Best hotel location with 84-year old mother given our itinerary
 

Hello,

We (4 women, including an 84-year old, healthy mother) are planning a 3 day trip to Bangkok. I'm looking at a hotel that would work best for having an 84-year old mother who may need to go back to the hotel to rest during the day, other than the day of the private tour. So far, our plans are:

Day 1 - weekend market (Sunday)
Day 2 - Day with private guide Tong/or one of her guides (Monday)
Day 3 - Shopping (nothing specific planned; very flexible but want to shop for bargains)

My options right now are (due to points and discounts available to me):
Royal Orchid Sheraton (2 Charoen Krung Road Soi 30 (Captain Bush Lane) · Siphya, Bangrak )
Le Meridien (40 / 5 Surawong Road , Bangrak)
Westin Grande (259 Sukhumvit Road)
Plaza Athénée Bangkok, A Royal Méridien Hotel (Wireless Road)
Marriott Executive Apartments Sathorn Vista (1 Sathorn Soi 3 South Sathorn Road)

I've never been to Bangkok before. Thanks for your help.

If you have never been to Bangkok before, stay on the river at the Royal Orchid Sheraton. The location is not the best for Skytrain access but you can go anywhere in Bangkok cheaply by taxi. With 4 persons it will be crowded in a taxi so keep that in mind.

If you want to be close to the Skytrain for easy access to the weekend market and other shopping, the Westin Grande is your best bet. However, access to the skytrain is not always easy as you usuall will have a couple of sets of stairs to climb.

You'll probably want to go early to the weekend market (it gets going around 9) and because of the heat, you won't want to stay there much past noon. Depending on what you are looking for, your best bargains may be there. On our last trip to Bangkok, we found that a lot of things (especially upscale items) have become pricey.

Post back if you have additional questions.

With your 84 year old mother, you may not want to climb many stairs. I love the skytrain, but it does requires many sets of stairs. So I agree with Craig that you may want to consider taxis as your primary mode of transport. They are cheap and the only problem is getting stuck in traffic. The worst traffic in my experience is along Sukhumvit, so even though that is prime shopping territory, I wouldn't stay in that area.

Like Craig, I think staying along the river makes all the difference. The Royal Orchid has been my "home" in Bangkok for over 20 years. I do stay in the Towers (breakfast, evening drinks and canapes, etc included in the price). Whether it is worth it to you depends on how you travel. The extra services provided by the Towers staff are great, and if your mother wanted to return to the hotel without you, she could go to the Towers Lounge and have tea, etc, in a lovely atmosphere with the staff to get her anything she needs (and I expect they would fuss over her).

The doorman will get you a taxi each time you need it, make sure the driver knows where you are going and give you a hotel card so you can get back. Make sure taxi drivers turn on the meter.

I don't think I'd take my 85 year old mother to the weekend market - beastly hot and very crowded - but it depends on how acclimated your mother is to the heat.

Have a wonderful trip! Bangkok is my favorite city in the world.

bag the weekend market or leave mom at the hotel for that time....the mkt is very difficult for many reasons, not the least of which is the extreme heat and humidity in very close quarters...

all of the hotels you suggest would work perfectly....but being on the river is a special treat... plan to use taxis...from ROS only use taxis from the door, those in the street, ourside ROS, are rip-off artists.. from any riverside hotel getting to the skytrain is easy, but the first thing you encounter is a steep staircase to make it to the trains which might be good for you to avoid, thus making taxis a good alternative, plus with 4 of you taxis probably would be cheaper...

for pure lux, the plaza anthenee is fabulous....and its location is fantastic for shopping as well...i will be staying there in november in fact....i am paying the 3300 B rate that they are currently offering and saving my points this time....

marriott points: along with the new sathorn location, the marriott mayfair is a very good location, better than sathorn in fact....but also the marriott resort and spa is my favorite over-all hotel and its on the river too with boat access to the skytrain, but i often use taxis from there just so as to arrive at my destination cool and comfy...

A couple more notes about staying on the river. I find the air better along the river (no sea of cars) and it's slightly cooler (more accurately, less hot). I love the endless and endlessly fascinating traffic on the river - boats and barges, ferries and water taxis. If your mother opts to spend time at the hotel she can sit and watch the river traffic and feel like she's seeing Bangkok. One kind of public transport you should try is the water taxi. Really, more like a water bus, they are inexpensive and a great way to get to locations along the river like Wat Po or Wat Arun or the Grand Palace. There is a water taxi stop next to the Royal Orchid.

Thank you for all the responses. I live in the US but my mother and the rest of the group live in Southeast Asia, so they are quite used to the heat. It seems like my list of hotels are looking good, and I think I will avoid the Westin Grande. I am definitely leaning towards Royal Orchid Sheraton. The rates are excellent, so I may not use my points.

My Mom is quite independent, so she wouldn't mind staying behind when the rest of us trek to the weekend market.

Has anyone stayed at the Le Meridien? I saw that it was rated no. 1 on Tripadvisor, but of course that should not be the sole determining factor. While it's clear the hotel is lovely based on the reviews, I can't seem to figure out if the location is good.

the meridien is brand new having opened within the last year...its location is not fabulous, and it is closest to the ROS of any of the hotels you list...

i find the meridiens treat their SPG members better than do the sheratons for some reason...

we feel the same way that kathie does about the air along the river....if you stay at ROS be sure to enjoy thier 2nd pool which is located on the grounds of the portugese embassy next door...

What happened to my long response about Le Meridien? I hate it when my responses get lost. Anyway, I had some comments about the Le Meridien website and how it touted the proximity to Patpong, and said you could get to Chinatown in 15 minutes in a "venerable" tuk tuk.