Westin Grande Sukhumvit Bangkok hotel review

The Westin Grande Sukhumvit is a modern and contemporary Bangkok hotel located in the heart of Bangkok’s shopping and entertainment district. Upon arrival at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport, I was greeted by a hotel representative who took my luggage (I had accumulated 3 bags by this point in my trip, so the assistance was very welcome) and escorted me to a luxury Mercedes Benz for the trip to the hotel. The car was stocked with cold water and travel magazines .

Upon arriving at the hotel, I noticed security was heightened compared to previous trips to Bangkok (likely a result of the travel warnings issued by the US and UK State Departments. While my trip was uneventful, 3 bombs went off in Central Bangkok the week after my trip, so high security is very comforting.) I was greeted at the front door by a [bellman]and front desk receptionist. I was incredibly impressed that I was able to bypass check-in and was taken straight to my room by two members of the hotel staff. My room was upgraded to a large suite. My check-in was completed in my room and the traditional Thai hospitality was not lost on me. (I’d love to think my Platinum Status with Starwood got me this VIP treatment, but I must say, I’m pretty sure I owe the VIP treatment to Assumpta McDonald at the Westin Sydney. Thank you Assumpta!)

It’s amazing that this hotel opened in 2007, because everything still looks brand new. The Westin Grande Sukhumvit lives up to its name.

The Room

My suite was huge, incredibly clean, had a full bath and half bath and was well laid out. The view from the 15^th floor was decent – I looked directly into the new Terminal 21 shopping center from the living room and from the bedroom could see skyscrapers and a slight view of the river. The room had a very large working desk with both wireless and wired Internet access. The Internet speed was very good. There was a sofa and chair, a refreshment center with stocked mini-bar, complementary fresh fruit (new fruit added daily), tons of free water (you can’t drink the water in Bangkok). The bedroom was extremely large and had a king size bed, chaise lounge chair and small table, separate dressing area, large closet with safe (always use the safe in Bangkok), and huge TV. The master bath had a tub, shower and nice vanity area. The shower pressure was a little disappointing. Overall, the room was amazing and made a week of work in Bangkok very enjoyable.

Restaurants and Room Service

The hotel has a variety of restaurant choices. I really enjoyed Kisso Japanese Restaurant. The sushi and dumplings were delicious and the prices are extremely reasonable for hotel restaurant pricing. In fact, compared to Westins in North America, Australia and Europe, the prices seemed cheap! And the food was awesome! I didn’t try the main restaurant, Taste, because I had access to the concierge lounge (more on that later) and the bar, Zest, was always busy and makes a great iced tea (yes, iced tea…I know it was a bar, but not everyone drinks) and after two months in Australia, I was ready for a proper iced tea! Room service was also very well priced (everything in Thailand is well priced) but they had a hard time getting my orders right on the first try.

The Lounge

The concierge lounge was lovely. The staff was very attentive and always willing to help with anything. There were always a lot of food choices. For breakfast, the hot choices never thrilled me, but the continental breakfast choices were great – and I swear, they had the best mini donuts I’ve ever had. In addition to the donuts, I enjoyed the fresh fruit. Thailand has some of the most amazing fruit and the breakfast fruit selections didn’t disappoint. Each morning, the staff would make custom coffees – by day three they didn’t even have to ask what I wanted to drink. Another treat is the fresh jams! I’ve seen the same jams at a lot of hotels in Bangkok. This time I tried the mango and passion fruit jam. Yummy!

The Hotel Overview

The first floor lobby had ample seating and great ambiance, but reception is actually located on 7. On the 7^th floor, you’ll find Taste, Zest Bar, reception, the concierge, a ball room and a few small shops. On 8, you can find a hair salon, the spa, the gym and a saltwater pool. The hair salon offers manicures and pedicures. They are very cheap and the service is just fair – what you would expect from any cheap salon anywhere in the world. Nothing relaxing or indulgent about it. I wouldn’t return for a mani/pedi. The spa listed manicures and pedicures on their menu, but they never seemed to have anyone available when I called to book. The other services in the spa were well priced for a hotel spa.

The Westin is located across the street from the Sheraton and connected by a Sky Bridge. The Sky Train is also connected to the hotel which makes getting around by foot, or Sky Train, easy. The neighborhood is busy and crowded. There’s a department store and McDonalds connected to the hotel, Terminal 21 is across the street, and there’s plenty of street shopping.

Summary

I really enjoyed the Westin Grande Sukhumvit and would return. Bangkok has some of the best hotels in the world and choosing where to stay is getting tougher and tougher. I love the Le Meridien Bangkok and the Park Hyatt Bangkok, too. The benefit of the Westin is access to easy transportation and the amazing prices!