Cieren

Hi all,

My husband and I are traveling to Thailand (for the first time) in February of next year. The tail end of our trip will be 5 nights in Bangkok, and I'm hoping to find an upscale/luxury hotel.

Our budget is between $150-250 per night.

Preferences (negotiable): breakfast included, decent spa, rooftop bar/pool

Non-negotiables: character/charm, decent tub, a room that's attractive and not outdated. I looked at The Pen but the decor was a huge turnoff for me so it got struck completely off my list.

Does anyone have any thoughts/suggestions?

Places I was very seriously considering:
Marriott Surawongse
Marriot Sukhumvit (Soi 57)
Banyan Tree
Shangri-La

Last note: our flight from Bangkok leaves at 10:45 pm, so I was hoping we could find a hotel that would allow us to store our bags there during the day, and then arrange transportation to the airport in the evening.

IluvSQ

Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit.

DieselYVR

Intercontinental Hotel (Club access room)

Great location for exploring the city
Nice decor IMO
One of the best Club service/food/space in the city

CJKatl

The Marriott Soi 57 has become my favorite hotel, but for a first visit I might do the Shangri-La for its river location. Reasons I like the Soi 57:

• Location: The hotel is in the funky-cool Thong Lo neighborhood which is a little quieter than other locations while still being steps from the BTS. Once you navigate crossing the Thong Lo intersection it is not so bad.
• Views: The hotel is on the highest levels of a tall building with unobstructed views. Very nice
• Roof Bar: Awesome. I recently ran into a young woman who taught English in Bangkok for two years. Among her expat friends, they would always bring visitors to the hotel for the rooftop bar which they thought was the best in the city
• Rooms: Modern, clean with nice bathrooms. As a Marriott Plat I have always been given a two room suite with two baths in a couple dozen stays.
• Concierge Lounge: Very nice. Pay for the access; it is worth it.
• Staff: Perfect.

Like many American chains in Bangkok, late check-outs have never been an issue and they once held my bags for two days while I went to Cambodia after having been in Europe during the winter. There were clothes I would not need in Cambodia. Many of the flights we Americans take into Bangkok do not arrive until the dead of the night so American chains tend to have many arrivals around midnight or later. The hotels tend to have housekeeping staff staying late for this reason so your leaving the room at six tends not to be an issue. Even if you cannot keep the room the hotel will often allow you to use the Concierge Lounge and/or workout room past check-out so you can at least store your bags. sit and collect yourself and/or shower before heading to the airport for your long flights home.

Avoid the Marriott Surawongse for a first visit because of its inconvenient location. I would avoid the Banyan Tree for the same reason. Its Sathorn location is nice, but a little too long a walk to the BTS for a first visit.

And while it is not on your list, I like the Renaissance for a first visit and have recommended it to people who have loved it. You can easily access the BTS and SkyWalk through escalators/elevators without having to be outside more than a few seconds which is great when there is heat (almost always) or during the rainy season. The hotel is nice. The CL is very good. And if you are looking for a bargain, the Courtyard has a nice breakfast in the restaurant. a high floor Concierge Lounge with outdoor patio and a quiet clean easy to walk location near many tourist sites. It is very different than a North American Courtyard.

Cieren

This is really helpful, thank you! I was a little bit concerned about the Surawongse's location but was unaware that the Banyan Tree might suffer from the same issue. I honestly hadn't gotten to mapping it out yet; the hotel itself seems beautiful, but reviews were somewhat mixed.

I am a little bit confused about the location issue; probably precisely because it's our first trip to Bangkok. Is it a difficult city to move around in? Would we be better switching hotels mid-stay in order to explore different areas of the city?

CJKatl

You can easily explore different parts of the city without changing hotels. Car traffic is jammed. Pubic transportation is convenient, inexpensive, reliable and gets you most places you want to go which is why you want a hotel with easy public transportation access. One of the few negatives on public transportation is sometimes the accessibility isn't so great. There are crowded uneven sidewalks, a lack of convenient escalators and elevators and the trains get very crowded. This makes taking luggage on a train hard and taking a taxi from one hotel to another will be a giant time drain you do not need.

I have changed hotels during a stay for various reasons, including once when I thought my arrival was Sunday but discovered on a plane without internet access that it would be Saturday and had to make a one night reservation during a 45 min layover at ICN. Turned out Soi 57 was booked that night so I wound up at the Ren. The cab ride between the two the next day took an hour.

