Amari Atrium Bangkok

Our Regular Bangkok Home

This is a branch of the ever reliable Thai "Amari" franchise, albeit not a hotel owned by the Amari Group itself. It is popular with European tour groups as well as airline crews, Far Eastern tourists and increasingly with Indian, Middle Eastern and Russian visitors, together with a smattering of middle class Thai families, though these remain the exception given the price of the hotel. Indian & Bangladeshi business conferences are increasingly common, and it is also a popular wedding venue for more affluent Thais. Keep an eye open for the grand staircase to the second floor being dressed ahead of a wedding!

We have stayed at the Amari Atrium on a number of occasions and would not consider staying elsewhere. The hotel is situated in a residential / business area, thus restaurants in the locality aimed at westerners are very few and the standard of these indifferent. The hotel's own restaurants however are excellent, though pricey.

To compensate for its distance from the tourist hot spots, the hotel offers free, daily minibus runs into the city itself, during the day to the main shopping area, in the evening to the Suan Luam Night Bazaar, an experience like all Thai night markets best avoided, though it is useful to get into town from here and at weekends to the JJ Weekend Market.

Taking a taxi is an obvious option, but the more adventurous are recommended to take the modern and clean (puts London to shame!) underground from Phetchburi station, an easy 10 minute walk from the hotel. One stop takes you to Asoke where you can change to the SkyTrain, or continue on the underground to other areas of the city. China Town can be easily reached by staying on the train to Hualamphong. Other alternatives are to use a bus - a bus map in English can be bought from many shops - or the really adventurous should walk to the canal pier a few hundred yards from the hotel; getting on ad off is an experience you will not readily forget!

Rooms come in standard ("Superior") and Premium ("Deluxe"), as well as a range of Executive rooms on which I cannot comment. Having previously been upgraded from Superior to Deluxe, I cannot recommend paying the premium. Rooms are airy, light and always scrupulously clean, with enormous beds - they appear to be conjoined double beds, making them the biggest beds I have ever slept in. Views at the front of the hotel overlook New Phetchburi Road and beyond to the local temple - not actually worth the visit - and those at the back the canal and the residential housing on Sukhumvit Soi 3. We prefer the rooms at the back, but it is a matter of choice.

Breakfast is included in the price by most agents - but do check as paying for it daily is costly - and on a buffet basis. It offers a very wide choice of Western, Indian, Thai, Japanese and Korean dishes. Eggs can be cooked to order at the "egg stations"and there is a wide range of cold meats, cheeses, breads and pastries (all freshly made that morning) as well as a range of hot dishes. We find it carries us through the day.

There is a gym, sauna and rather small pool on the fourth floor. For those looking for a pool scene, this is not it and the poor leisure facilities reflect its original business focus.

Unique Quality: The staff are without doubt one of the hotel's great assets. We have always found them friendly, smiling and unfailingly helpful, even if occasionally language gets in the way. A smile and laughter together usually gets around this. The fact that they now recognise us when e visit each year is a nice bonus.

The atrium after which the hotel is named makes for a very impressive entrance lobby and a memorable visit.

Overall the hotel is modern, very clean and very welcoming. The location is without doubt a downside, but if it encourages you to venture a little closer to the real Bangkok, that without tourist stalls jostling for space on every pavement, perhaps that's no bad thing.