I stayed at Park Hyatt Bangkok a while back and had a so-so stay therefore I waited a while thinking that rates would drop before I would try again.  Surprisingly rates have stayed in the 9k THB range and hotel occupancy seems to be doing fine so I kept choosing other hotels.  However with recent improvements to the Hyatt Best Rate Guarantee program I found a good rate and it was perfect timing to give it another try.  My expectations were moderate and I can say this hotel has definitely improved since last time.  I feel more comfortable now recommending PH to Hyatt Globalists. Because I have stayed a few times at Waldorf Astoria and St.Regis Bangkok recently it is still fresh in my memory so I can provide a comparison of the three properties in this review.  

Check In

I was contacted a few days ahead of time by e-mail and was asked what time our flight was arriving and whether we needed transportation.  I responded that we would be transferring from Waldorf Astoria Bangkok therefore we did not have a fixed arrival time but I asked them to call me once our room was ready.  Given reports of service issues by others I was not entirely sure if they would remember to call me.  I saw online the day before our arrival that corner rooms and suites were no longer available so I was prepared for the fact that we would possibly receive an upgrade no better than a deluxe room.  To my surprise, I got a call at 8am informing me that they had blocked a Park Deluxe Suite for us, that our room was ready and we could come over from Waldorf whenever we wanted.  That definitely started our stay on the right foot.  I was pleased that they not only proactively called, that the room was available early, but also that we had an upgrade one notch above the Park Suite when the hotel had high occupancy.

Upon arrival at the hotel after presenting our documents at reception we were escorted to the room for check-in which was nicer than waiting around the reception area.  After check-in was complete we were informed that our luggage would follow shortly.  After 20 minutes we still did not have our luggage so I called to ask.  Later on the chap with whom I had exchanged e-mails and who called me earlier that morning came to the room to introduce himself, along with another colleague.  They welcomed us back to the hotel and hoped that our stay would be better this time and thanked us for giving them another chance.  We had a nice chat regarding differences between PH and St.Regis particularly since one of them used to work there as a butler and during our conversation our luggage arrived.  All in all the check-in and arrival were good although if I had not called I wonder if they had forgotten about our suitcases but in the grand scheme of things, not a big deal.  

Room

Last time we had a corner room and we thought for a non-suite it was quite spacious = one of the better non-suite upgrades we had received from other hotels.  Compared to our room this time, the main advantage of the deluxe suite is that the living room is separate from the bedroom so it’s a formal suite.  Total space available is not very different from the corner room and views can be similar depending on room assignment.  While I liked the deluxe suite, I don’t think most people should be bummed if they miss the cut on suite upgrades unless they highly value the living room being separate.

The living room of the deluxe suite has nice curved windows with good natural lighting and the views are nice but not at the same level as some rooms at StR or WA which oversee the golf course and the city sky line in the distance.  I like the light colors of the PH room except for the greenish chairs which do not match as well with the rest of the room, but nonetheless the room is bright and I personally like the feeling better than the Met Suite or Grand Met Suite at St.Regis where those rooms are in the back of the building and do not have the same window frontage (limited view) and are darker.  The quality of the construction is weaker at PH than St.Regis and some furniture is on the cheap side (Ikea style).  However StR is an 8-year old hotel so the condition of the room is not to the same level as PH at this point in time, so all in all I was not particularly disturbed by the room at PH even though in a few years it might be a different story and for PH standards they should have probably spent a bit more on furniture.  There were also a few minor issues for example the floors are cracking in some spots when you walk and are inferior to the hardwood floors at StR and Waldorf. The bathroom at PH does not have windows which I like in the Grand Met Suite at StR and in all suites at WA, but other than that the PH bathroom might be my favorite of the three.  First off it is much larger than the bathrooms at WA and it’s more modern than those at StR.  While I did not think the living room of PH was fantastic, the quality and the design of the bathroom are definitely a notch above the living room so it is a strong point.  Colors are soft and lighting is very good so the lack of windows was not particularly problematic.  One disadvantage of PH in terms of bathrooms is that there is no half bathroom despite the deluxe suite being the second category of suites.  If you want 1.5 bath you need the third category of suites which is the Park Executive Suite.  At StR, even the entry level suite has 1.5 bath.  At WA the entry level suite has 1 bath, but the second category of suites which is only 500 THB more expensive has 1.5.  

