MO Bangkok
i would likely book stateroom, and or royal suite for amazing terrace, might be better than oriental suite.
Khun Ankana , for the record , is now in her nineties and finally sort of gave up working when Kurt left , but is still around in amazingly good health .
curious re upcoming MO residences across river, will minimum lease be a year, or shorter. (not sure re others in BKK.)
Last edited by Kagehitokiri; Aug 23, 2016 at 5:30 pm
I might think of stay in this hotel for the next visit.
So far I used to stayed in sukhothai hotel which was Thai traditional garden-style hotel, has great Thai restaurant.
Thanks
Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
48 Oriental Avenue Bangkok, TH 10500
Mandarin Oriental Bangkok ; pre River Wing 2019 renovations (33 Photos)
Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
MOBKK limo transfer
We arranged to be picked up from Chiva Som , Hua Hin , in MOBKK ‘ s BMW 7 L series . This is not our normal practice , usually airport round trips , but it may become the norm ;)
The MOBKK chauffeurs are all very skilled for Bangkok traffic / Thai roads ( other AMANjunkies & MO fans share similar views with me ) .
The Chiva Som to MOBKK transfer this time took about 3 smooth hours and in a comfortable vehicle model we are accustomed to . Cool AC about 16 C :) .
It took longer 14 years ago when the expressways were not ready .
Check In
What we see as we exit the elevators / lifts & ..
.. Our suite at the end to the right above
Other direction , our suite entrance - not in view - to the left of the orchids
We were warmly welcomed on arrival & brought to our suite immediately for check in . It was swift & explanations given about the suite .
With rather a number of things to recall , we forgot about the TV , but the floor butler soon came to the rescue .
Room
Very pleased with our corner river front suite .
Entry / foyer
Refreshments nook with Nespresso , etcetera . Our walk in closet behind
Upstream view at sunrise from our balcony
And downstream
To the side
The French Ambassador ’ s Residence ( & embassy - the modern white structure behind ) has also had some refurbishments through the years .
Beyond , the even more dilapidated no more potential AMAN BKK :(
The newly opened Siam Icon , huge shopping mall with 2 yet to be completed towering residential towers
Outdoor photos taken from our balcony
Lovely thick carpets / rugs on wood flooring
Voila ! Le TV
Night view upstream
Across to the MOBKK spa , Baan Rim Pla , culinary school and with a sliver of the crescent moon above The Peninsula
Bathroom & dressing / walk in wardrobe
‘We had views from the walk in & bathroom , 2 windows ! Thankfully with louvred wood blinds .
Fair size but the shower area was smaller than MOHK .
Shelves in the walk in , enough for all our hand carry / shopping .. plus generous area opposite where we could hang our clothes Note the window
Pool
“ Swimmable “ .
Morning swim
Fruits including bananas , passionfruit and sugarless iced tea is provided near one of the pre swim showers before the upper tier lounge areas
The children ‘ s pool away from the adult ( deep / overhead ) pool
Spa
The boat ride across to / fro the spa is as enjoyable as always . Spa treatment rooms seem the same , we changed double rooms . First with garden views , from floor to spa beds with double jacuzzi bathtub without a view .
The therapists were not as good as before & had some language issues . Perhaps changing rooms floored them ?
The 6 therapists we had at Chiva Som were better .
View of MOBKK from spa side
Oops , this was taken from Icon
This from the promenade where we wait for our boat while browsing the rather comprehensive Sala Rim Naam menus .
It is always enjoyable on these boat rides to & fro . How the skipper manoeuvres the even busier river traffic nowadays !
Dining
Well , with quite a number of options it is often difficult to decide . Being rather unseashot for this time of the year , we decided to dine in .
Our suite came with breakfasts . After the extremely healthy meals at Chiva Som , hmm , we were glad we could indulge again .
We had ours indoors , the Verandah , the heat & humidity outdoors was too much to bear for us especially if one was going to enjoy the meal . It was also buffet outside .
Our breakfasts were still somewhat healthy & was a mix of “ usual “ - scrambled eggs with smoked Tasmanian salmon , warm lemon crepes with .. - & Thai .
