jclia

Vince Chan

I stayed here yesterday and today at The Athenee, I only get a small UP at the Athenee but Marriott giving me a three bedroom apartment..however I end up prefer the Athenee more...the location of Marriott is certainly not for tourist, nothing nearby and nothing to see from your window unless you are facing the pool/edition hotel side, and also as above mentioned the bathtub is long enough but very shallow , breakfast in 10 :20 am sold out most of food in weekends which closed in 11...

barracuda93

Anyone can compare this Marriott to Marquis? Thinking where to redeem a free night cert.

FlyingXplorer

Booked two weeks using cat 5 certs. Seems like the location sucks, but the rest seems to be great. Will see how much of an impediment the location is.

Vince Chan

Anyone have email of this hotel?

jrey

I have stayed at both. Marques is much better. Better access to the sky train, better food in the club lounge. Marriott Surawongse is new but that's it. Food in the M club was surprisingly disappointment. You will need a taxi to get there if you don't like driving in Bangkokor walking about 1 miles from the train station.

Midwestgirl22

I really wanted to stay here for a one day layover, the rooftop pool looks amazing but you guys are definitely swaying me with the location.

We have an overnight stopover in Bangkok after 2 days of travel and I just want to unwind, relax by the pool, enjoy the lounge, and get a good nights sleep. I would be taking a taxi or grab (uber) to and from the airport. MIGHT want to taxi somewhere to check out a bar at night but probably content staying at the property.

Thoughts or is it just too remote and far away from the main stuff in Bangkok and the airport?

UASPG

Not many people were hopeful on that hotel before it opened, given the location (not far from the river, but not on the river, not close to a BTS or MRT station, not in a very popular area), but it seems that, so far, it is a success in terms of occupancy and popularity with the guests (#1 on TA).

From what I understand, the architecture of the building is quite nice (same as the one of the LMBKK).

I'll probably spend a night or two, during a trip toward the start of next year, to check things out.

Midwestgirl22

How did your trip go?

Kacee

Several of the Marriott Bangkok properties quite obviously pump their TA ratings with fake reviews, so I wouldn't pay much attention to that.

Location, not within walking distance to BTS, would be a total deal killer for me.

exploreaswego

We stayed here for our last night in BKK during late Oct. We did mostly Hilton properties (don't shoot me!) in Asia during to the massive promo over Marriott, and Marriott booking system (constant error out and outage) was a .... show when I was finalizing my travel plans. On and all, we were glad we give this new property a shot.

To sum it all up, we've been to the Conrad, newly opened WA, Hilton at Sukhumvit, hands down in terms of satisfaction of stay, the Marriott Surawongse won our hearts. Maybe also because we were Plat Premier, the staff were extra attentive to our needs. We were diamond with Hilton too, but the level of attention was incomparable. From check in, to suite upgrade, to all the hand written notes from management and M Lounge staffers, we felt so spoiled. We also noticed the staffing are a younger bunch, maybe they connect with us better as Millennials; they are also very willing to go the extra mile when something is requested.

The next highlight was the M lounge, the decor to service felt like we were at a JW, no kidding. Spectacular views, free flow of alcoholic beverage and dedicated chef station for cooked food with different nightly themes. We happened to arrive for Thai night, where they made Thai oyster omelettes and a bunch of other thai entrees, and light refreshments.

I might be biased, but the design resonated a feeling of a very inviting luxury residential living space than a hotel. Compared to the ultra luxury WA, the WA designs and layout felt more like a luxury mall than a living space. Layout of our M Suite was spectacular; clean, modern, contemporary designs with a Thai twist. We lucked out as our view overlooked the pool by a few floors. 2 41" TV mirrored back to back, 1 for the living room and 1 for the BR, with a sliding door for privacy the divide the room. Comfortable dining table by the open concept dry bar. The bed was heavenly! Usually we get mattress that are too soft, but over here, it was just right for us. There were sufficient electric ports through the rooms and by the night stand, the space was very well thought out. We asked what was the difference between the 1 BR suite and the junior suite aka M Suite, and front desk said that 1 BR suite comes with an island dining kitchen and sink.

