Unbeknown to many, a hidden gem offering unobstructed views of the glorious sunsets over the Gaya Bay exists.

It is on the 25th floor of the newly opened Mercure Hotel and hotel officials were waxing lyrical about how the breathtaking views of the sun setting over the South China Sea horizon can be enjoyed in air-conditioned comforts of rooms on the hotel's higher floors, or the 25th.

Speaking to reporters at a cocktail party to introduce the elevated attractions recently, Mercure's General Manager, Jacques Leizerovici, said the Compass Lounge on the 25th floor is just one of the attractions of the 310-room hotel. Part of an international chain, Mercure Kota Kinabalu has four food and beverage outlets - the all-day Maupassant, a café in the lobby, Phileas café, Italian restaurant, Fratini's and Compass Lounge.

The hotel also offers a meeting and function rooms on the 25th floor, which can accommodate up to 40 people in a banquet setting.

Jacques first came to Sabah 11 years ago and confessed to ‘falling in love' with it.

His workforce comprises 95 percent local Sabahans, and with his dictum that ‘Mercure Better Than A Hug', he is trying to entice the workers' buy-in to embrace the hotel.

Pledging to achieve a standard of service that surpasses others in the city, Jacques described Mercure as a one-of-a-kind 4-star hotel which caters to business and leisure travellers.

"We have an ideal location for the social and corporate event" he said of the hotel which is located a stone's throw from the Suria Sabah shopping mall, and a short walk to Kota Kinabalu's banking district and the popular Gaya Street Sunday Fair.