Just one quick note on Shangri-La Bangkok.

0n July 17th 2008, pool and garden areas by the river are closed for renovation. The smaller pool one the other building is however open.

This is something that I really hate: hotels not telling you beforehand that you'll be staying on a construction site. At least I did not find anything on their website or on any information given.

See for yourself - pictures are taken from the Peninsula hotel on the other side of the river. The pool that you see on hotel website and previous taken pictures exists no more.

We stay at this hotel in Bangkok instead of others for 3 main reasons.
1. Balconies overlooking the river. Many hotels in Bangkok overlook the river but very few have balconies. Most of the balconies are in the Krungthep wing. There's nothing nicer than having your morning coffee while breathing in the not-yet-smoggy air and watching the river boats dart around.
2. The Krung-thep wing is quiet, relatively child-free and has a low-key private pool to escape the crowds at the much busier 'main' pool.
3. Excellent service. The hotel itself is getting long in the tooth, particularly when compared to the Pen across the river, but the staff are absolutely brilliant.

Additional advice: It's worth the splurge to rent a car (request Mr. Buncha as your driver) and go to Ayutthaya for the day. By going by private car in AC comfort you avoid the frantic sweaty bus tours that only stop at a few wats and waste time at the elephant park. Do a bit of research online and you can request which of the MANY ruins you'd like to visit, a personalized tour! We usually manage about 7 or 8 in a day long trip and in many cases we have the ruins all to ourselves.

My husband and I stayed at the Shangri-La Bangkok for two nights on the way back from our honeymoon. We were given an upgrade to a suite, which was a nice touch, and flowers in our room on arrival. The room was large, with a separate living room. Overall I loved the hotel and wish we could have spent more time there. The pool outside by the river was beautiful - a real oasis of calm compared to what happens when you leave the hotel grounds! Breakfast was very nice .

Good location, on the river, and close to the MRT. You can take a river boat tour from the dock at the hotel; either an evening dinner cruise, or a daytime tour, but be aware that these do not run every day. A good option is to take a public boat from the nearby Oriental Pier, which costs just 20 Bhat and stops at all the major sights on the river. Beware of the tuk-tuk drivers outside the hotel (and all across the city!) who will tell you that the shops/attractions/night markets are closed, and pester you into riding with them on a "tour"! Just smile and say thank you, and keep on walking!

We arrived at the Shangri La to a very warm welcome.We were really quite overwhelmed at the size of the room and the view overlooking the river was awesome.Breakfast was oustanding everything you could possibly want.Lovely pool.We ate lunch there and it was truly delicious.It did rain quite heavily,but only a few hours then stopped.
Tour East was our representative whilst we were there and they were excellent.We did the floating market trip which is a must,our guide(from Tour East) was a lovely girl,full of information and was really very funny!!.We also went to see Thai Boxing which is a must.

We also visted Patong night market which was an experience !!! Lots of market stall holders trying to get you to buy,and some great leather handbags(imitation)but good value if you can barter.You really must visit to see for yourselves.Lots and lots of girls and ladyboy bars,which we knew about and yes we did go into one to see what it was all about, I have to say being female that I did feel a bit uneasy, but it was vey well run and not seedy as i thought it would be. Use the skyetrain,really easy to get there.

We would definately go back to this hotel,we were only there 3 days before we travelled to Koh Samui,and would have liked a few more days.Really friendly people,just beware of those that are too friendly,they seem to come out of no where and seem to want to get you packed off to all sorts of places,but once you say no(a few times !!) they are not offended.