Review: The Waldorf Astoria Bangkok shines in soft opening

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As soon as we booked our crazy $600 business class tickets to Bangkok the search began to lock down a dope place to lay our heads. We were set to arrive late on Thursday and depart on Monday and figured it was a good opportunity to stay in two different areas of the city: the CBD, and on the river. I perused several hotels before finding a striking deal at the Waldorf Astoria Bangkok. Rates were over $300 ( plus 10% service and 7% tax), but I found points rates starting at 56k. That’s really a fantastic use of their points, and what made it even cooler was the hotel wasn’t even officially open. This would be my first time staying at a hotel during a soft opening, and I couldn’t have been more excited.

Prior to arrival, my account had been updated to reflect an upgrade to King Deluxe High Floor.

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The Deets:

• When: August 2018
• Where: Bangkok
• Room: King Deluxe
• Status: Gold
• Benefits:
  • Upgrade to King Deluxe High floor
  • Complimentary breakfast when redeeming points

The Location:

The hotel is a part of the Magnolias project in the Central Business District adjacent to the Grand Hyatt Erawan and gives a completely different perspective than staying on the river.  We primarily wanted to stay in this neighborhood because it’s walking distance to Gaggan – Asia’s #1 restaurant and a bucket list item. It’s also a quick few minutes to the BTS ( chit lom ) – great way to get around the city.

Arrival:

Since we were arriving so late, using points for the stay, we opted to make things really easy and booked the house car to pick us up at the airport. It was a pretty seamless transfer, and the car is drop dead gorgeous.  One thing to note…it took us roughly 30 mins to get from BKK to the hotel, but the transfer going the opposite way from the Mandarin Oriental side of the river took an hour 45 minutes. It set us back $100 including tip.

There are plenty of other options including taxi, or Thailand’s rideshare service called Grab that are far, far cheaper.

First Impression:

Even through the haze of 18 hours of travel and it being nearly 2am I was excited to see the hotel and my expectations were blown away. It’s truly spectacular and our first interaction was being met at the car and escorted to our room for an expedited check-in. Right on the ball.

The common spaces are contemporary but warm and inviting.

Speaking of Service:

The only hiccup in service was reserving the car prior to arrival – I had to email the concierge twice before receiving confirmation. However, the interaction with staff after arrival, and specifically the concierge was great. She ended up securely our reservation at Gaggan on our first night there, and was SUPER NICE.

The Room:

The standard King Deluxe and our upgraded King Deluxe High Floor are dimensionally the same, but you shouldn’t be disappointed – measuring in at over 500 sq ft they feature ultra high ceilings ( I believe over 9 feet ) making the room feel exceptionally spacious and they are beautifully appointed. The color scheme is right up my alley with neutral fabrics, soft toned natural wood and stone. If this hotel were in Paris – it’d be $1k a night.

The bathroom is stunning featuring a deep soaker tub, dual vanities, and rain shower with a window feature.

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Ferragamo products, full amenities, and plush robes are also standard. The full vanity kit is so clutch and thoughtful, something that is quite common in high end Asian hotels, and makes for not only an easy mind when packing, but also great keepsakes to bring home or donate to your local shelter.

If you’re read much of my adventures throughout Asia, you’ll already know I love a good Toto…and this one was no different. It even had a fully removable remote which mean you could conceivably try and wash your nether regions from far off places…:)

Peacock Alley:

Early the next morning I was up early to get pictures of Peacock Alley, but unfortunately the Loft and Champagne bar weren’t open until August 31st, post departure. Peacock Alley would be a great place to overlook the city, grab a cocktail, or maybe even Afternoon Tea.

Breakfast was superb and served at the Brasserie.

This was a world class breakfast buffet, and having Hilton Gold Status from my American Express Platinum card came in VERY handy. I took way too many pictures to feature alone so I complied a gallery. I’m not sure if they knew I was a blogger or not ( I was taking tons of pics, but the service was very attentive, and management constantly circling the restaurant paying attention to detail.

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The Pool and Fitness Center.

The pool is incredibly picturesque and insta worthy – obviously because I started this entire review with an Insta post, but it’s deserving. We were there during the rainy season where it’s very typical to have heavy afternoon rain showers blow through. If you’re there during this time of year, or face that weather regardless, it’s a dramatic thing to watch from this vantage point.

Overall:

Bangkok has no shortage of nice hotels, and many of them priced lower than the Waldorf – the Grand Hyatt and Intercontinental are a stones throw away and usually come in lower. With that said, the hotel is gorgeous, brand new, and offers world class accommodation in a very central area.  In fact, as soon as you enter the hotel you feel as though the hustle of the city has been long left behind, and replaced with understated luxury and service.  If the price point is in your budget, you won’t be disappointed with this fabulous new addition to Bangkok.

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