In the bedroom there was a view of the area behind the hotel and being on the 24th floor, unlike other reports we were not overly disturbed by noise from the street, but you can clearly hear.  During the day there was also some distant construction noise.  

This being a newer hotel, there are convenient international power plugs and USB ports on both sides of the bed.  The bed was a bit hard and less comfortable than at StR and WA although I would mention that it was great to have a pillow menu for additional comfort. Air conditioning worked very well in our room and we had a cool night of sleep.  

Bathroom amenities are the Park Hyatt standard Le Labo products, which I like from my stays not only at PH but also at Fairmont hotels.  I am glad this PH is following brand standards, unlike St.Regis Bangkok where you do not get the standard Remède amenities.  

As a final note about the room, in terms of tech features PH is obviously more modern than StR for example you can open and close curtains with controls on the wall, there is a TV in the bathroom, etc. 

Dining

Breakfast is offered in the Embassy room 6am – 10:30am and until 11am on weekends, free for Globalists as expected.  In my opinion breakfast is on par with the Park Hyatt brand in Asia.  If someone could be tempted to compare the new Hyatt Regency Sukhumvit to Park Hyatt Bangkok for room hardware because both are newer hotels, the comparison is certainly not going to be extended to breakfast.  The choice of fruits at PH is superb – mangoes, passion fruits, strawberries, and even mangosteens and salacca fruits which I rarely see in hotels.  To go along the buffet there is an a la carte menu which I found to be more extensive than the limited menu at StR or WA so people who are not big fans of a buffet will be satisfied at PH.  The buffet is of decent quality, but it is the a la carte menu which sets PH apart.  The seating arrangement at PH has several tables which are in more quiet areas if desired (in the Living Room rather than Embassy Room), so it’s a more peaceful breakfast than many other hotels which are hectic, Hyatt Regency and Grand Hyatt being two of them, also St.Regis does not have a particularly enjoyable setting in the restaurant.

Globalists get one hour of free flow drinks in a flexible time window between 5pm-8pm.  While one hour is more restrictive than hotels with a lounge, the quality of the drinks is higher than anything you can find in a lounge in Bangkok, and even more so since Athenee recently downgraded the choice of alcohol recently.   The only Bangkok hotels I have seen which can compete with PH for happy hour are Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit and Le Meridien where you get drinks at the bar (not a lounge).  PH has a choice of two reds, two white wines, two sparkling wines and a rosé sparkling wine, but unfortunately no cocktails.  The Globalist hors d’oeuvres buffet has been cut out and now it’s just small crunchy snacks and olives which is a bummer, but in any event one hour of drinks is more generous than what you get at StR or WA. If you don’t drink then it’s irrelevant but a couple could easily go through a bottle of bubbly at WA for 5-6k THB in the Champagne Bar so even if the room rate at PH is a bit higher than WA the reality is that the final bill might significantly lower at PH if you take advantage of wine hour and the value proposition of PH relative to StR or WA might not be what it seems at first glance depending if you drink or not.  

The room service menu of PH has more modest prices than WA and especially compared to StR.  Perhaps PH has the best prices of the three because they are exposed to more competition from the restaurants in the adjacent shopping mall where you can order take away and bring dinner to your room.

We had a light dinner one evening in the Living Room and it was excellent.  The fried rice had generous pieces of crab.

We went to the roof top bar one evening to try it out as we had not gone there previously.  We had a reservation but once we arrived at the bar they said there was no reservation in my name; there must have been a communication gap between staff at front desk and at the bar.  Fortunately the place was not very crowded so we could easily have a table.  The area is not very large but it is one of the nicer roof top bars in the city.  The ambiance was good with music and I liked the drinks menu.  

Gym

The fitness gym is nice and has a good number of machines available.  The equipment is not quite on par with WA but much better than the aging equipment at StR.

Pool

The swimming pool is attractive and it provides a nice view of the city.  The total space on the small size however, fortunately when I stopped by at 4pm on a week day there were many chairs available.  It might not be the case on weekends or at different times of the day.

