Sleeping in Khaosan

D&D Inn is one of the best deals in Khaosan Road and in Thailand. It is located at the very center of Khaosan and it offers comfortable rooms with everything from air-conditioner, through a swimming pool in the roof and astonishing views of the palace at night. Top Guesthouse belongs to the top end in the category of dirty cheap guesthouses. It is located in a hidden alley midway between Khaosan Road and Soi Damnoen Klang Nua and finding it is a good exercise for newcomers. Baan Sabai has a great name, it may be translated as “Pleasantville;” however, it has very little beyond that. It is located in the road surrounding the temple at the western end of Khaosan Road and offers a reasonable access to the area. Merry V. completed my exploration of the cheapest guesthouses in the Khaosan Road area. The sheets were so old that they were thin due to age and use; the holes in them looked as part of their original design.

Quick Tips:

Khaosan offers literally hundreds of guesthouses and hotels; it would be impossible, even starting very early in the morning, to make a thorough survey before choosing a suitable one; the attempt itself may spoil the day. Hence, arriving with an idea of the kind of desired accommodation and a clear budget would help to shorten the process. Restricting the search into a small area may work as well. Soi Rambuttri, in its part behind the temple is less crowded and noisy than Khaosan Road itself and is a good place to start the search. Soi Damnoen Klang Nua – the small alley between Khaosan Road and the main avenue – Rajadam Noen Klang – hosts many interesting options of different classes; from dirty cheap, hole-in-the-wall places, to new guesthouses offering modern facilities. The best time for a search is around noon, since the check out time of most establishments in the area is noon. In the high season, especially around Christmas, finding a suitable place may be difficult even then. Finding cheap hot water, a private shower and toilets, a clean room, cable television, a view of the palace… may look an impossible task everywhere but in Thailand.

Best Way To Get Around:

Bangkok is a huge metropolis and covering it by foot is not easy. Foreign letters, strange sounds, and many variations of public transport do not transform the task of traveling around into an easy one. Taxis and their local mutants, the tuk-tuks, are not recommended; sometimes you will find yourself at the driver’s tailor uncle instead than at your desired destination. The great diversity in buses and the need to make a quick transaction on them without understanding the language may sound frightening, but there is no reason for that feeling. Traveling in an air-conditioned bus is more comfortable than in a taxi and both advance at the same speed. While boarding the bus, do not pay. A ticket seller will approach you during the trip, expecting to get approximately the right fare; do not attempt to pay a B7 fare with a B1000 note. Buses in Bangkok are very cheap and effective, and they will take you anywhere at anytime. At peak hours it may take hours to cross the city; planning is the answer.

Viengtai was the first real hotel in the Khaosan Road area, and even today, its massive building is one of the best choices for a good sleep in this inevitable area of Bangkok. The hotel is located on Thanon Rambuttri, the northern street parallel to Khaosan and offers easy access to all the attractions without surrendering to the backpackers’ motto "cheaper is better."

The huge entrance is divided into three parts; the big central lobby is surrounded by a spacious restaurant – named Rosirin - at its western side and a group of various shops at the other one. The restaurant is accessible only from within, while the shops’ main entrances are on the street, so that they are practically separated from the hotel.

"How many nights are you planning to stay?" asked the receptionist before she quoted a price, hinting thus at the option of getting discounts for prolonged stays. A single room for a single night was offered for 1850B (roughly fifty dollars at the time).

The price includes an attractive breakfast; two choices are offered to the guests: an American breakfast or a Thai buffet. The Thai buffet is an exceptional opportunity to try small quantities of mainstream Thai dishes, a kind of quick course for first-timers in Thailand. At lunch, a buffet combining both styles costs B240 (less than seven dollars) and is equally worthwhile; however, it is not served on Sundays. Prices at the restaurant are subject to a 10% service charge and to 7% VAT; however, considering that a generous portion of apple pie with ice-cream costs just B65 (about two dollars), the prices here are a still bargain, despite the cheaper options in the surrounding area. A set menu for lunch or dinner – Thai or Western – costs B220.

Another important feature, especially considering Bangkok’s heat and humidity, is an outdoors swimming pool that enriched my overall experience and was pleasantly empty at the time of the visit.

Following the formalities at the reception, the elevator opened into a very dark corridor that filled me with fear of the Khaosan Syndrome: rooms with no windows or windows opening to the wall of the next building, but I was proved wrong. The rooms face the street and - in any case - are above the lower buildings around the hotel.

Its interior was pleasant, despite a rather narrow – but solid – bed and a quite Spartan feeling. The television was small and placed in an inadequate place, but as compensation, the room included a small fridge, which is a kind of luxury seldom found in the Khaosan area. The air-conditioner did its job well and without complaining and the bathroom was more than adequate. Overall, the minimalist setup provided a positive experience.

When it was opened a few years ago, Buddy became the first up-market place in the entire street; placed nearby the eastern edge of Khaosan Road, it lured backpackers – the main segment of population here - not only with its inexpensive luxury, but also with the help of a small shopping center placed at its polished entrance.

There, the Coffee World became the first coffee chain to set a foot in the street, McDonald opened a branch next to it and Buddy’s restaurant above them defined new food standards in the area. The day of my latest visit, a chalk drawn sign charmingly announced "Chacoal Grill Lamb Loin Chop," for just B550 – around fifteen dollars and a fortune in local terms. Beneath the entrance, the underground floor offered clothes and silver ornaments so that the tired backpackers would be able to find all their needs in a single building; a changing display of exclusive motorcycles added a bit of glamour to the sight.

