Bangkok Hotels

[Syzygies]

I am planning to be in Bangkok for mongering next month for a week, planning to stay at holidayinn at Phloenchit. Do they have an inhouse spa? Would they have restrictions with escorts coming in?

Most inhouse spa rates mentioned online for a 60 min massage starts from 2500+baht, is that normal? I plan to visit doki doki, thermae and other popular ones but just enquiring about inhouse spas.

Just look on website for Hotel facilities. Why ask here? You book a room for 2. A Hotel Spa for massage etc. Will have charges, or may have one complimentary massage, I wouldn't know. So you just go with your girl and quote the room number if necessary. Don't need to say anything about the girl, I guess. Just pay.

Why take an escort to a Spa? I don't know if both of you can massaged in same room. Seems like wasting your booking time.

I took a regular girl to a massage shop near my Hotel. Masseuse was available for each of us a slightly different timings. Ha ha. Were in separate rooms, or separate cubicles. This was different in that I was not paying for the girl's time. Only for her massage. So just doing it to keep her happy. She was staying the night, so time was not of the essence at that moment.

[Syzygies]

Google search hotels on soi 11 or soi 4. End of soi 11 is BTS nana, so you can get around the city. Soi 4 has nana plaza and arguably the street with the most concentrated nightlife. I'm currently staying on soi 11 right now and before you book email the hotel to make sure they provide free tuk tuk to end of road. Its not a long walk, but it's hot as hell here still and reducing the walking keeps you from sweating like a pig before you go out.

I stayed a few nights in BKK two weeks ago. I stayed a moderate distance down a Soi but did not sweat like a pig. Certainly not "hot as hell" (for Thailand). I guess some of us are used to it and not carrying too much weight. This is not the hottest part of the year by a long stretch.

I think a 200 metres walk is quite okay But save 10 minute walks for after sun goes down.

[Diglerni]

Hello friends,

I shall visit BKK for the first time soon and may stay 1-2 nights there. During day time, I would like to see around the city and from evening onward, I plan to have some adult fun! I don't have much idea as of now regarding the hotel rates. I hope to get a comfortable hotel at 40-60 USD. Please suggest if this is reasonable. Can you please suggest some girl friendly hotels, where I can come with different girls for short time / over night fun?

Google search hotels on soi 11 or soi 4. End of soi 11 is BTS nana, so you can get around the city. Soi 4 has nana plaza and arguably the street with the most concentrated nightlife. I'm currently staying on soi 11 right now and before you book email the hotel to make sure they provide free tuk tuk to end of road. Its not a long walk, but it's hot as hell here still and reducing the walking keeps you from sweating like a pig before you go out.

[SirWilliam4]

Hello friends,

I shall visit BKK for the first time soon and may stay 1-2 nights there. During day time, I would like to see around the city and from evening onward, I plan to have some adult fun! I don't have much idea as of now regarding the hotel rates. I hope to get a comfortable hotel at 40-60 USD. Please suggest if this is reasonable. Can you please suggest some girl friendly hotels, where I can come with different girls for short time / over night fun?

Grand President Hotel, Sukhumvit, Soi 11.

On8 Hotel, Sukhumvit, Soi 8.

Both at the top end of your price range. Reasonable for that area of BKK.

[HungryBird15]

Hello friends,

I shall visit BKK for the first time soon and may stay 1-2 nights there. During day time, I would like to see around the city and from evening onward, I plan to have some adult fun! I don't have much idea as of now regarding the hotel rates. I hope to get a comfortable hotel at 40-60 USD. Please suggest if this is reasonable. Can you please suggest some girl friendly hotels, where I can come with different girls for short time / over night fun?

[Nounce]

After the money exchange, I get a sim.

Is there an additional official AIS booth in the lowest floor now? Or do you just use the shop near by?

[Pal]

I am planning to be in Bangkok for mongering next month for a week, planning to stay at holidayinn at Phloenchit. Do they have an inhouse spa? Would they have restrictions with escorts coming in?

Most inhouse spa rates mentioned online for a 60 min massage starts from 2500+baht, is that normal? I plan to visit doki doki, thermae and other popular ones but just enquiring about inhouse spas.

[FishermanBert]

Would help a lot if you state how long you might be in Bangkok, major purposes, and hotel price range, any special requirements. So you want a good answer, it is better to put more effort into the question.

