Kagehitokiri

Pierre&Cdric, in the linked original discussion, even though i agreed with some, RodHK thought i was negative. i did not think pricesquire's response was worded badly, and pricesquire was not aware that the stay was 3 years ago during soft opening.

considering RodHK's original wording in linked thread, and 7 others commenting on GM, i think its clear that it is not just 1 new person who may have a personal issue. i should have made it clear who RodHK was. it was NOT their 3rd post. that was my mistake.

this thread (linked in my last 2 posts) http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...l#post21722484

i definitely agree that negative reports are incredibly important and that it is unfortunate when there is 'cross talk' etc. i think it would also be very informative to see more discussion of service recovery, whether it is good or bad. very important part of service.

xracer

It was not my intent to suggest that everyone who had negative comments regarding Jason was homophobic. Because clearly this is not true.

I also think negative information in general is as valuable as positive information. I found the review by RodHK to be interesting. I think leaving off the fact that the stay was during the soft opening was a big omission, however.

I don't think anyone was particularly harsh to RodHK - certainly not enough to warrant a departure from the forum. People are going to disagree. This is usually a good thing.

I will say this about Jason. It was my impression of him that he was not one to humor someone who was complaining needlessly. Again, this is my impression, I never saw this behavior in action. When I was at the Tented Camp and he was camp manager, everything about our stay was wonderful - so my interactions with him were all very positive. Maybe he does not react well when guests are less than 100% happy. I don't know, but it's possible.

I hope to visit the Siam next year. Maybe I'll have a horrible time and will put Jason's service recovery skills to the test. I doubt this will happen, but you never know.

Kagehitokiri

i apologize. to try to clarify what i meant >

i recognize that the sentiments you described exist. however, in this particular case, the poster in question that we are replying to was not actually a new poster on their 3rd post, but someone on a second account who had already described their experiences. and more importantly, Fliar had commented earlier in THIS thread, which i followed up with a link to other comments. Fliar was not the only one or first one. i was referring to the existence of those comments, from other 6-7 people.

my comment "but would point to comments here" - to demonstrate that RodHK is one of 8 who have made comments here. it was not isolated new poster. (again, it was a mistake for me not to specify their previous account, and that they had posted in thread i linked.)

frankly, i added part you quoted, to provide context for some of my post. i didnt know how to word, and i obviously did poor job.

pricesquire

FWIW, I was in NO way/shape/form trying to disprove RodHK's Siam review. He's allowed his opinion, and when I agreed with it, I said "agreed."

The only reason I took such a bullet point approach to my response is more habit than attempting to disprove.

I'm an attorney - I spend enough time during my day trying to convince others and disprove opinions. I try not to let that carry over to the forum ^

PS, what was RodHK's previous name and - per Kage's post - that review was three years old?!! Maybe shoulda said something, no?

Kagehitokiri

my post 'organization' has sometimes been interpreted as having intentions i did not intend. in other words, sometimes its not even how/what was written, but how it was formatted/presented, that can be interpreted in different and unintended ways.

hopefully discussion can clarify any issues.

in post #42 above i included " RodHK / Amanaddicted "
see posts under latter name in siam thread i linked in my prior posts
started here http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/luxur...l#post21712719
(discussion also came up in other prior threads)

certain comments/things do apply over time
but smell might have been recent construction

pricesquire

Well, RodHK did mention that the view across the river is of an industrial plant. I posted a picture of the view across the way - of a hotel that seems to have been there for a decade or more..

RodHK

Good you are hardly defender of The Siam which is nice but from the villa, this building which is obviously an hotel looks like an factory plant, if I consider how factories look like in my country. Whatever, no need to talk longer about it. I just realize some people have had a fantastic stay at The Siam, maybe because they are close to Mr Friedman and consequently, they received the standard of service and comfort expected in such a luxury hotel. It wasn't my case and be sure I have a very very extensive experience of luxury hotels and most of the time, I have to say I'm very happy. And I've been even more upset about The Siam because, yes, this property is gorgeous and could be amazing if maintenance, cleanliness, management, service and views were up to the standards expected.
This is regrettable I have to arg my opinion that much.

RodHK

Is everybody calmed down?? Good because I have right to give my own experience about this hotel which is expensive for Bangkok and where I really didn't receive what I expect from a luxury hotel... I guess most of the defenders of the hotel are closed friends of the GM and I really don't like this kind of place where guests are treated so differently subject if they're friends of GM or just regular customers...
However, and I insist on it, The Siam has an incredible potential to be a fantastic hotel but for my point of view, it is not rightly managed because I really didn't feel special when I've stayed there...

pricesquire

I don't think anyone was up in arms - and I don't think anyone would claim you don't have a right to voice your opinion...as far as I'm concerned, everyone whose commented is on the same page.

This simply isn't true, yet it's repeated time and again as fact.

For the week I was in BKK, the Siam was less than the MO and $20/night more than the Pen. Highly comparable to those hotels.

The Mae Nam + Riverview suites at the Siam are often well within the $300 range, a steal IMO, and almost always "cheaper" than the MO for comparable rooms.

Of course, it all depends on season/time of year, but I don't think you've

Just throwing it out there - NOT "friends" with the GM. Met him twice, found him to be quite interesting, but we've maybe exchanged, in total, 15 minutes of conversation.

I will say that your second comment (re friends being treated differently than regular customers) sounds more like an Aman than anywhere else I've ever been.

EuropeanPete

At those rates the Siam looks unbelievable. I've only ever checked twice at random times and it was coming in at well over twice the Pen.

pricesquire

Start checking again - I had the same experience about a year ago. Stopped checking after that.

There WILL be times when the Siam is more. Period. But most of my searches yield results that are highly comparable to those of the Pen/MO.

Furthermore, a mistake many people make when searching rates is comparing the "entry level" rates of both hotels (MO/Pen vs. Siam). Most don't realize an entry level room at the Siam is a suite, not a 'standard' room. So if you're really going to compare prices, start comparing suite vs. suite (or, at minimum, look at square footage, etc).

Kagehitokiri

RodHK paid >

so

except >

i think i recall similar. maybe they tried higher rates for first ~2+ years (excluding opening promos) and in past year trying lower. thailand continues to have tough periods (of low incoming travelers) off and on. (recently?)

same thing at amans etc, especially aman tokyo. some only care about entry rate, especially if they are only booking entry room at less expensive property. so its value comparison, but perceived value will vary.

pricesquire

Makes sense to compare rates w/ visual proof just to dispel the myth.

Picked June 19-22 as sample dates for both the MO and the Siam.

This is one sample, nothing more, nothing less. But it is illustrative of what I'm getting at: I call baloney on those who simply throw out "Siam is most expensive hotel in BKK" // "Siam is double anything else in the city".... and so on.

Entry level Siam rooms vs. Entry level MO rooms:

Siam Suite - 860 s.f. - and the Mae Nam Suite - 970 s.f....the two entry level rooms



The two entry level rooms at the MO, the Superior and the Deluxe - both 480 s.f.



Highest possible cat. Siam rooms vs entry level MO suites:

Most expensive rooms available at the Siam...the villas, @ 1400 s.f. per.



Entry level suites @ the MO, 592 s.f. to 721 s.f.



So, now you may get why I roll my eyes when people throw around the cost argument as fact.....

Kagehitokiri

it is a myth now - you yourself said it was not a myth "about a year ago" and thats all my post stated

ah, establishing record of current comparison, always good

$795 MO state room - probably been rising faster than other rooms
number of 'best' rooms/categories at both hotels is definitely limited

pricesquire

My post/images weren't in response to your post.