If you stay at the Ren, the Sheraton someone mentioned, or the CY it is easy to go back to your room during the day as you explore. The Soi 57 property is also easy, but you will need to ride the train about ten minutes more in each direction. I have never found this to be an issue. The other hotels are farther and harder to access easily, especially the Surawongse property.

As you look at the transportation issue. remember the BTS train, the MRT subway, the SkyWalk and the river boats keep you away from traffic. Of course the Shangi-La will be the easiest hotel for boat access, but taking the BTS to Sathorn gets you within steps of the pier. I prefer being near the BTS. Some agree with me. Others think first time visitors are better off experiencing the city from the river. Both are good options. There is no right or wrong answer as long as you have easy access to transportation. You will have a great trip either way.

CJKatl

Just to be clear about the Banyan Tree... there is access to the subway that is not so difficult, but most of the tourist attractions are off the BTS or boats so you wind up walking about ten minutes to the subway where you would need to change to the BTS making it difficult. I have always walked to the BTS from that area which winds up being a long hot walk.

Cieren

Thank you again - your responses have been extremely helpful in understanding what to expect! I'm not usually too horribly bothered by the heat (we live in SC) although I suspect it's a bit more intense in Bangkok than what we're used to during our summers. After reading what you said about switching hotels, I'm definitely going to stick with one place for the full 5 nights.

This, in particular, was superb advice. There's a small part of me that's still leaning in the BT direction, but I think we'll probably end up at the Marriott Soi 57, instead. (Between the transportation, the amenities, and the Marriott points, it makes sense; my head was slightly turned by what seemed like a more personal service level at the Banyan Tree, but this may be utterly unfounded.)

CJKatl

A couple clarifications:

First: I am from Georgia and have been in your state in the dead of summer, everywhere from Charleston to Columbia to south of Charlotte to the Greenville.. there is no comparison there with Bangkok heat.

Second: I like understated hotel service. There are others who prefer the gregarious, showy, over the top grand gestures but that is not me, which is one of the things I like about the Soi 57 property. Any request made has been answered immediately, and the hotel has always given me an UG because of my Marriott status, but this is not a hotel where the staff will be at your feet 24/7. If you like that you may be happier at the BT. A couple stories on their service:

• One morning I discovered Long An at breakfast in the lounge. It is a Thai fruit. The next morning there was none out so I asked if there was any. There wasn't. The next morning one of the attendants gave me a bag of them. When I offered to pay she told me they were picked off a tree in the cook's yard. The cook had heard me ask for them the day before.
• The first morning of my most recent trip there the lounge attendant was excited to see me. She told me they had seen me on CNN a month or so earlier, which I had been on because of something good in my neighborhood. Apparently one of the workers saw me on TV, alerted the others and they took turns watching until the story was being repeated. My point is they obviously know who I am as opposed to there being fake recognition.
• When I am scheduled to arrive there is a bellman who looks for me. Yes, I tip well by Thai standards but it is a paltry tip by American standards. He does something that is so appreciated: he unpacks my bags. It is usually after midnight local time and more than 24 hours of travel time without a shower. The suite into which they upgrade me has a huge separate bathroom, so I can go in there and shower and quickly get to sleep with this huge task out of the way.

One more thing I like about the Soi 57 versus the BT or other properties: There are street vendors (although not as many as there used to be) and some small street food type carryouts just outside the hotel. You can get authentic street food for pennies as a midnight snack or whenever.

Cieren

It's helpful hearing from someone else in basically the same geographical region - what you've said about the heat jives with what I was thinking, actually. That makes the location more important than I initially considered...

Additionally, based on what you've said, I'd probably be happier at the Marriott. I really don't need/want over the top gestures - pretty sure that would make me incredibly uncomfortable. I guess what I mean by personal is simply attentive without being over the top/ever present, and I'm judging Marriott solely on my experiences with Marriott in the U.S. with no elite status prior to this year.

I'll run it by my husband and see what his thoughts are (who knows, he might through me for a loop on this), but it sounds like the Marriott is more well-suited for us. The location wins, the service sounds great, the presence of nearby street food vendors is great, it would put us pretty close to hitting Gold in 2019 (based on the new criteria for Gold), and I can't discount 6x points if we use our Marriott card. Thanks again.

Explore SE Asia

Great info! I have been looking at the Marriott properties in Bangkok. Easy access to street vendors is a huge plus for the Soi 57 property.

glennaa11

The nice thing about Bangkok is the huge glut of nice hotels, so prices are relatively reasonable compared to many other places. Some non-American chains and independents have very nice properties too. Since I am not really interested in pools I'm afraid I can't really recommend any place based on that criterion.

Totally agree that location on public transport is very helpful.