Location

For the location, PH is without any doubt one of the best in Bangkok in my opinion.  PH is connected to Phloen Chit sky train station which is on the more convenient BTS line (Sukhumvit) for most travelers, in addition PH is connected to two shopping malls so that easily wins it for me relative to many other hotels.  

Service

Service overall was significantly better than my previous stay; my statement is based on a collection of several small details which were noticeable.  The welcome back and the call to inform me of early check-in being possible were definitely pluses.  Service felt more personal perhaps in part because we were repeat guest – nobody knew our name during our previous stay but it was different this time.  They had done their homework prior to our arrival and had noticed in my online profile that we stayed at Hyatt Regency Sukhumvit one month earlier and enquired what we thought about that hotel.  In addition a couple of days before check-out we had a cancelled flight and our flight time changed from 1pm to 1am.  We had to leave the hotel at 9pm and they agreed to cut out the last night of our stay, keep the room until 4pm and hang out at the property until our car was scheduled to pick us up.  Technically speaking since it was a BRG rate I do not think they necessarily had to do it because dates cannot be changed on BRG even for flexible bookings, so it was a good gesture on their part.  During our stay I needed to buy a small item and I asked at reception where I could find it in the shopping mall attached.  Not only they told me where to go, but they also offered to go buy it themselves in case I did not have the time to go myself.  As another example of service and the clear desire to ensure we were having a good stay, on the evening of departure during dinner, staff from reception proactively stopped by to ask if all went well with our stay this time and asked feedback for example about the quality of breakfast.  It made us feel that this time they wanted to please and were genuinely interested in comments on how to improve if something was off.  I am not a regular of PH as much as StR at this stage so perhaps it’s not the most fair comparison in terms of how well staff knows us and the service they can provide, but I can say for sure based on my experience that PH is trending in the right direction regarding service for a repeat guest.  One service improvement they could make is give a laundry benefit of some sort, right now StR gives 8 pieces per day for a couple which leaves PH and WA in the dust.

Wifi

Wifi worked well during the entire stay, 30 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload.

Common Areas

The hotel might not have a lounge, but there are several common areas which are very nice to sit down and read or work. 

Overall

Overall we had a good stay and significantly better than the previous time.  Globalist benefits were quite good with the suite upgrade which is competitive with upgrades at StR and WA, also wine hour for Globalists is more generous than at StR and WA.  I think PH has narrowed the gap with StR generally speaking and particularly for service.  If you drink for happy hour and if you value a great breakfast, PH can be worth the extra money.  Various people will value different aspects differently, but after my most recent stay the main thing that changed for me is that if the price for my dates is not too different between StR and PH I might now choose PH (PH is usually priced higher than StR), but if the price difference is 2k THB or more then I think StR remains a solid value choice.  PH is often a bit more expensive than WA but PH being the most generous for happy hour and WA being the stingiest, if you intend to drink at the fantastic Champagne Bar of WA then your final bill will easily exceed what it would be at PH.  PH beats WA for location but for the rest WA will provide more but at a higher price, and the price difference is warranted. That said, for people with Globalist status who care more about comparisons to Grand Hyatt and Hyatt Regency, I can recommend PH more than in the past.  GH and HR are in a lower hotel class so comparisons are not straightforward. My previous opinion was that GH and HR offered better value for the money than PH for Globalists but in light of my most recent stay I am more positive on PH given the better upgrade and the improved service.  I now believe that the better value will depend mostly on what an individual traveler is looking for.  For room upgrades PH and HR are the best, GH being the laggard because there are not as many suites in the hotel (not due to lack of willingness to upgrade).  For breakfast PH is the best by far, GH is good, and HR is a bit disappointing.  For happy hour, hotels with lounges will almost always offer the best value although PH has the better quality drinks.  HR is a new hotel with good hardware but it’s not exactly cheap in fact often priced above GH or other competitors in this hotel category such as Athenee (Luxury Collection).  I like GH and it has recently dropped in price but it’s an older property so many guests would find PH much more suitable for their needs and worth the premium over GH.  All in all in the PH price range I still prefer WA but I like to mix things up rather than stay at only one property, PH has improved in my opinion and I was quite happy with my stay, so I will definitely return.