For a bachelor party in Bangkok, I recommend you
avoid The Rembrandt on Suk 18 and
avoid The Davis on Rama IV Road.
Why?
Bad locations.
Suk 18 is a very nice street, quiet, lots of trees, almost looks suburban.
A nice place for families.
And that's who stays at The Rembrandt -- families, lots of families.
But walk out of The Rembrandt's front door, and what do you see?
A quiet street with trees, a 7-Eleven type store, a tailor shop -- and that's about all, except for the inevitable taxi sharks loitering under the trees.
Yes, you can walk from The Rembrandt to Soi Cowboy, but you must climb up the over pass on Sukhumvit Road both going there and coming back.
That means you'll be hot and sweaty by the time you get to Soi Cowboy, and do you really want to climb two flights of stairs on your way back?
Or take a taxi.
For almost everything you want to do, to and from The Rembrandt, you'll need to take a taxi.
Avoid The Rembrandt.
The Davis is very modern, very "flash".
But the location is awful.
Rama IV Road is a never-ending traffic jam.
The neighborhood is old, dirty, depressing.
There is no skytrain, no subway, anywhere close.
There are a few restaurants out front, but that's all you'll find in the neighborhood.
Well, there are two, large, Wal-Mart type stores and a gas station nearby, but you aren't coming to Bangkok for that.
There is no nightlife, no fun, not anywhere around The Davis.
So, again, you are getting in a taxi going and coming.
The Davis has a tuk-tuk golf cart to take you the nearest skytrain station.
But one trip in a tuk-tuk, behind a slow truck belching diesel smoke, and you'll not want an encore.
Avoid The Davis.
Now, where can you stay?
The Novotel Lotus on Suk 33 is a superb location, but may not be such a superb hotel for your bachelor party.
The hotel is average.
3-star rooms above a 4-star lobby, like many hotels in it's price range in Bangkok.
The pool is a concrete slab with a rectangular hole in the middle.
The gym is a dingy, stuffy, narrow room with rather old equipment.
The main attraction at the Novotel Lotus is the Indian Restaurant.
And that tells you something about the ownership and management of that hotel.
The operator is Accor, but the owner and the manager are East Indian.
I avoid staying at East Indian hotels in Thailand.
But that location -- Sukhumvit soi 33 -- is ideal for a bachelor party in Bangkok.
Take one step outside your front door, and you are in the middle of a party, a huge party that starts at sundown and goes on 'till very late, every single day of the year.
You don't need to wait for any "full moon".
There are dozens of bars, sports bars, restaurant bars, pool bars, bar-bars, lots of variety and lots of other entertainment for the rowdiest bachelor party.
And Suk 33 is relatively very safe.
You don't find the street hustlers and lady-boy pickpockets that are so common in the other foreigner party areas.
Plus, you won't need to worry about a taxi or other transportation to get there or back:
When the party is over, just a few steps down the street, and you are back at your hotel.
But which hotel?
Instead of the Novotel Lotus, I suggest instead a small, boutique hotel in the same block, Livingstone's.
Has about 20 rooms -- all new and modern.
Some rooms have Jacuzzi tubs.
There is a large and beautiful swimming pool on the ground floor.
They have an excellent restaurant, specializing in grilled meats.
The Argentina fillet mignon is delicious.
And Livingstone's has a pool-bar on the premises.
Some of the pool-playing hostesses are positively stunning.
And, like all the bars in the area, the hostesses are available for rent.
If that's what you want to do, simply walk upstairs to your room.
Livingstone's is the best location I can think of for a bachelor party.
Here is the Livingstone's web page:
http://www.livingstones.co.th/
And here a web page with more details about Sukhumvit Soi 33:
http://www.bangkokbob.net/soi33.html
However ...
First however: Sukhumvit 33 is not the cheapest area of Bangkok.
Prices for food, drinks, rooms and rentals of all kinds will be a bit higher than in some other areas.
Not much by our standards, a dollar here or two dollars there.
But that's a consideration for some visitors.
On the other hand, that extra dollar or two does keep out the riff-raff.
And in Bangkok, there's a lot of riff-raff.
It's worth a few dollars to avoid.
Second however: If you are thinking about bringing any new friends back to your hotel room, you need to know about the "guest fee".
Some hotels charge extra to bring back a lady guest for the evening, even for just an hour or two.
You can reserve a double room and it doesn't matter:
If you are a foreign man, bringing a local lady back to your room, the hotel will charge the guest fee.
Usual amounts are US$ 10-15.
Some hotels do, some don't.
I don't know about the hotels mentioned above, but if that's a problem, best to ask first.
Just send email or a fax saying, "I want to make a reservation at your hotel for 5 rooms for 2 nights. But first a question: What is your extra charge to bring lady guest to the room?"
You may get a reply about that, or maybe not.
Many business in Thailand have an email address, but that's as far as they go.
Many don't actually answer the emails.
In Thailand, I've learned that fax sometimes gets a reply, where emails don't.
There are cheaper hotels and cheaper locations than I've mentioned above.
But, for a bachelor party in Bangkok, with the emphasis on "party", I know of no better location than Sukhumvit 33.
I have no connections whatsoever to any of the businesses mentioned above.
However, I have been an occasional customer at The Rembrant, Novatel Lotus, and Livingstone's.
If specific questions, you are welcome to send email or private message.
-- Peter