While the Peninsula Bangkok has been and remains my favorite hotel in the world--concededly in part because it is my "home" in Bangkok where I get to spend time with Mr. Megatop, my partner in a 12,000-mile Long Distance Relationship--I must agree that chilly to downright frosty check-in staff has been Peninsula Bangkok's weakest point since my first visit in 2001. The small jasmine garlands were a new touch on my stay about a week ago and were quite nice. But management needs to either invest in additional training of the check-in ladies or hire new ones. While check-out staff need to be entrusted with judgment and firm with guests griping about bills or threatening to stiff the place (a suprisingly common experience that luxury hotels must endure, costing the rest of us dearly), check-in staff ought to be the friendliest, warmest, and most bubbly personalities in the hotel. The challenge is finding the right balance, no doubt. Thai culture is among the most warm and welcoming to foreigners of any in Asia, so it should not be difficult to find warm check-in staff.
The front desk staff have not been uniformly cold. A few of the ladies I have encountered have been better than others. And one young fellow, who goes by the nickname "Khun X" may be one of the friendliest and warmest staff members I have met at Peninsula Bangkok (that I know his nickmane is an indication of the personal touch he delivers). He handled check-in arrangements for me and Mr. Megatop about a year ago, performing with great warmth and professionalism. He was not working when we checked-in at last Christmas and New Year's, but when we happened to cross paths later during our stay, he remembered me from seven months earlier and made a point to welcome me back. This time, he happened to be working when I arrived, and handled checkin as before. Knowing that Peninsula Bangkok has become my home in that city, he even said "Welcome Home" as he opened the door to the very same room as we'd stayed in over New Year's. Would that all of his colleagues were so good.