Even X-IT has a price range of 2000 Baht to 5000 Baht per night. We don't know if you considered a Jacuzzi to be essential. Most Hotels won't have it.

I would suggest a Hotel close to Sukumvit road, and not far from both BTS line (skytrain) and MRT (underground). Some possibles: On8, Dream Hotel, Silq, Grand Mercure Asoke Residence, Arize, Sakura Sky (if low budget), Lotus, S31, Mermaid, Dynasty Grand, Majestic Suites, Pullman Grand, Fx Asoke. Lots of others.

More Expensive: Column, Radison Blu, Sheraton, Marriott.

Choice depends on requirements and how much you want to spend. Book online a small number of nights, in case you want to move elsewhere, before long, or go to Pattaya.

Thanks for the tips! Well for my first time it would be a 2 week stay in Bangkok, Maybe my next trip when I get used to Thailand I might venture out to Pattaya, main goal is mongering of course! Want to be closest to the action as possible, somewhere I can't get lost easily, it will be a solo trip, so I will be treating myself for this one, so a very good hotel will do, I just checked the JW Marriott hotel you suggested and it looks fantastic! This one should be great, is it close to the action? (girls etc) thanks for your help!

[BestTimeEver]

Only when I try it will I really know. I do hate traffic jams.

True and agree. And even then YMMV and different occasions will give different results.

Most important is the location of your hotel. Doing the sidewalks with heavy bags is indeed not a good idea. So if that's required to reach your hotel, then I would advise against. I choose the hotel to be as close as possible to a bts station, also for the ease during the rest of my stay. After all, I typically walk from hotel to bts (or vice versa) 4 or 6 times every day.

Now this time I came only with a 23 kg suitcase and a 12 kg handbag, typically know where I am going, don't mind walking and prefer Phaya Thai as change over (as opposed to Makkasan, due to the ease of walking). Well, this worked for me this time. Enough disclaimers here now for guys to make up their own minds.

[Bouvis]

I have not taken the Airport link but considering it. Only when I try it will I really know. I do hate traffic jams.

It really is convenient. Depending on your luggage size it's a great, clean and cheap way for me to get to Sukhumvit from Suvarnabhumi. I did attempt it once with with two suitcases and a backpack and it was really awkward. I take a medium size suitcase these days and find it a breeze. My last taxi from Suvarnabhumi to Sukhumvit took nearly 2.5 hours on a Thursday afternoon at about 3 PM. If I have to do the Taxi route again it will be before 2 PM or after 9 PM. Arriving at Don Muang one needs to get a bus to the MRT station and I would not recommend taking luggage on the bus. Backpack will be ok.

[Syzygies]

Why go with the airport link and not with a taxi? Because it is clean, airconditioned, faster, cheaper, and there's more to see LOL Disadvantage is obviously that you're not being brought to the doorstep of your hotel. I don't buy the argument that the airport link is very full at rush hour, after all at this exact same time taxis are very likely to be in a traffic jam. And then I would rather be in a cool train with a predictable schedule than in a hot taxi in a traffic jam that will never end.

Now I prefer to get off the train at the end station, Phaya Thai, but this may depend on the location of your hotel. At Phaya Thai you can switch trains to the BTS, which is easy enough also with luggage. The BTS is bringing you to stations like Siam, Nana, Asok, Phrom Phong, and further along Sukhumvit. The alternative to getting off at Phaya Thai, is an Airport Link station called Makkasan. Here you can change to the MRT, though the walking is more difficult between those lines. The MRT will bring you to Asok (close to Soi Cowboy and Terminal 21), but doesn't go to other top mongering places.

I have not taken the Airport link but considering it. Why is taking your luggage not difficult? I guess you don't have large amounts of luggage. Even so Thai footpaths are extremely uneven with ditches holes and puddles (when raining). I have dragged a suitcase a moderate distance but it is a nuisance, and huge nuisance on stairs (escalators tolerable). Not every BTS station allows you to avoid stairs. My luggage has a fair weight. If weather is very hot then your change overs between Link, BTS, and taxi to Hotel are going to be very hot and a nuisance. A single Taxi will not be. Have not noticed the "Hot Taxi" syndrome. Some taxis have aircon too cold for me. I am always getting a taxi from Departures level where another customer just got out of the taxi. The taxi is never hot in this circumstance.

