Arcadia Suites, Bangkok, Thailand
Sep 5, 2015, 12:32 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,677
Arcadia Suites, Bangkok, Thailand
This is my second hotel review and you can find the full review with photos of the Arcadia Suites at my website
I had, until this year, been a loyal returnee to Oakwood Residences and specifically the Oakwood on Sukhumvit 24 over the last few years. However, I felt that the quality of the hardware had gradually been falling and it was just the high service level of the staff that kept me coming back.
On top of that I felt that after raising rates this year I should look elsewhere … Which is a long way of me bringing to staying at Arcadia Suites.
First impressions – one can’t pretend it’s close to the BTS. But the flip side to this is that if you arrive at a reasonable hour (6am to midnight) all you need to do is call the hotel from Ploenchit BTS station and they will send a tuk tuk for you which will whisk you to the hotel in short order. Staying on the tuk tuk service, this is really excellent — they will drop you at the base of the BTS station or at Central Embassy shopping mall. They will also pick you up from both these locations.
I would mention that the problem is, when the tuk tuk breaks down, which it did during my stay — you have to hike all the way back to the hotel. The road from Ploenchit BTS to the hotel is narrow (one way) and has no pedestrian walkway so it can be very dangerous to walk along (unless you walk the long way round). It would make some sense if they invested in a second tuk tuk.
Moving onto the bedrooms. I was kindly upgraded on arrival to, I believe, the One Bedroom Premier. This was an excellent room with the hardware being far superior to the similar offering from Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24.
The bathroom was really splendid, with both a shower and a bath and was really wonderfully presented and really good quality.
Three significant downsides in the bathroom — 1) there was a bit of a smell coming from the drain hole in the floor of the bathroom; 2) the showers were a bit inconsistent with the temperature — you find a level that you are happy with and then the temperature changes; 3) The drainage in the shower is incomplete so one area of the shower cubicle doesn’t appear to drain at all and this just happens to be near the door — certainly could be dangerous.
Just bear in mind that the rooms on the lower floors (maybe 2/3) are very close to the pool so if you are relaxing during the day, you might hear a lot of noise. Also you will want to avoid the top floors (7/8) as it is at the same level as the highway and you get noise from the traffic.
Another bug bear of mine, being stingy with the free water. Like most other places I’ve stayed at, they give 2 complimentary bottles of water (as it’s not safe to drink from the tap) and they also give two bottles of (paid) water. This is the first place I’ve stayed at in Bangkok that when you ask for an additional bottle of free water that they actually charge you for it. After a long day out all I want is some water. So for those who want the extra “free” water, just use the kettle.
On my first morning there I realised that there was a space issue in the breakfast room. It was extremely frustrating not being able to find a seat to have breakfast. While I’m all for sharing tables with other guests, some may not be so keen on that.
Having said that, on my second morning there I realised that there was actually a second seating area, which just wasn’t opened until it got really full in the first area. I knew from talking with the reception that the hotel was fully booked. It seems strange that they didn’t open it up at the beginning if they knew it was going to be very very busy.
So, coming full circle. The reason I continued to stay at the Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24 in the past was because of the level of service. And in this respect I have to say I found the service at Arcadia a bit hit and miss. The breakfast area was cleared away very very slowly and nearly all the staff generally didn’t look very happy. At the reception, the staff weren’t actively engaging any guests with asking them if they needed help.
In sum, this is an opposite problem the Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24, the hardware here is excellent, but the soft touches really need work.
I want to rate this higher than average, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. If it can improve the service delivery, then it will become a very good hotel in my eyes.
These small things matter to frequent travellers.
As usual, your feedback is really helpful as I have not done many reviews before. Please let me know what you think I need to do a better job of, and things you like. Thanks.
I had, until this year, been a loyal returnee to Oakwood Residences and specifically the Oakwood on Sukhumvit 24 over the last few years. However, I felt that the quality of the hardware had gradually been falling and it was just the high service level of the staff that kept me coming back.
On top of that I felt that after raising rates this year I should look elsewhere … Which is a long way of me bringing to staying at Arcadia Suites.
First impressions – one can’t pretend it’s close to the BTS. But the flip side to this is that if you arrive at a reasonable hour (6am to midnight) all you need to do is call the hotel from Ploenchit BTS station and they will send a tuk tuk for you which will whisk you to the hotel in short order. Staying on the tuk tuk service, this is really excellent — they will drop you at the base of the BTS station or at Central Embassy shopping mall. They will also pick you up from both these locations.
I would mention that the problem is, when the tuk tuk breaks down, which it did during my stay — you have to hike all the way back to the hotel. The road from Ploenchit BTS to the hotel is narrow (one way) and has no pedestrian walkway so it can be very dangerous to walk along (unless you walk the long way round). It would make some sense if they invested in a second tuk tuk.
Moving onto the bedrooms. I was kindly upgraded on arrival to, I believe, the One Bedroom Premier. This was an excellent room with the hardware being far superior to the similar offering from Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24.
The bathroom was really splendid, with both a shower and a bath and was really wonderfully presented and really good quality.
Three significant downsides in the bathroom — 1) there was a bit of a smell coming from the drain hole in the floor of the bathroom; 2) the showers were a bit inconsistent with the temperature — you find a level that you are happy with and then the temperature changes; 3) The drainage in the shower is incomplete so one area of the shower cubicle doesn’t appear to drain at all and this just happens to be near the door — certainly could be dangerous.
