Bangkok’s Mandarin Oriental
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Some hotels eventually lose their shine. Others, such as Bangkok’s Mandarin Oriental, only improve with time. Despite being existed since 1876, this Southeast Asian hideout doesn’t seem stuck in the past. Regular renovations have kept it looking immaculate, and a constantly changing selection of around a dozen eateries—including the traditional Thai eatery Baan Phraya and the modern Kinu by chef Takagi Kazuo—keep an eye on Bangkok’s eating scene. The spa is still in a class by itself, offering massages laced with CBD oil, cold baths, and rubdowns made with plants from the Isan area in northeast Thailand. They just no longer produce them in this manner.
48 Oriental Avenue, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, Thailand is the address.
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Bangkok’s Capella
Hotel Chris Schalkx
Bangkok’s Capella
There are many of fancy hotels in Bangkok to choose from, but a hotel with the celebrity status of the Capella Bangkok only comes around once in a very long time. This low-rise pile of blonde woods and creamy marble made its debut in 2020 on a garden-clad estate along the Chao Phraya River. It included firsts for Bangkok, like travertine Jacuzzi tubs on the balconies of suites and villas built directly on the river. Within a year of its debut, the hotel’s Mediterranean-inspired fine dining restaurant, Côte, created by Argentine chef Mauro Colagreco, was awarded a Michelin star. Meanwhile, after dark, insiders swarm to the boudoir-style Stella Bar to enjoy cocktails inspired by some of Bangkok’s most famous neighborhoods. starting at £618. Schalkx, Chris
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The hotel Sven Ellsworth in Siam
Bangkok’s Siam
This Bangkok mainstay’s location isn’t as handy as that of many of its competitors: most of the best tables are more than a half-hour cab ride away, and the postcard vistas need a boat transfer. But that’s the point for me and the hordes of other devoted admirers of this monochromatic masterpiece by hotel expert Bill Bensley. The Siam, which is situated in the quiet Dusit neighborhood on a verdant riverbank site, seems like a window into a past Bangkok. Even though it opened ten years ago, it’s easy to picture it as a luxurious playground for the city’s former big guns, the influential people of the mid-century, whose artifacts, which include old Pan Am posters, worn travel trunks, and broken pottery, decorate the marble-floored corridors. It’s difficult to find a more charming place to have lunch than the hotel’s Thai restaurant, which is situated between the weathered pillars of three old teakwood houses. Butlers dressed in elegant black sarongs provide the traditional Thai hospitality, which includes lilting “sawadee ka” greetings and tables adorned with fresh orchids. This is not to mean that the hotel is stuffy; in fact, the spa has a tattoo parlor. Suites and private-pooled villas are being kept looking new by a continual renovation. And now that a Jim Thompson homeware store has opened in the wooden house that the famous silk mogul assisted in acquiring for its previous owners, everything has gone full circle. Every year, the five-star hotel industry in the Thai capital becomes more luxurious, yet its classic beauty is still unmatched.
Address: Bangkok 10300, Thailand; The Siam 3, 2 Khao, Vachirapayabal, Dusit District
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The Standard, Mahanakhon, Bangkok
It’s difficult to overlook the pixel-swirled King Power Mahanakhon, which rises 314 meters above Bangkok’s core business area, from any angle while looking at the skyline. Fittingly quirky is its tenant, the Asian flagship of the Hollywood-based hotel chain The Standard. It was designed by Spanish artist-designer Jaime Hayon and opened at the end of 2022. Its diverse blend of eye-popping colors and curved forms contrasts with its rivals’ traditional straight-lined beige style. Penthouse-sized (after)party-pads with whirlpool tubs and balconies overlooking Bangkok’s central business district are available, as are cozy apartments with orb lights and retro-inspired armchairs in mustard velours. It’s also one of Bangkok’s most culinary-forward hotels: the Parlor lounge serves Thai comfort food on the lobby floor, and the adjacent floors house Thailand’s first location of Hong Kong-born dim-sum powerhouse Mott 32 (don’t miss the applewood-roasted Peking duck) and NYC-style steakhouse The Standard Grill. Within days of its inauguration, the neo-Mexican restaurant Ojo, located on the 78th level, under the glass-floored observation deck, became one of Bangkok’s most popular spots. Check out our comprehensive review of Bangkok Mahanakhon’s The Standard.
Address: Silom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500, Thailand; 114 Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Road