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A Suite Deal By Jennifer Gampell BANGKOK--You'll have upgrade envy if you book one of the 304 standard guest rooms ($200-$240) at the two-year-old Peninsula Bangkok. A mere $40 to $80 more will get you a Deluxe Suite--818 square feet of silk-upholstered luxury with river views and distinct living and sleeping areas--if a desk in the entry hall counts as a separate room. Moreover, at $280 a night, these 60 high-tech accommodations are $100 less than the Deluxe Suites at the Orieental, across the river. There must be a catch, you say. None that we could find during an early September stay. Although The Peninsula's position on the far bank of the Chao Phraya River is sometimes touted as inconvenient, we found the location, near the Sathorn Bridge, just the opposite. And the hotel's position results in stunning views of both the river and the city. As for the suites, the Peninsula achieves understated elegance through judicious use of Asian wood furniture aned paneling, light pastel carpeting and paint (complemented by woven Thai silk upholstery and curtains), and impeccably displayed artworks. High-tech (in Bangkok terms) appurtenances abound: CD-TV-camcorder video players, desks with built-in fax machines, two IDD lines, dual-voltage sockets, and computer data ports. The marble bathrooms are equipped with TVs above the bathtub and hands-free telephones. ROom service is impressively fast and efficient. The only mistake is the bamboo desk chair, which is just plain uncomfortable. However housekeeping will exchange it upon request for an ugly-but-supportive banquet chair. The Peninsula Bangkok, 333 Charoennakorn Road, Klongsan, Bangkok 10600, Thailand; 011-66-2-861-2888; fax 011-66-2-861-1112; www.peninsula.com; $200-$2,600 Copyright © 2001 Jennifer Gampell |
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