Disclaimer: In exchange for this hotel review, I received a stay in Bangkok, Thailand in one of the Hotel Nikko’s Premier Corner rooms.
Though I’ve visited Bangkok many times, I haven’t changed the location of the hotel much. Generally, I try to stay near Nana, the de facto Middle Eastern neighborhood, because it’s close to both the BTS (skytrain), metro system, supermarkets, and uh, everything. But, staying somewhere familiar doesn’t promote further exploration of the Thai capital.
Consequently, I was glad to receive an offer to review the Hotel Nikko Bangkok, a newish property in the Japanese-centric district of Thonglo. Indeed, the majority of the clientele at this Okura Nikko Hotel property come from Japan; there’s even a large, mostly Japanese shopping center nearby in Ekkamai.
The Nikko Bangkok is a very short walk from the BTS Thonglo station, though the first time I walked by, I didn’t notice any obvious signs for the hotel (apparently, it’s written in Thai). Thus, I walked through what appeared to be an office building, rounded what turned out to be the Curve 55 lobby lounge, and made my way to check-in:
Check-in staff generously let me go quite early to the room, which sounded great after flying for roughly 24 hours + a long layover in Tokyo. It was at reception where I also noticed the main entrance for the hotel:
First impressions of nearly every facility and space was that the Nikko Bangkok was kept very clean; you might chalk that up to the fact that the hotel was only a couple of months old, but I’d say Japanese management played a big role in that.
…but how about my room?
My Premier Corner room was also a delight, quite clean, airy, and with good a/c (visiting Bangkok in April is hotter than other months, somehow!). That there was a “window” from the bathroom tub overlooking the bed seems to be an East Asian thing (don’t worry, there’s a shade, too). Unfortunately, I was too tired to even ask about trying the pillow menu– but if you’d like a suggestion, try Japanese buckwheat hull pillows for your home. Luckily, it was a very comfortable bed, overlooking some pretty sweet views of the ever-growing Thai metropolis:
Southwestern exposure, with the BTS (Skytrain) chugging east towards Ekkamai
The Nikko Bangkok also has a number of function/event rooms, and the Fuji Grand Ballroom with a capacity of 1250 cocktail party attendees. (I don’t have photos because the rooms were busy for wedding receptions)
Gym with cool Thonglo skyscraper views
Pool
OK, so the interior of the hotel looked solid, but how about its exterior sections? Although I didn’t swim, the pool area – which can also be used to host events – already looked worn and neglected. Not so much the pool itself, but the well-beaten tiles surrounding it. It appeared that there was a lot of wasted space, that really could be used to either have a small garden, or to add more sunbathing chairs, or for expanding the pool bar. Something, anything to distract me from the unappealing patio. As it’s still a relatively new hotel, perhaps they’re working on something.
Hungry? The Hotel Nikko Bangkok has you covered. Besides Curve 55 and the pool bar, they also have Hishou, the new neighborhood standard for Japanese fare, and The Oasis, its 6th floor restaurant specializing in breakfast, lunch, and Sunday brunch buffets, as well as á la carte dinners.
As I was busy most of the first day – sleeping and wandering, sometimes both – I only was able to try out their breakfast buffet the following day:
It’s your typical Southeast Asian hotel-buffet, but good! I definitely paid multiple visits to the Japanese and fresh juice stations, and went way overboard on asking for everything to be made peht peht, or Thai spicy. Still, I would have been satisfied with only salmon, miso soup, rose apples, and mangosteens. Oh, and the omelette bar was particularly fun.
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All in all, I had an enjoyable stay at the Hotel Nikko Bangkok, and would like to thank Ann and Sprint for their assistance and hospitality. Next time, I’ll have to try Hishou, and one of their locally well-known lobby lounge desserts!
n.b. some of you may also like to know that they are putting the finishing touches on the hotel lounge, which should be opened by the end of June.
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