Places to Stay in Bangkok
Recommended
Top of our list is Domino Pub in Soi 11, Sukhumvit Road – you can read all about it here.
If you fancy a five-star treat and your budget stretches to it, then the lebua at State Tower at the river end of Silom Road is a gorgeous place for a bit of pampering. Find out more here!
The Royal Benja Hotel, Soi 5, Sukhumvit Road, tel: +66 2 6552920-54 Very comfortable and clean, with a proper shower instead of those awful "shower rose on the wall above the bath" arrangements. Right at the end of Soi 5, so a bit of a trek from the main drag. But a hassle-free stay.
The Nana Hotel, Soi 4, Sukhumvit Road, tel: +66 2 2501210-9 This is the second home of the infamous Piemen. Never heard of the Piemen? They're a group of British expats who spend all their spare time in Thailand. This hotel offers spacious and comfortable rooms but it's just over the road from a very sexy plaza, so it's not for those who want to avoid Bangkok's notorious girlie bars.
The Manhattan, Soi 15, Sukhumvit Road, tel: +66 2 2527141-9 A convenient place just off Sukhumvit with a very fancy foyer and larger than average but slightly shabby rooms. The en-suite bathroom in the room our reporters stayed in was rather odd. The design would never pass Building Regs in Blighty, given that they had to climb over the WC to enter the en-suite room thus making it possible, using a combination of yoga and limbo dancing, to close the door. Great place if you like space and convenience but not for those who are conservative about design.
Update (Jan 2001): No funny stuff with the bathroom this time. All in all, a very convenient place to stay, pleasant staff, nice rooms. Interesting breakfast, but other food is mediocre – it's probably had the taste removed to suit farang palates. Nice place, though – we'd definitely go back there.
All right but...
The Federal Hotel, Soi 11, Sukhumvit Road – reports from people who used to stay there regularly suggest that this hotel is now overpriced for what it offers, although it is a nice little place with a small swimming pool and a good coffee shop. Another downside is that it's a fair old trek into the Soi.