If I arrive on a Sunday or late at night, I think taking a taxi is going to be much easier with low traffic, and quicker with lack of changeovers. Seems like Link is a good option for when there might be traffic jams and when your luggage is maybe just one suitcase and dragable, not too far. As I tend to live out of suitcase for long periods, my luggage maybe more than others, including coffee making supplies.

Only when I try it will I really know. I do hate traffic jams.

[BoneDaddy]

Thanks BTE. You're a prince! As an infrequent visitor to BKK I'm always trying to remember upon landing the best way into the city. Let me see, do I go downstairs for the train to Phaya Thai? Where do I get my SIM? Etc. You've made my life easy. Now I'll just have your report on my phone and I won't have to depend on my failing memory. Cheers, mate!

[BestTimeEver]

So BTE has landed. Here is a first report on my trip, about getting from the Suvarnabhumi airport to your hotel. I've developed a rather efficient process IMHO. The times mentioned are mine for today, at about midday. Of course, time of day will highly impact anything here. Sorry it is rather detailed (just my style), but you can always skip the part when I'm going to the toilet.

Landing +0 minutes: waiting at the gate. After our plane arrived exactly on time and docked at the gate, we had to wait 25 minutes before the doors were opened. This is the first time I experience this in Bangkok (I think normally the airport is quite efficient), and it may well be the case that for you this problem does not come up. But anyway good to factor in the possibility that this may happen. Total time spent: 25 minutes.

Landing +25 minutes: walking to immigration. This time we were parked quite far from immigration, so we had to take a walk. I don't go to the toilet here, but I try to hurry a little bit more than the other passengers. That way, I get to the front of the line at immigration. Well at least for this airplane. Plus I like to stretch the legs a little after a long haul. Total time spent: 10 minutes.

Landing +35 minutes: immigration. At immigration foreigners need to go left, Thai can go right. Thai have almost no line at immigration, but the line for foreigners can be huge. And if you did not fill out the white / blue visa form correctly, then you may get sent back to do it again (and stand in line again). This time I had the disadvantage of a slow officer, so it took some time for me. Nowadays they are taking fingerprints and a photo, but typically they don't ask any questions. Total time spent: 15 minutes.

Landing +50 minutes: toilet and luggage. Directly after immigration, I go to a toilet first before waiting for my bag. One of the things for me to do there, is to take off any sweater or extra shirt, so that I'm dressed for Thai temperatures. Having too much clothes in Thailand can be very annoying (so I keep telling the girls as well). After toilet I go to the baggage belt and pick up my luggage. This time all luggage was already on the belt, as we had spent so much time waiting in the airplane. Normally, the wait is not long either. Indeed an efficient airport! Total time spent: 5 minutes.

Landing +55 minutes: customs, money and sim. After getting your luggage, it is straightforward to go through the green lane at customs ('nothing to declare' I've never had anyone checking my luggage, fingers crossed for the annoyance it would cause. After customs you get in the arrival hall, which can be overwhelming for first time visitors. At times it is very busy with many people selling limousine services, sim cards, etc. Just walk through and head straight for the lowest floor (I believe it is called floor be for basement). Following the directions for the airport hotel, you come across various booths for money exchange and sim cards. I always go here, for the better rates, instead of going for the first booths that you see in the arrival hall or even at the baggage belts. The rates are different, just compare for yourself. Here I always look around for the best exchange rate available, though often many rates are similar here in the basement. Some people claim that https://www.superrichthailand.com/#en has always the best rates, but I did not find proof of that.

After the money exchange, I get a sim. This time from AIS, but I actually don't care about the network if the trip is only short. I never had any problem with sim cards anyway. Pick your plan and give the phone + passport. They will put in the sim for you and change sim settings to English (otherwise you get text messages in Thai, with statements on the amount of value left on the sim). Make sure you get any sim back that was in your phone before. I made a mistake once (my fault entirely) and lost my own sim card from home. Not very handy!

Had a nice flirt with one of the ladies at the AIS booth, she was lovely. Smile and be kind in the LOS, and the people will return the favor tenfold! I did not ask for her number, with too many of her colleagues around and also other plans. But hey, I guess she has my number! LOL Total time spent: 10 minutes.

Landing +65 minutes: airport link. Also in the airport basement, close to the money and sim booths, there are the vending machines for the airport link. Max cost is 45 baht to the other end of the line (Phaya Thai), which I think is very cheap. You get a plastic coin from the vending machine, which is your ticket. Use it to pass the gates and go one level down for the train. At midday the train was not too crowded, could sit easily though some people were standing.