The speakeasy/chinese inspired rooftop bar was mindblowing. It's so chic that I thought I was at a W back in the days when they had done things so well.
Complimentary snacks, accompanying my delicious cocktail with insane views of the city! It was a double tier bar, ample dining and sitting space, and each nook and cranny gave a really open atmosphere but feeling private at the same time.

Now for the hiccups, when we arrived the pool was under maintenance, it wasn't complete until 12pm the next day. The hotel was giving complimentary shuttle services to the W pool for the inconvenience. So nbd, but we didn't go to the W.

Due to the new merged program, Marriott hotels do not offer elites bfast at their signature restaurant, so we are only limited to the M lounge. It wasn't a deal breaker for us, but when we stayed at all the hiltons, it was nice to be given an option to choose where you want your comp bfast.

The bathroom layout was kindda odd. You have the tub beside the open concept glass windows overseeing the bedroom (no worries because you have shades), but the toilet was also open concept beside the vanity, where as the standing shower is enclosed. Honestly I would prefer the toilet to be enclosed, and the shower over the tub or in a separate area would make more sense.

Lastly the location, it is really tucked out in the outskirts from all the action. Even if you take a tuktuk, it takes about 10 mins to get to the Meridien at Silom.

Having said that, we've been to Bkk multiple times, it was refreshing for once to be out of the tourist area. On our following morning before we checked out, we saw there was a street filled with people, and we decided to check it out to see what's going on. And to our surprise, it was a delight to our senses. A seemingly dead street the night before was revived into a morning market, where all the locals flock to buy breakfast, fresh fruits and veggies, as well as many other knick knaks. If this is where the locals eat, you are never astray from really authentic thai food! What a treat!

My tip to you, this might be a great spot to unwind and stay in for a day or 2 if you are not planning to run around in the city, we would definitely be staying at the Surawongse again. (It's pronounced as the Surawong, se is silent) Probably on our next stay, we'll get more time to explore more of the "heritage" neighborhood that the staff boasts about..

UASPG

I was told by a couple of GMs that the hotel was doing well, which surprised me.

Ratings: I was also wondering about The Athenee being # 5.

Dr. HFH

It is for me, and otherwise the hotel would be a prime one for me to try. One of the managers will remember me from her last position within Starwood, so my chances of a suite upgrade are likely pretty good there. But the location takes it off my list completely. According to Google Maps, it's a 17 minute walk to BTS Sala Daeng, and a 19 minute walk to BTS Saphan Taksin. So every time I leave the hotel, I have to add over half an hour roundtrip travel time to wherever I'm going. That's a deal breaker for me. Compare to my usual hotel in Bangkok, SGS, where the hotel is located at co-located BTS and MRT stations, with an elevated walkway directly from the hotel lobby into the stations. WGS, across the street, is also very convenient to transportation, with an entrance to the same stations just 10 or 20 meters from the front door.

Midwestgirl22

Thanks so much for the update and suggestions. Definitely strongly considering this for my overnight to unwind, although it will be my first time in BKK. (I am returning for 3 nights two weeks later and will be able to explore then).

Does anyone know how far of a cab or grab ride this place is from any of the main action? (bars/restaurants)

exploreaswego

This property is a great off-location hotel with the infinity pool and all the slightly nicer perks you don't really get with the other hotels. Most importantly the property is still new, so the staff are very willing to go an extra mile to accommodate to guests, especially elite folks.

Depends on what you value and what you want to do? BKK is a big city, there are many districts offering a different atmosphere. Most people stay at the chitlom/saladaeng strip along the BTS because it's where all the mega malls are concentrated at, and all the 5 stars chain hotels all set up shop there, and you literally do not need to cross the streets on the ground, they have skywalks that links you from malls to malls, which is extra helpful in the sweltering midday heat.

If you are a fan of night markets/street food/wholesale shopping malls like us, try researching the Novotel at the Platinum Mall. It's a little far from the BTS (say 10 min walk), but you are in the middle of literally everything. They have night markets that go from 6-7pm to 1am, and another group set up shop from 4-7am, you also get the regular street vendors spread through everywhere through the day as well. It's also beside the canal where you can take a 100 baht boat ride to the main river that takes you to Chao Phraya River.

Back to your question, depends on what kind of action. The nightlife and bars at Silom are about 15 min cab away. If you want to go to those fancy restaurants in Sukhumvit, can take up to 30 without traffic, sometimes an hour or more during peak hours.