Aloft Bangkok - Sukhumvit 11, Thailand [Master Thread]
I'm also wondering if I don't pay for breakfast will I get it as an elite member....
When I purchase my ticket I'll have a clearer picture on what choices I have to make.
I'm also wondering if I don't pay for breakfast will I get it as an elite member....
When I purchase my ticket I'll have a clearer picture on what choices I have to make.
As for breakfast, I can't speak for aLoft, but when I had early flights and checked out before the breakfast was available, the W was more than happy to pack me up a breakfast to go and have it delivered to my room before checking out or would have it waiting at the front desk for me. Most of my flights leaving Bangkok have been early and this is something they started asking me proactively, so it doesn't hurt to ask about it at whatever property you stay at. Not sure how this all works with the pandemic and Test & Go - I won't find out until the end of December.
I'm also wondering if I don't pay for breakfast will I get it as an elite member....
When I purchase my ticket I'll have a clearer picture on what choices I have to make.
From my understanding, the hotel are selling these as packages, so no lowering of the price due to status-provided breakfast, etc. Does seem to be some opportunity for upsell for rapid test results as some hotels. Would think private airport transport would be another.
Note that they do need to use a "special" vehicle, with plexiglass separating driver from passenger(s). Heard some rumor that the quick up-tick on November 1 was causing these to be in high demand. Hopefully they outfitted some more and have it better available now.
As for the area, everything is open. Bars are busy, restaurants are serving away so it's a lot different than some other areas. If I could get a deal on a suite I would think about staying a few days maybe on the weekend but it's hard when the rooms are so small and no upgrades to suites are given in line with brand regulations.
Turns out that in room dining is NOT 24 hours as it says in the room menu so keep that in mind. The Rooms Operator came by and offered me a comped lunch (politely declined) the following day and that she will update the in room menu hours accordingly which for me is the most important thing.
Last edited by reggiekush; Dec 7, 2021 at 2:50 am
Hotel is zoned into 2 blocks. Normal guests until 20th floor and AQ (quarantine) 21st and above until the top. As any suite would be in the AQ zone, no upgrade was given. Pre-pandemic got a suite sometimes.
As Ambassador got welcome amenity inside the room (few raisins, 2 dates and 1 brownie on a plate) and drink voucher (pool or lobby bar).
Room itself was not bad, I liked the working desk next to the window. However main challenge was that the room was humid and the AC did not remove the humidity. The floor was constantly pretty wet and the furniture was covered with moist. They offered de-humifier. When plugged in it showed that in-room humidity levels were at 95%, after the device working overnight, got down to 74%, which was okay. The hallways seemed quite humid as well, I suspect that they have scaled down ventilation to save costs.
Breakfast is a buffet with decent selections, some of the hot options are changing, one of which is fish - yesterday had whitefish, today warm saba. There was also warm dish with shrimps and other seafood. Some Indian options as well as quite some guests seemed to be Indians. There were also cheeses, decent salad options and even cold cuts of duck.
Aloft Bangkok - Sukhumvit 11
Aloft Bangkok - Sukhumvit 11
35 Sukhumvit Soi 11 Klongtoey-nua, Wattana Bangkok, TH 10110
Aloft Bangkok = Budget Choice if Suite Not Needed (17 Photos)
Aloft Bangkok - Sukhumvit 11
I stayed for the first time at Aloft Bangkok, one of the last few remaining Marriott properties I had not tried in Bangkok before. My overall takeaway was that the standard room was quite nice as they got rid of the carpet, but for people who value suite upgrades it’s not a good fit because they only have 1 junior suite to upgrade to.
Room
The hotel has 6 suites but 5 of them are premium suites and therefore not what Ambassador Elites (or Titanium) could expect as an upgrade. For the lone junior suite, stars have to align to score a suite upgrade at this hotel, and anyway Aloft is not a brand that participates in the Bonvoy suite upgrades so in theory the hotel is not even required to upgrade at all as per the terms & conditions.
I arrived at 3pm and I was told that the junior suite was occupied by another guest who was leaving at 5pm and that I could get the suite at 7pm if I wanted, to allow 2 hours for housekeeping to clean the room. In addition I was offered a standard room to use between 3-7pm which was a nice gesture and I took the offer.
The standard room exceeded my expectations to be honest, I had previously read about issues of humidity and a mold smell but there was none of that in my room. The rooms used to have carpet and removing it probably helped matters.
The junior suite looked a bit more aging simply because of the flooring and I did not like that aspect much. However for an Aloft brand hotel the bathroom was quite spacious and the room overall as well (60 sqm), almost double the entry level room 32 sqm. The suite also had a jacuzzi bathtub in addition to the stand-alone shower whereas the normal room only had the shower.
I am allergic to mold so I was a bit reluctant to stay at Aloft considering what I read before. Thankfully there was no humidity and no mold smell, but unfortunately during the night I sneezed and my nose was congested. After I shut off the air conditioning above the bed I got better and I could sleep. Allergies can be hard to pin down so it might not be related to anything about Aloft but it could also be that the mold issue has not been resolved 100% yet and that some might have been coming through via the ventilation system.
Dining
The restaurant for breakfast was an attractive venue with high ceilings and a table set-up not cramped at all. Not bad for the most inexpensive Bonvoy hotel in Bangkok when at the other end of the spectrum St.Regis squeezes guests together in a relatively unpleasant environment. The food was ok considering the price of Aloft; it’s clearly below the various Marriotts (Sukhumvit 57, Surawongse, and Marquis) but in my opinion it was adequate for Aloft.
Service
I did not stay at the hotel very long (only 1 night stay) but my interactions with staff were good and nothing stood out negatively about service. I would note that I had a quite low rate booked a few months prior when covid restrictions had not been lifted yet. I wanted to shift my stay by one week without having to rebook at higher rates and via the Ambassador service the hotel agreed to move my date without changing my rate which was a good gesture.
Wifi
Wifi worked well with speed of 50-60 Mbps.
Overall
Overall I thought Aloft was decent considering the price even if I had not received a suite upgrade. For people who don’t intend to spend a lot of time at the hotel and need a place to crash, Marriott’s budget option in Bangkok can be considered.
It has almost been 5 years since Khun Poon (Duangpai Rungreangaree) left the Westin (as a HM) to head the Aloft Bangkok.
Anyway I just spent nine minutes measuring the suite with conventional garbage out of obsession and it's just shy of 500 square feet (within the walls) for anyone curious
Edit: also a lowly plat booked on points, I really do wonder why I got the upgrade for two nights
Last edited by asovse1; Sep 6, 2022 at 7:02 am
Anyway I just spent nine minutes measuring the suite with conventional garbage out of obsession and it's just shy of 500 square feet (within the walls) for anyone curious
Edit: also a lowly plat booked on points, I really do wonder why I got the upgrade for two nights
The check-in at 3:30am might be part of why you were upgraded, I think early check-in or even normal check-in time would make it difficult.
Locations is amazing if you are looking to explore the city and have a fun night if dining and drinking. Will likely be back!