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St. Regis Bangkok: new luxury hotel with quality in all the details Jun 25

IMG_6023I have been to Bangkok a few times and I have stayed at hotels like Plaza Athenee, Sheraton Sukhumvit, Westin, Lebua, Centara CentralWorld, Le Meridien etc just to give some sort of idea of my experience with hotels in Bangkok before reading this review. I normally try to stick to Starwood hotels these days as I have a Starwood gold card and that can of course bring some benefits. This time I choose to stay at St. Regis as they had a special opening offer as the hotel opened recently and because the location seemed pretty good. As usual I booked the hotel online of Starwood Preferred Guest and the rate was 7300 Bath excluding taxes. This offer also included breakfast for two or dinner for two, complimentary internet and a 1000 Baht voucher for Elmis spa.

IMG_6007Getting the airport taxi staff to understand where we were planning on going was not easy. First of all it is a new hotel in Bangkok and Thai’s normally struggle with some of the sounds in the St. Regis name. But we explained that it was on Ratchadamri road and next to another hotel. At the hotel we were welcomed and a woman took us to the reception on a higher level. Check in was not done in the regular way standing at a desk – instead it was done by sitting down in comfortable chairs while getting everything sorted out. Check in went fast and I was taken to my room 2005. The room was very impressive at first glance – IMG_6006the floor being with white tiles to start with and the rest in darker wood. To start with there were the usual wardrobes with lots of hangers, a small safe, robes etc. There was room enough for my large Samsonite suitcase to be placed between the wardrobes and I appreciate that. There was a large Samsung TV and in the furniture underneath it there was a fridge that even included a half size bottle of champagne – you don’t see that every day in hotel fridges.
IMG_6008The bed was huge and quite comfortable but the pillows were a bit too big and hard for my liking. There was also a desk with two chairs and a two seat sofa with a small table. And then there was a beautiful view of “The Royal Bangkok Sports Club” from windows stretching from floor to ceiling. The bathroom was set up it a genius way – there were sliding doors between the bedroom and the bathroom and hence it was possible to make it into a full room with 4 walls. The bathroom was tiled with light tiles, included huge mirrors, a modern style bathtub, two sinks and a large shower with a huge rainforest shower head. There were also very good amenities and the shower soap even included some scrubbing grains. There were also tooth brush, shaving kit, mouth wash etc. The towels were huge and soft. The toilet was in a small separate room in the bathroom and I think that it a good idea.

IMG_6012The breakfast was included in my room rate – I normally don’t eat that much breakfast but it is always interesting to take a look at the selection. Some of the Bangkok hotels have an enormous selection of food at the breakfast buffet. At St. Regis it seemed to be toned down a bit and hence it was not as impressive as other buffets. But the hotel did have all the stuff that you normally need – bread, selection of cereal, various fruits, various cold cuts of Italian ham and sausages, a selection of eggs in various ways made according to your order. I did not try the restaurants at the hotel but they have a hotel bar with the same great view over the sports club. There was even a sword on the bar and it seems like they use this every night when opening the champagne bottles.
The pool area was not huge but it actually looked like there was quite a lot of sun during the day in the pool area. In addition to this it seems like they also have a nice spa and exercise room at the same floor.

IMG_6011Location of the hotel is very good – as you have the skytrain station right outside the door it is easy to get around. But you can also walk if you can stand the Bangkok heat. It is only about 700 meters to CentralWorld or a bit longer to the start of Silom road.
But there is no such thing as a perfect hotel and here are some of the things that can be improved or things that didn’t work out quite as I expected at the hotel.
The internet was complimentary in my room rate but normally this is something that costs like 500 Baht per day. In these modern days I would like to see the internet for free at hotels. The internet also stopped the second I checked out of the hotel!
I also had free pressing of 4 items in my room rate and I got in touch with the butler service to get it picked up. But when I came back to the hotel at night the shirts had not been picked up and were never picked up at all.

The shower was great but the problem was that it was leaking out on the bathroom floor – I hope this is fixed soon as it is annoying with water splashing around on the floor.
When I booked the room online I got e-mails from both the reservation desk and the butler service asking me the same questions. This shouldn’t be necessary.

Conclusion
IMG_6005Despite of the few problems that I have mentioned above, I have to admit that this is one of the best hotels that I have stayed at in Bangkok and even around the world. The reception was great and the staff seems to be highly focused on giving the customers an exclusive experience. The room itself was beautiful and there seemed to be quality in all the details ranging from furniture, leather casings for everything to the great amenities. When I checked out I mentioned some of my “problems” as a feedback to the hotel and this was picked up by the assistant manager. She gave me her card and took the time to listen to my feedback and I appreciate that. I would not hesitate to stay at the hotel again if the price is right. It is a true luxury hotel! You can find more info on the hotel homepage.

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