It's been my experience in most of SE Asia that hospitality/service is top notch. Thais have a real knack for remembering faces/people and they're usually quite good about welcoming you "back" on a return stay.

I have a trip coming up around the same time and settled on the Crowne Plaza Lumpini for this trip. Great location for BTS and MRT. Rooms are good standard as you'd expect from a big international chain. Rates are reasonable. I am paying US$120/night (government rate, AAA rate is only a couple of dollars more) for a basic "superior" room which I expect to be upgraded to the next category as an IHG platinum. Breakfast spread there is quite good too...or at least it was the last time I was there.

CJKatl

There is a Wiki at the top of the Bangkok Marriott Hotels thread which lists the Marriott hotels with addresses, phone numbers and basic information about each hotel, including transportation, whether elites are usually given the choice of breakfast in the lounge and bathroom highlights like is there a soaking tub, is it against a window, is the toilet in a separate enclosure, etc. Full disclosure; I wrote the original in answer to someone's request that the information be put there, but others have provided updates.

Other than a couple well identified opinions, my goal was to make the information as flat and neutral as possible with the exception of bathroom information because I like nice hotel bathrooms and there are definite have and have nots among the BKK Marriott choices. CY and JW are on my nots list because in most of the CY rooms there is only a shower, no tub, and the JW has no outside light, a very cramped shower and the toilet is out in the open. The Ren and Soi 57 properties have great or outstanding bathrooms, depending on the room, and the Marquis has very nice to great bathrooms which get a slightly lower mark because they do not have outside light. IMO the Marquis has the best soaking tub for one and the Soi 57 has the best tub for two or more. No judgement or explanation on that.

SPG hotels are not included although I have stayed in three:

• The LM has its fans but IMO and IME it is too much money for what it is and there were service issues when I was there. At similarly priced Marriott properties in the city you get CL access and better service. And you do not have to walk through the adult establishments which spill out on the street to get to the BTS station, although there are likely people who want the binders put in their faces to see the merchandise...
• The Aloft is, IMO, a frat boy establishment on a Soi known for, well, what Bangkok is known for. Historically it is the least expensive SPG/Marriott option in the city and required the fewest points for redemption, the the 4P and CY are often close to the same price now and the Aloft is now going to be a Cat 4 redemption, so IMO there is no reason to stay there anymore.
• The StR, which is now the best, albeit most expensive, Marriott choice in Bangkok. Given the Marriott properties are each so good I cannot justify the extra money or points for the StR, but the location is great and service is flawless.
• Other SPG properties: People love the Sheraton Grand Sukhumvit although I have never stayed there. The Athanee has fans but there have been some negative posts about the property lately. The 4P is in a good location but at the same price point the CY has a lounge, is in a very quiet location near the StR and Ren and has fantastic service. The LM Golf Resort is too far from the city for me.

glennaa11

I was just going to add that the St. Regis might be a good choice. For a first time visitor I think being that far out Sukhumvit (the Marriott at soi 57) might not be ideal. It looks like St.R has rates that fall into your budget. They also have a pool with a high vantage point. Great location for the BTS to get down to the river for the boat to the Grand Palace and the sights around there.

I guess it might depend somewhat on what you plan to see and do while you are there.

WIth respect to your late flight I think pretty much any hotel in town will at least store your luggage. I always ask about half day rates when I have a late flight so I can take a shower and don't have to pack until I am ready to leave.

CJKatl

Unfortunately the government has cracked down on the street vendors and for the most part moved them to specific areas. There used to be a couple vendors right outside the hotel driveway but last time I was there it was only one. It is a short block from Soi 57 to Thong Lo and the BTS station. That block used to have a woman outside the 7-11 who made outstanding noodle dishes and grilled fish. She is no longer there, but the sidewalk has been repaired and the takeout shops on the street have been cleaned up. Although they are slightly more expensive than street vendors the food is still very, very inexpensive. My favorite is the first one you pass on your way from the BTS station to the hotel. but I usually choose the least busy one to get the food faster. They are all great for what they are.

And since this is your first trip to Bangkok, here is something you will see but not expect... There are 7-11s everywhere, and Family Marts which are similar. There are blocks with four of each. You will also see many KFCs, McDs and BKs, but the number of 7-11s is jaw dropping. And should you need aspirin or a comb, the drug stores are Watsons and Boots. These are not the places that sell whatever drugs you want. Boots is owned by the same company that owns Walgreens and Watsons is similar. The stores are smaller than a US drugstore. While Boots and Watsons are not as omnipresent as 7-11, there still are many of each.