Lagoon Resort is also a serious business hotel with 441 rooms and suites, each equipped with voice mail, fax line, IDD phone and safe. The 73 luxurious suites feature creatively decorated honeymoon suites, and suites with themes like the Wild Wild West, Arabian Nights and Hollywood. The Presidential Suite commands a panoramic view of the lagoon. Floors designated as "Club Classic" have further facilities for executive travellers and there's a business centre with video conferencing and full secretarial service.

The resort, located between Kuala Lumpur and the industrial centre of Shah Alam, was designed as a fun escape while still being within striking distance of the capital. The extensive leisure facilities make it especially good for families, with a Kiddie Camp for childcare, a large shopping mall next door and attractive weekend rates. Leisure facilities include gym, spa (with sauna and steam bath), jogging track, tennis and squash courts.

Many guest rooms overlook the waterpark's azure pool; at 13,000 square metres it's the world's largest wave pool (and is suitably located in a former quarry). Roller coasters and water slides also look down on the pool. Effective glazing on the guest rooms shields your ears from the shrieks of young creatures from the blue lagoon as they ride the mini-tsunamis, waterslides and roller-coasters.

Sunway Lagoon Resort has half a dozen restaurants and cafes. With a cuisine that's on the cusp of east, west and everywhere, there's Continental, Japanese, Cantonese and American-Italian fare.

Next door to the hotel, the Pyramid Mall is equally postmod parodic. The facade features a neo-Pharaonic bas-relief depicting ancient Egyptians making withdrawals from an ATM. As well as shops, there's an ice-skating rink, 48-lane bowling alley and ten cinemas to distract you from the distractions. By evening you may need a Malaysia reality check. There's a good choice of entertainment in Sunway — plenty of scrumptious hawker food, stalls selling cheap CDs and DVDs, plus pubs and noodle restaurants.