2 dinners at Lord Jim ‘ s ! The restaurant is being revamped so we thought we had better have our fill just in case we do not return in February . Who knows what the menu will be like .
Thinking about starting a petition not to remove the iconic aquarium . Our View has been made known to the management & owner :)
Then Le Normandie
Superb meal .. with a view
These 2 photos are to show how long it took me me get these shots with minimal river traffic .. and view of some of the corner state room / executive suite balconies currently the“ 12 “ series
Management Cocktail Reception
On Wednesday evening , the usual hour long cocktail party was hosted by management for select guests at the Authors ‘ Lounge . Decent cocktails & accompaniments were proffered befitting of MOBKK .
We made an appearance a tad late but thankfully some victuals were still available . Having skipped lunch , considering the amount consumed for breakfast , we were glad to have something to eat . They were surprised when I declined the cocktails / drinks and asked for Evian with ice ( by the way , nothing to do with imbibing Chiva Som ways ) .
Met the GM Greg L then , & some others of his team . We saw them on various occasions throughout our stay & chatted though not quite in our AMAN “ familial “ familiarity ( though close for a perhaps couple of long serving team ) .
It was quite a crowd . We sat near the library where it was quieter as a library ought to be .
A pity we missed FTer larkin then , we should have coordinated a bit better ( update the “ Where are you going next? “ thread )
Oh yes , there was a photographer on hand to take our photos .
The library near where we were seated . Many milling around but as you can see the library was quiet . ( The photos are cropped so the folks in them are not quite seen . )
Khun Ankana , who did not make this reception , is now 97 / 98 & doing well ..
Concierge
Decided to give the efficient concierge team a break .
However , they did help me make a call early yesterday / Friday morning to one of their limousines .
Service
Attention to detail and warm but not quite flawless .
Enjoyed the string quartet in the evenings by the lobby entrance , welcoming warmly or fond farewell
CHRISTmas decorations taken down . Ready for the Chinese / Lunar New Year - welcoming the Pig
All the staff tried to please .
Our ‘ floater ‘ floor butler was more experienced than the regular butler . He seemed a trifle timid or perhaps very strong “ Thai “ nature ? / language ? or newer on the job . Took a few times of persuasive approach on our part to communicate what was needed .
Khun Mayuree L , Director of Guest Relations , was wonderful . A real long time gem & her role suits her to the ‘ T ‘ .
From brief observations , this current management team is a strong one , arguably more so than MOHK ‘ s :)
Location
Always like being by the river , FWIW any river like at Huka Lodge ( preferably where it is more tranquil ) ;) .
But this is the Chao Phraya !
And on the correct / right bank , of course .
Convenient for us when on vacation . And when not , our friends , others will come and / or likely be chauffeured by them or their staff to wherever we need to be ..
.. Or maybe more expedient by river ..
Odds & Ends
Some changes in the shops & layout in the Authors ‘ Wing for the better .
The shops across the driveway are about the same .
The rather small cake counter ( no more a shop in the Authors ‘ Wing - how can one miss it but .. ) is now in the lobby area towards the lift bank .
The pool area is also part of the renovations .
The many photos are to have on record what it looks like now . Perhaps will do a comparison at year end post renovations .
MOBKK is immensely popular with the locals .
For instance , late Thursday night , preparations began for a wedding on Friday . The event started with the bridal party arriving about 8 am with a band playing to welcome them . This could be heard from the pool area , think only 3 guests present then .
Could resist showing this to you ;)
Marzipan model of The Oriental , currently in the lobby pastry counter
not only the outside but the intricate insides too !
Overall
What more can I say .. ?
Thus ends another wonderful stay ..
.. Shall I return in a week for the post SIN DO ;) ( as of now , none seem to be staying here ) ?
This is a nice review from yesterday's Telegraph...
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/luxury/t...angkok-review/
This is a nice review from yesterday's Telegraph...
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/luxury/t...angkok-review/
River Wing renovations begin in March & optimistically the re opening will be by November .
In midst of my TR
Thanks for posting the Telegraph review
It is still high season though marginally less busy compared to last week , & considering we only decided to move our stay on New Year ‘ s day - rather than later in the month , relieved that we had a decent suite .
Will get more information about the renovations .. More like MOLandmark or MOHK ?