Just bear in mind that the rooms on the lower floors (maybe 2/3) are very close to the pool so if you are relaxing during the day, you might hear a lot of noise. Also you will want to avoid the top floors (7/8) as it is at the same level as the highway and you get noise from the traffic.
Another bug bear of mine, being stingy with the free water. Like most other places I’ve stayed at, they give 2 complimentary bottles of water (as it’s not safe to drink from the tap) and they also give two bottles of (paid) water. This is the first place I’ve stayed at in Bangkok that when you ask for an additional bottle of free water that they actually charge you for it. After a long day out all I want is some water. So for those who want the extra “free” water, just use the kettle.
On my first morning there I realised that there was a space issue in the breakfast room. It was extremely frustrating not being able to find a seat to have breakfast. While I’m all for sharing tables with other guests, some may not be so keen on that.
Having said that, on my second morning there I realised that there was actually a second seating area, which just wasn’t opened until it got really full in the first area. I knew from talking with the reception that the hotel was fully booked. It seems strange that they didn’t open it up at the beginning if they knew it was going to be very very busy.
So, coming full circle. The reason I continued to stay at the Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24 in the past was because of the level of service. And in this respect I have to say I found the service at Arcadia a bit hit and miss. The breakfast area was cleared away very very slowly and nearly all the staff generally didn’t look very happy. At the reception, the staff weren’t actively engaging any guests with asking them if they needed help.
In sum, this is an opposite problem the Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24, the hardware here is excellent, but the soft touches really need work.
I want to rate this higher than average, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. If it can improve the service delivery, then it will become a very good hotel in my eyes.
These small things matter to frequent travellers.
As usual, your feedback is really helpful as I have not done many reviews before. Please let me know what you think I need to do a better job of, and things you like. Thanks.
Oct 20, 2015, 6:43 am
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,677
I visited stayed at the Arcadia Suites again on a recent trip and rather than publish a completely brand new review, I thought it best to tag my thoughts into a follow on to my first review of this hotel.
What I have tried to do here is see whether the faults from my previous trip were addressed and also if there were any new insights I had. The photos on my site are also a vast improvement on the rubbish I presented the first time through.
A quick recap
While I do maintain the fault that it isn’t that close to the BTS, this being the second time I’ve stayed here, I realise that the tuk tuk service really makes this problem a non-issue. For those of you who haven’t read my previous entry, all you need to do is call the hotel from Ploenchit BTS station and they will send a tuk tuk for you which will whisk you to the hotel in short order. They can also drop you off/pick you up at Central Embassy shopping mall.
The room that I was allocated was actually not bad at all. In my previous review I stated that one should avoid the rooms on the top floors were on the same level as the highway. I was on level 8 and actually didn’t hear the traffic, even though the highway was almost outside my window.
Something I noticed last time but didn’t give much thought to was the number or light switches. Yes. It may seem strange but I felt that there were too many light switches. Often I spent most of my time working out which switch turned on/off which light.
Again the bathroom was really splendid, with both a shower and a bath and was really wonderfully presented and really good quality. As I mentioned previously I finally got a decent photo of the bathroom. Also, the two other issues of smell and drainage were not to prevalent this time. Maybe the drainage issue is specific to the larger room type. Though the bathroom sizes were comparable. At the same time, I did not notice as strong a smell this time.
Restaurant staff were much more friendly and the second section was open from the start of the breakfast service. It no longer felt crowded during the morning service.
All in all, some aspects have not changed (not improved) and some have done. Thus it would be fair to say that overall there was an improvement.
What I have tried to do here is see whether the faults from my previous trip were addressed and also if there were any new insights I had. The photos on my site are also a vast improvement on the rubbish I presented the first time through.
A quick recap
While I do maintain the fault that it isn’t that close to the BTS, this being the second time I’ve stayed here, I realise that the tuk tuk service really makes this problem a non-issue. For those of you who haven’t read my previous entry, all you need to do is call the hotel from Ploenchit BTS station and they will send a tuk tuk for you which will whisk you to the hotel in short order. They can also drop you off/pick you up at Central Embassy shopping mall.
The room that I was allocated was actually not bad at all. In my previous review I stated that one should avoid the rooms on the top floors were on the same level as the highway. I was on level 8 and actually didn’t hear the traffic, even though the highway was almost outside my window.
Something I noticed last time but didn’t give much thought to was the number or light switches. Yes. It may seem strange but I felt that there were too many light switches. Often I spent most of my time working out which switch turned on/off which light.
Again the bathroom was really splendid, with both a shower and a bath and was really wonderfully presented and really good quality. As I mentioned previously I finally got a decent photo of the bathroom. Also, the two other issues of smell and drainage were not to prevalent this time. Maybe the drainage issue is specific to the larger room type. Though the bathroom sizes were comparable. At the same time, I did not notice as strong a smell this time.
Restaurant staff were much more friendly and the second section was open from the start of the breakfast service. It no longer felt crowded during the morning service.
All in all, some aspects have not changed (not improved) and some have done. Thus it would be fair to say that overall there was an improvement.
Oct 22, 2015, 6:05 am
#3
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: MAN
Programs: LH, BA, Hilton
Posts: 1,409
This is a problem in most hotels and the more luxurious, the worse they are!