Dream of Siam

I'm often asked where to stay in Bangkok and it's difficult to say as it all depends. It depends on:

• How long you are staying for
• What your budget is
• Where you want to be located

On this page I give a few of my personal recommendations. This is by no means an exhaustive list - simple my recommendations based on my own experiences.

Hotels

For a short stay of 2 or 3 days, maybe a week, then a hotel is a great place to stay. There are countless hotels in Bangkok, which can cater for all budgets. For people staying a few days I usually recommend the Tower Inn Hotel, now renamed to the more magisterial Unico Grande Silom. I recommend this hotel because I have stayed there and like it. Here are the things I personally like:

• I really like the rooftop swimming pool. It's not massive, but I can swim laps as it's a rectangular pool. There's also a decent gym.
• There are some fascinating views out over Bangkok from the rooftop pool / terrace area. The skytrain looks like a model train from up there.
• The hotel is centrally located on Silom Road, you are a short taxi ride from the most interesting sights.
• It's not expensive. Prices seem to have gone mad in Thailand recently, but you can still pick up a decent room for a few nights for GBP 35 a night.

Note: since I last used the hotel it has been extensively refurbished. It's a lot nicer now and still cheap :)

Click here for the official website of Unico Grande Silom (formerly Tower Inn Hotel)

Serviced apartment

For a longer stay in Bangkok you will probably want to go for a serviced apartment rather than a hotel. There are a number of reasons why. One of the main reasons is that with a serviced apartment you will get a bigger room at a better rate and the room will have a kitchen, dining room / sitting room too. Most hotel rooms don't have a kitchen. Although most people do eat out when staying in Bangkok (as it's very cheap to do so) it's sometimes nice to stay in a have a quiet meal. Also, if you are working from your room during the day, you may just want to preapre a quick meal such as a salad, some fruit or a simple rice dish - the kitchen in a serviced apartment is perfect for this.

Serviced apartments also have most of the benefits of a hotel such as maid service, laundry, entertainment facilities and security.

I usually recommend the Oakwood City Residence serviced apartments if I'm asked. Again because I have experience staying there and that's where I usually go if spending any length of time in Bangkok.

One point, while places like Silom are fine for a few days, after a while the noise at street level and general business might get to you. For that reason I usually choose an apartment further out

Things I like about Oakwood:

• Good location as it's a little further out in the Sathorn area, so quieter, but still accessible. 5 minutes by taxi to Silom (30 mins at peak times).
  
• Decent rooms (I usually take a top floor room looking towards TPI Tower), the other option is a pool view.
• Nice staff. The staff make a big difference and I found the Oakwood staff to be helpful and very pleasant.
• Very secure. They will even call you a taxi and note their registration. They will make sure the taxi driver knows where you want to go too.
• Short walk to Central Plaza shopping centre, TOPS Supermarket, Tesco Lotus and Starbucks :)
• Short walk to a nice little outdoor restaurant. Perfect for an evening meal and a couple of cold beers.
• Has a posh bar with jazz music (I didn't go there much but it lends some gravitas to the place somehow).
• Fantastic shady pool.
• A really convenient little shop that sells necessities (stamps, postcards, food, sweets).
• A huge gym. The gym staff are really nice and the steam rooms/ saunas/ plunge pool and shower facilities are great. They also provide towels which is nice.

Oakwood isn't the cheapest place to stay, but in a way that's a good thing as you won't find any "lager louts" staying there. Most of the people who stay there are international business people, and some have familieis with them. If you have kids it's a secure place for them to stay and with the large, interesting pool they won't get bored.

Do try to negotiate a better rate, which is very possible, especially if you are staying for at least a month.

Click here for the official website of Oakwood City Residence Bangkok

Long stay apartment

If you are staying a long time in Bangkok, say one or two years, and you are looking for something more affordable than a serviced apartment, then you can find plenty of apartments to rent in Bangkok. Again, if you travel a little further out you can usually find somewhere cheaper and quieter. Location is important though - if you are working in Bangkok and have to commute you need to be close to work because commuting in Bangkok can be fairly hectic.

By way of example here's some pictures of a very typical apartment block that I like. It's called Peta House and it is a small complex catering to a mix of Thai and foreign occupants, mostly professionals.



Contact details for Peta House:

Peta House
46 Thesabal Rangsan Nua Road Ladyao
10900 Chatuchak
Bangkok