After crossing those attractions, a shiny corridor lead to the impressive reception, fit to serve a five stars hotel. The polite clerks wear traditional Thai clothes and stand below an oversized logo of the Hotel. They quoted a price and assigned the task of showing the room to a bellboy. At B2000 (around fifty-five dollars) for a single night in a single room, this is the most expensive hotel in Khaosan Road even now, when newer structures appeared nearby, and my expectations, especially after the bright welcome, were high.

The elevators and the corridors were luxurious, very clean and pleasant to the eye and the solid doors scattered at regular intervals contributed to building the feeling that this place is way above its competitors in the area.

At first sight the room fitted the projected image; two heavy beds (which were offered as a single room) occupied a rather smallish room tastefully decorated with dark browns and heavy furniture, and a solid air-conditioner promised suitable cooling to an elegant cables television set.

Two minor issues spoiled the visit. Opening the window, I found myself looking at the construction site of a new guesthouse; once finished, the window would open to a solid wall or to a window of the new hotel. This is the eternal problem in Khaosan – which in the cheapest guesthouses is solved by windowless rooms – and Buddy proved unable to set a new standard. The second problem was the bathroom, which provided all the modern commodities in a handsome design but failed in a very basic issue; the ceiling above the shower was moldy and the darkened paint was peeling off.

The Name

In a typical Asian move, the Siam Oriental Inn owners chose a name similar to the one used by another hotel in Bangkok. The Oriental (see the entry with that name in my Extreme Hotels in Bangkok journal) is considered to be one of the best hotels in the world while the Siam Oriental Inn hopes to share some of that fame.

The Hotel

The Siam Oriental Inn is a landmark in the eastern side of Khaosan Road. It was one of the first big guesthouses to establish themselves in the road and set an example for the plethora of establishments that appeared in recent years. It offers value accommodation as well as additional services for the joy of the backpackers flooding the area.

The Rooms

They offer a wide range of rooms; for example single rooms (no window) with a fan, private bathroom and cold shower cost 280 Baht per night, while air-conditioned rooms with hot water cost 400B per night. The Deluxe rooms include a window with a view to Khaosan Road; aimed for 1-2 people with air-conditioning, fan, private bathroom with hot shower and free American Breakfast coupons, they cost 700 Baht per night. Beyond the single rooms, there are double, triple and quadruple ones. Courtesy of the house, all the rooms include free tissue paper and soap. Needless to say, the windowless rooms should be avoided. Due to the variety of options, it is recommended to physically take a look at the room before checking in.

General Services

The hotel has CCTV and a 24-hour security. All the rooms include a free safe service, provided by the lobby. The luggage storage is rather expensive at 10 Baht for half a day and 20 Baht for a full day (for up to 3 month’s storage); other places in the area charge just ten Baht per day. The laundry service is fast and reliable; clothes given in the morning will be returned in the evening.

Internet

At the lobby’s back there is an internet kiosk, caged behind glass walls. The service costs 0.75B per minute and is offered 24 hours a day. It is possible to burn CD’s and DVD’s.

Photography

Next to the entrance is the Bangkok Lab, a shop offering film and digital cameras as well as related services.

Siam Restaurant

One of the best features of the guesthouse is its restaurant, which occupies much of the lobby. It operates twenty-four hours a day and is thus extremely handy while arriving or departing from the area at odd hours. At its end is a small bar offering cocktails and other drinks. The menu can be described as hybrid-international: Malay chicken-satay has been coupled here to Western toasts and hamburgers are served with papaya juice. Unluckily, the truly Thai dishes are somewhat scarce and have been mercilessly hybridized.

The Institution

D&D Inn is one of the oldest and best known guesthouses in Khaosan Road. It dates back almost to the days in which the road began its transformation into the backpackers’ world capital.

The Location

The establishment enjoys a fabulous location at the very center of Khaosan Road. The last round of renovations created a direct access from the lobby to the alley separating Khaosan Road from Ratchadamri Avenue, augmenting thus its accessibility even more.

The Layout

D&D was from its beginnings one of the biggest and more respectable institutions in the area. However, back then (and until a few years ago) it included just one building, nowadays known as "Building 1." Then, a second building adjacent to the first one was constructed and recently a thick layer of make-up was added to the lobby area, giving D&D Inn an up-market and shiny look.

The Rooms

The additions and renovations were done on layers, resulting in areas of different qualities. The rooms in Building 2 are much better than the older ones and thus the building is usually fully occupied. A single room with air conditioner and private, hot water bathroom costs 550B; a similar double costs 750B. A "Single Deluxe" room costs 750B and a "Double Deluxe" room costs 1100B. The rooms include cables television. The rooms are spacious and comfortable; the beds are of good quality and the air conditioners work properly. However, it is recommended to take a look at the room before checking-in and to ask for one of the rooms facing the colorful street below; the last have attractive balconies which are a pleasure at night, when the street is transformed into a giant night market.

The Bathroom

Even if only windowless rooms are available, D&D is a worthy option due to its excellent bathrooms. The water heaters actually work well here and the spotless facilities make any visit a pleasure.

The Room Service

Unlike most hotels and guesthouses in the area, D&D offers a basic room-service which includes simple meals and snacks. The only drawback is that it operates during limited hours and thus it is not handy if arriving or departing at odd hours.

The Pool and the View

At the roof there is a smallish but sweet swimming pool which is a delight during the hot and humid evenings. At night, an astonishing view of the Grand Palace at its full splendor awaits there to the visitors.

The Price of Popularity

D&D Inn is the best choice in the whole area; not only for the excellent facilities provided at a reasonable price, but also because of its location. Unfortunately, that means that the place is usually full; it is best to approach them around 11:00, after the check-out of last night guests.