Why go with the airport link and not with a taxi? Because it is clean, airconditioned, faster, cheaper, and there's more to see LOL Disadvantage is obviously that you're not being brought to the doorstep of your hotel. I don't buy the argument that the airport link is very full at rush hour, after all at this exact same time taxis are very likely to be in a traffic jam. And then I would rather be in a cool train with a predictable schedule than in a hot taxi in a traffic jam that will never end.

Now I prefer to get off the train at the end station, Phaya Thai, but this may depend on the location of your hotel. At Phaya Thai you can switch trains to the BTS, which is easy enough also with luggage. The BTS is bringing you to stations like Siam, Nana, Asok, Phrom Phong, and further along Sukhumvit. The alternative to getting off at Phaya Thai, is an Airport Link station called Makkasan. Here you can change to the MRT, though the walking is more difficult between those lines. The MRT will bring you to Asok (close to Soi Cowboy and Terminal 21), but doesn't go to other top mongering places.

This time I'm staying close to Siam, so I got off at Phaya Thai and took the BTS. Total time spent: 30 minutes.

Landing +95 minutes: walk to the hotel. So from Siam BTS station I took quite a detour, my fault. So the walking took longer than necessary. When I make hotel reservations, I look closely at the location of the hotel compared to any BTS. If it is just easy to get around, then it saves a lot of hassle and tired feet. Even more so important if you plan to walk with your luggage, because the sidewalks in BKK are terrible. What I like about Siam is that there are several shopping malls connected to each other. So you can walk in airconditioning to your hotel, if you prefer. Total time spent: 15 minutes.

So all in all about 1 hour and 50 minutes from landing to hotel lobby. Not bad, I think, if you consider that there were some unnecessary delays as well. Minimum with these steps would be about 1 hour and 10 minutes if everything goes very very smooth.

[BMoreDog69]

Time of year, local events and holidays can also have a huge impact on the availability of rooms, and their price. My last visit I tried to get into the JW Marriott, but something was going down, and the few available rooms were 6 x the usual price. I ended up at the Marriott Mayfair Executive Apartment, which was great. With my points they put me on the upper levels and gave me a 2 bed / 2 bath apartment, which was of no real use - 555. The Mayfair was great, but not particularly convenient, and taxi drivers had a tough time, and needed assistance finding it.

As long as you aren't too far off the beaten path, you'll be OK. But definitely shoot to be close to a BTS sky train.

Would help a lot if you state how long you might be in Bangkok, major purposes, and hotel price range, any special requirements. So you want a good answer, it is better to put more effort into the question.

Even X-IT has a price range of 2000 Baht to 5000 Baht per night. We don't know if you considered a Jacuzzi to be essential. Most Hotels won't have it.

I would suggest a Hotel close to Sukumvit road, and not far from both BTS line (skytrain) and MRT (underground). Some possibles: On8, Dream Hotel, Silq, Grand Mercure Asoke Residence, Arize, Sakura Sky (if low budget), Lotus, S31, Mermaid, Dynasty Grand, Majestic Suites, Pullman Grand, Fx Asoke. Lots of others.

More Expensive: Column, Radison Blu, Sheraton, Marriott.

Choice depends on requirements and how much you want to spend. Book online a small number of nights, in case you want to move elsewhere, before long, or go to Pattaya.

[Syzygies]

Thanks for the heads up! And I was going to try this place on my first trip ever in BKK! Any other good hotel you can recommend for a first timer so I don't get lost? Somewhere guest friendly too? Thanks!

Would help a lot if you state how long you might be in Bangkok, major purposes, and hotel price range, any special requirements. So you want a good answer, it is better to put more effort into the question.

Even X-IT has a price range of 2000 Baht to 5000 Baht per night. We don't know if you considered a Jacuzzi to be essential. Most Hotels won't have it.

I would suggest a Hotel close to Sukumvit road, and not far from both BTS line (skytrain) and MRT (underground). Some possibles: On8, Dream Hotel, Silq, Grand Mercure Asoke Residence, Arize, Sakura Sky (if low budget), Lotus, S31, Mermaid, Dynasty Grand, Majestic Suites, Pullman Grand, Fx Asoke. Lots of others.

More Expensive: Column, Radison Blu, Sheraton, Marriott.

Choice depends on requirements and how much you want to spend. Book online a small number of nights, in case you want to move elsewhere, before long, or go to Pattaya.