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Oriental Hotel

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  • 48 Oriental Avenue
     Bangkok, Thailand 10500
    +66 (2) 659-9000 Website
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LenR
LenR
First Reviewer
5 out of 5
Avg. Member Rating
1
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3
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Oriental Hotel

  • March 28, 2007
  • Rated 5 of 5 by LenR from Townsville, Australia
Oriental Hotel

Since 1879, royalty, dignitaries, and distinguished travelers have followed the Chao Phya River through the heart of Bangkok to one of the world’s most luxurious hotels - The Oriental Bangkok. The hotel is regularly named in the World’s Best Hotels lists, and is renowned for sublime accommodations and personalized service.

Part of the exclusive Mandarin Oriental hotel group, the 15 story Oriental Bangkok provides 393 beautiful guestrooms and suites. Each features teakwood and Thai silk fabrics, fresh fruit and flowers, Bose CD players, bathrobes, in-room safes and complimentary 24-hour butler service. The Oriental Bangkok’s nine dining options cover French, Thai, Italian, and Chinese cuisines. The hotel’s landmark restaurant is Le Normandie, one of Asia’s most renowned French restaurants and a favorite with the HRH Queen of Thailand. Other restaurants include Sala Rim Naam with indoor and alfresco dining and traditional Thai dancing, and Lord Jim’s, for superb seafood with a beautiful riverside view.

Voted "The Best Spa in the World" by Travel & Leisure magazine, the hotel’s well-known spa is located across the river in a traditionally carved Thai style house, and offers both ancient Thai remedies and modern Western treatments. The spa is accessible by the hotel’s private ferry, along with the health club, two outdoor lap pools surrounded by tropical gardens, tennis courts, squash courts, and jogging track.

I have not stayed at the Oriental for several years as prices elsewhere have been so attractive but I try to visit one of the restaurants or just have a drink in a bar each time I visit Bangkok. Recently, my wife and I splurged on afternoon tea in the Author’s Lounge. On the ground floor of the Authors’ Wing, this lounge has old colonial charm and is decorated with white rattan furniture with hand-painted upholstery and Siamese umbrellas amid towering bamboo and palm trees. It is considered to be an institution for traditional afternoon tea with scones, finger sandwiches and cakes, and the world’s finest teas (or coffee).

The experience will long be remembered. We lingered for an hour and a half while we listened to the string quartet and lapped up the atmosphere and the luxury. The food was great but it was only one small part of the experience. If you have enjoyed ‘high-tea’ at the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong or in a top London hotel, you will love it here. The atmosphere is impossible to beat.

If you don’t want the full ‘tea’ you can just have a cake or drink. I am told that the signature cakes are Raspberry and anis, Lychee and strawberry, and Chocolate and orange. The Authors’ Lounge favourite drinks are Einspaenner, Fiaker, Chai, and Chocolat mélange. The name “Authors’ Lounge” evolved from the many famous writers who stepped through the doors of The Oriental, Bangkok over the years, from Joseph Conrad to Barbara Cartland. Maybe some IgoUgo contributors may be remembered in the future!

From journal Bangkok Eating and Sleeping

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