Book your Bangkok base for two with Culture Trip – and get set to enjoy the high life.
The capital of Thailand is a must-stopover for couples on the way to or from a beach or island holiday. How could it not be, with its sumptuous spas, sky bars and romantic river cruises? Add in a few dinners by candlelight in a selection of internationally renowned restaurants, and Bangkok is the place to be for lovers. Best of all, the finest hotels here rank among the top places to stay in the world.
Anantara
Eco Hotel, Hotel
Courtesy of Anantara Riverside Bangkok Resort / Booking.com
The Anantara rises across the Chao Phraya River, perfectly positioned for wonderful views. Request an upper floor river-facing room – they come in all price categories – to see the city shimmering in the water from your private balcony. There’s a superb spa and a sumptuous pool set in frangipani-scented gardens. Rooms are elegantly luxurious and low-lit for intimacy, with marshmallow-soft egyptian cotton and silk Ramayana mosaics on the walls. Complimentary gondolas ferry you across the river for easy road or Skytrain transport to nightlife. But we bet you won’t budge from the hotel.
With wood-laminate floors, a cream palette and functional fitted furniture, rooms at the Ramada have the unobtrusive feel of an airport hotel. What makes them stand out is the selection of romantic river views, either through large windows or from private balconies. The hotel is well-positioned, too, with free tuk-tuk rides to the adjacent Asiatique shopping mall and a shuttle service to the Skytrain station for trains downtown to restaurants and nightlife. There’s a well-equipped gym, a large pool with plenty of sun lounger-space and a modest spa. Settle in and swoon.
The rooms at Maitria are crisp and business-functional, with dark wood-laminate fitted furniture (large workstations) and crisp white walls. There’s a lovely rooftop pool with a view, and Downtown Bangkok locations simply don’t get any better – Maitra hides discreetly on a quiet back street off Sukhumvit Road. Asok Skytrain – with fast access to the river or the shopping district – is less than a 10-minute walk away, attractive Benjakitti Park is on the doorstep, and the hotel is in the thick of the restaurant and nightlife area.
The Phranakorn has an on-the-way-to-the-beach traveller feel. You’ll find it on the edge of the backpacker district of Banglamphu in Old Bangkok, a 10-minute tuk-tuk ride from the (in)famous Khao San Road, known from Alex Garland’s The Beach. Bright and airy rooms have pallet beds covered with riotously coloured Thai-textile scatter cushions, walls have attractive hand-painted murals of Thai scenes, and there’s a garden lounge as well as a balcony cafe with views out over standing Buddhas and towering wats. Breakfast is made with organic ingredients from the kitchen garden.
The restaurant-bar Vertigo here helped pioneer Bangkok’s romantic rooftop dining scene more than a decade ago, and with ever-more-glittering skyscrapers towering to the horizon, the views from the tables have only got better over the years. At Bayan Tree, rooms on the upper floors share them. Best of all are the Serenity Suites, in contemporary soft greys and browns offset by amber wall lamps and Thai temple art. You’ll have ample lounge space and wall-high windows. If you need a little pampering, try the spa – it’s one of the best in Bangkok.
Housed in a beautiful early-20th-century Italianate villa on the banks of the Chao Phraya River, the Praya looks like a Merchant Ivory film set. You can imagine a young Julian Sands lounging by the luxurious pool or joining Helena Bonham Carter for formal afternoon tea in the elegant dining room. Rooms with a view are Edwardian-plush – with Belle Époque furniture and heavy drape-curtains masking tall shutter windows that open onto the river. The Grand Palace is a short boat hop away – if you can tear yourself away, that is.
Bangkok’s answer to the Raffles in Singapore, the Oriental has been wooing Westerners since Graham Greene stayed here on writerly sojourns in the 1930s. Fully renovated, the hotel has returned to its Belle Époque glory, albeit with a contemporary touch. The best rooms are in the original balcony-fronted building, decked-out in warm woods and soft whites, with plush carpets, modern linen sofas and ottomans, and wonderful river views through floor-to-ceiling windows. The dining, like the spa, is among the finest in Bangkok – dining on fancy French fare at Le Normandie is a great city moment.
Despite having more than 200 rooms, the Sukhothai feels as intimate as a country club. Public and private interiors are decked out in the kind of dark woods and low light that inspire hushed tones. A dulcimer tinkles in the lobby, and meditative Buddha carvings (from the Sukhothai period) artfully adorn corridors. The spa is such a serene, soothing space that guests fall into a deep sleep during their massages. Yet, the hotel is in the thick of things – it’s located in Bangkok’s rushing business centre and a 10-minute walk from the Metro and Skytrain.
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