In May, for the beginner 4 nights in BK, 4 nights in Samui, what kind of excursion & where would you stay?
Feb 19th, 2003, 06:44 AM
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In May, for the beginner 4 nights in BK, 4 nights in Samui, what kind of excursion & where would you stay?
My husband & I will be there in May. We want Lux hotel in Bangkok (considering Peninsula) & Samui. What kind of sight seeing would you do in Bangkok for the beginner? In Samui, we want Deluxe room, beautiful lush grounds, & a long stretch of beach. Currently considering Santiburi Dusit resort. Please share your thoughts. Thank you.
Feb 19th, 2003, 08:54 AM
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My husband and I went to Thailand last May. In Bangkok we stayed at the Peninsula and loved it. It was gorgeous! In fact, it was probably one of the very best hotels we have ever stayed at. <BR><BR>We had a room up high with a balcony facing the river. The room was beautifully decorated with a dressing area and marble bathroom complete with plush robes and slippers too. There was even a control panel near the bed to control all of the lights, temp. , drapes etc... and of course their famous "shoe shine box." The food at the restaurant was superb. In fact, their buffet breakfast was exceptional. It consisted of some traditional Thai dishes as well as the regular breakfast items, and we generally are not ones to typically go for buffets but did love this one. The restaurat overlooked the beautifully maintained gardens. <BR><BR>As for Samui we stayed at the Central Samui Beach Resort. We loved this hotel too. From the moment we walked in we were impressed. We were greeted with a nice cold glass of passion fruit juice just the thing after travelling on a hot day!! The hotel was located on the southern end of Chaweng beach, and was not right in the middle of all the action, yet not far away either. Our room overlooked the water and was tastefully decorated as was the hotel in bright tropical colors. The grounds were tropical in every sense of the word, lush green and the beach was just a few steps away. <BR><BR>We did go and check out the Santiburi Resort for perhaps a future trip, and did like this hotel for its seclusion. The beach was bare with the exception of one sunbather. The rooms looked like they were separate from each other. This hotel felt a bit more isolated. Not necessarily a bad thing if that is what you are looking for 
<BR><BR>Anyway, I hope this helps, have a good trip.<BR><BR>Karen<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>
<BR><BR>Anyway, I hope this helps, have a good trip.<BR><BR>Karen<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>
Feb 19th, 2003, 10:17 AM
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Karen,<BR><BR>Thank you so much. What did you think about the ground at Santiburi in Samui?<BR>Do you know if there are beach chairs on the beach and is the beach wide/long stretch? Which other resort would you recommend for us to stay at beside the central Samui & Santiburi?
Feb 19th, 2003, 03:18 PM
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Well, the grounds at Santiburi<BR>appeared to be very tropical.<BR><BR>Yes, the beach has hammocks and lounge chairs available. As on Chewang, the beach is pristine, wide, and the water crystal clear. <BR><BR>If you are considering other hotels on Samui there are lots of other great recommendations available on this web site. Unfortunately, I can only comment on these ones.<BR><BR>Karen
Feb 21st, 2003, 07:42 PM
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One thing about the Peninsula Hotel: it's not centrally located, it's actually on the other side of the river from the main attractions of Bangkok. The Oriental and Shangri-La are both nice luxury hotels, but expect to spend a lot of time in taxis if you stay in either of them since they're not very close to the Skytrain or many attractions. If you really want a river view,however, all 3 of them are excellent choices. If you want a really stunning hotel , you might want to consider The Sukhothai. The grounds and rooms are spectacular, but you won't get that river view. Who said life is easy? LOL Good luck!
Feb 21st, 2003, 10:11 PM
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We were in Koh Samui about a week after 9/11 and stayed at Le Meridien Baan Taling Naam. It is even more isolated than Santiburi. It's on the west coast and there are no other hotels for miles. It's situated on a hillside with lush tropical grounds. There are two pools, one with an infinity edge, up high with great views of the sea and the hilly coast. The other down near the beach. Beach is not very wide but we walked a mile either direction most days without encountering another soul. At the hotel there are lovely palms lining the shore. It was an elegant setting, with a beautiful lobby and comfortable, interesting rooms. And though the place was 90% occupied it never felt busy. <BR>We rented a car one day and drove around the island to check out some of the other hotels we had considered. Most appeared to be in the middle of lots of activity and we were grateful for the solitude what with the tragedy in NYC. We roamed around the grounds of the Dusit (about the same price at the time) and were impressed with the hotel lobby. The grounds were lovely too but it was all on the flat so it felt more densely developed. It would definitely be my second choice. If you want to be closer to the "action" it might be the best place for you. Enjoy!
Feb 22nd, 2003, 07:28 PM
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Mary,<BR>Now we are not sure whether we should stay at Santiburi or not? Could you please tell us more about the Bann Taling room location,restaurants, pools,fitness area. How much time would it take to walk from the room to the restaurant, pools & fitness? Please give me an idea. <BR>IN your opinion which resort has a better beach, Santiburi or Bann Taling?<BR>Thank you for your time.
Feb 24th, 2003, 02:36 PM
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I thought the ShangriLa was a great hotel and the location was great, right on the river so you could use river transportation or the Skytrain which was a 5 minute walk, even from the furthest part of the hotel. It's true that the hotels on that part of the river aren't particularly close to the attractions (Grand Palace, Wat Pho, etc.) but I thought it was nice to have breakfast in the morning out on the patio, away from the noise of the city.<BR><BR>The Penisula is on the other side of the river, same distance to the attractions by water transport, a little longer if by skytrain as you have to cross the river. The Penisula has ferries that will bring you across.<BR><BR>Sightseeing must sees are the Grand Palace (English speaking guided tours provided at entrance several times during the day)and Wat Pho (get a really inexpensive massage at the school there). I enjoyed the Chatachuck weekend market, easily reachable by Skytrain. Thai boxing was also an interesting experience, venues alternate on different days so check at your hotel.
