Hello

Okay so we've finally narrowed down our first three nights at either the
Ambassador hotel or the Grand President Hotel both on Sukhmvit in Bkk.

the Grand President Hotel on Expedia is for $52 per night with breakfast and pool.Topaz studio. Any feedback on this??

Ambassador is for 1900 baht.

Anyone have any advice regarding 1 hotel over the other?

We want a pool, breakfast included and no bugs in the room. oh and either in the Siam or Sukhmvit area.

Thanks!!!

several fodorites have stayed at the president and liked it....it is a serviced apartment....

my own experience with the ambassador is that its an old hotel, that was once grand....it is dark in the public areas and looks very old, like 1950's...i have not however been in the rooms, only in the public areas...

i think either would be servicable but only that---a place to sleep, but well located, just off of sukhumvit...

personally i would rather be at the majestic grand, on soi 2, for slightly more money...

I'd pick the serviced apartment over the hotel. Happy Travels!

I like the Grand President. I've stayed many times, and it is a favorite of several of my friends.

ok. on expedia for $52 i thought it was a good rate. but the reviews on expedia say that when they arrive at the hotel they say the apartmentn is not available and get a dumpy room instead etc. so I was a bit worried. But i guess we'll take our chances!!

That may be true? I've never booked through Expedia, so I don't know what kind of room you will get?

I hear there are some dumpy rooms there, but I always book the biggest one bedroom suites through the Grand President. They are about 60,000 Baht a month.

I think the cheaper rooms you are talking about are across the street? A friend stayed there and liked it, but his room was not near as nice as my suite.

i have stayed at both the topaz and the amb. the topaz apts are across the street from the main gp bldg, next to the lemoncello restaurant. the room that i had was small, looked out onto the wall of the next bldg. i don't think it is worth the extra b to stay there over the ah.

i like the ah, nice lobby, bars and restaurants, and good security.

regardless, soi 11 is a great location, as there are alot of things to do.

I haven't booked a serviced apartment through Expedia. I contact the serviced apartment building directly...then I can be very specific as to what I want and don't want. Happy Travels!

Kuranosuke, regarding The Ambassador, do you recommend the Tower or the Main Building? Do you know if the renovation project has been completed yet? The reviews I've read have been quite mixed, and I'm assuming the negative ones came from guests staying in the older rooms.

Am's website says renovations are going on through December of this yr.

yeah im worried about the negative reviews for AM.

Maybe i will pick Am after all and pay a few extras for the tower rooms.

i have stayed in the towers and the main bldg. the towers are a few dollars more, and i don't think its worth it. but of course, i stayed there prior to the current reno project. the towers are located at the far end of the hotel, so its a bit away from the main lobby.

i hope the main towers are also being reno. the security is good, and the breakfast is also good.

my preference is to stay in the main bldg. on the non-smoking 7th floor. if you decide to stay there, ask for a room away from the bar/lounge they have on the ground floor fronting soi 11. i usually request a room between 710-716.
a garden room is also not bad.

i usually stay there for around $31 all in, but i see for dec. the rates are over $40. but of course, its the high season.

soi 11 is a great soi, easy access to the nana bts, many restaurants, jazz music lounges, the bed, massage places, excellent restaurants, internet shops, and a short walk to foodland, a supermarket with a great food counter(always full). hope this helps.

Thank you -- the Ambassador is worth a try. Like you said, the location is very good. And I think the price is very good too, just $40 a night!

I stayed at the Majestic Grande this past March ($75 a night), and my room was quite small and the wooden furniture was well worn. I'm surprised so many regulars on this board speak so highly of it. Last year I stayed at the DMA Pavillion ($40), and even though no one else on this board seems to have stayed there, I found the hotel itself to be much nicer than the Majestic Grande, and I loved the local color of the neighborhood. I guess we all look for different things when we travel!

ojudy, with the money you save by staying at the amb, walk on down to the bed for an excellent meal, and a great experience. . perhaps you have already been there. there are other great places on soi 11. just explore. enjoy.

For november (that's when we're going) the tower double is actually $60 something. I guess the $40 is for the standard. I read on tripadvisor someone found cockroaches in their room. that freaked me out. so i thought i should go for a tower room since main rooms are under construction till december.

I always travel with a flyswatter...I never leave home without one. I saw a cockraoch running around in the diningroom/restaurant of the Emporium where I rent an apartment. It's the tropics and it's hard to get away from them. So, just swat the little critters and keep going. It sure beats the geckos/lizards that run around in rooms in that part of the world. Happy Travels!

The reservations through Expedia or Hotels.com generally specify the Topaz Suite, rather than the Topaz Studio. The difference may be as little as a few square feet and will include a couch. I have had the Topaz Studio three times, in three different room configurations. Twice it was in Tower Two and once in Tower three, across the street. I used to stay at the GP all the time, but the prices have nearly tripled over when I started to stay there.

As to the Ambassador, the majority of rooms are very worn, but if you can be assured of a room in the new wing, it would be a better value than the GP. If not, the GP would rate higher.

If you stay near Soi 11 and get tired of Thai food, Limoncello offers a terrific Roman pizza. I remember being there when it first opened, watching the Roman chef teaching the Thai kids how to toss a pizza. Priceless!