I have visited the Okura Prestige in Bangkok several times. And I can only say that it was perfect every time. Admittedly it was always a Club Delux suite, but I am sure that the value for money is very good in all categories. There may be better ones out there, but for my simple taste, it's just always been perfect.
I stayed at the Okura Tokyo's Heritage Wing last year and it thoroughly impressed me - the staff were so attentive and there were so many feature of the rooms that made me absolutely love it! The space (more than 50sqm - massive for Tokyo's standards), wide panel glass windows, simple Japanese design and especially the steam sauna room! Definitely one of my top 3 stays of all time. This stay left me yearning to try out other Okura's property, but this Bangkok property looks to be terribly poorly maintained.. The state of the room you stayed in was completely unacceptable.. And ants?! I could never 🥲🥲🥲
I’ve stayed at the Okura 6 or 7 times and am a huge fan. A few notes…1/ Your room was in poor condition but that hasn’t been my experience so I think your room wasn’t the norm. 2/ The rooms are soundproof making it perfect if sleep is important. 3/ The hotel linked to a BTS station and the magnificent Central Embassy mall. This allows for transport, shopping and dining options without being exposed to rain. Love that breakfast. Lunch and dinner a la carte are also excellent.
The Park Hyatt next door is awesome! Probably one of the best and most exclusive feeling PH in ASPAC, just as competent as PH CGK and right behind SZX and SHA. Of course it’s not as zen-vibed (but much cheaper) than the Japanese PHs, but still definitely worth an experience!
The hotel public spaces looked amazing. The room, less so. Ants in the sugar bowl 🤔 TBH, that would be enough to turn me off from the hotel, for good. Although some of the room issues were more about maintenance, the dirt made no sense. Cheers!
I've stumbled upon your channel while holidaying in Bali just recently. I wished that I've gotten to watch more of your videos earlier. We were travelling as a family with 2 young kids and after looking through most of the hotels there we settled on the Ayana resort & spa. The 11 pools and kubu beach club access swayed us By the way, do you think it's worth paying extra for club / lounge access ? Thanks and keep the videos coming . Cheers
Generally, I think club access as an added fee is a waste of money unless it's going to serve as a meal that wasn't otherwise included- and even then, it depends how much it costs. I forget the exact location- somewhere in Caribbean or Mexico, but there's a Ritz Carlton somwehere... it's a resort and it's not a cheap one... maybe $700 per night. Club access was available for anyone for a $125 fee pp/d. There's unlimited alcohol and bites and stuff and breakfast. My thought is: I would rather take that $250 per day (assuming 2 ppl) and use it to extend my trip by one night... or get a better room... or get a better hotel. All just depends on your priorities.
Club level at this hotel plus an evening meal at the Teppanyaki bar (if they still have it) was simply amazing and costly. My second favourite hotel in BKK.
100% , at this price point I would expect the room to be immaculate. Otherwise the hotel looks great. Think I’ll keep my options open for now and look at some other properties before confirming a booking. Including those two over the road. Excellent review as always.
BKK prices at the moment are absurd so you’ll get less than usual. Park Hyatt and Rosewood are best in the area, Hyatt Regency for lower price. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
A pair of ants at a beach side villa I would never even make a note about, but in a high rise, if there's 2, it means there's a whole bunch more in the shadows and there's a reason why. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
Was thinking about booking a room during my stay in march but now I’m in doubts 😅 anyway still want to try it only for the stunning swimming pool 😂 who cares bout the room
One or two nights, though I prefer one. Longer stays mean I work less efficiently and there's a high chance of staff catching on to what I'm doing. Thanks for watching 🩴
Hi Kev, any word on when Okura Saigon is scheduled to open? And also the Mandarin Oriental for that matter. Things in Vietnam seem to take sooo long haha
Nah, no news that I have seen- also included for the Hilton Saigon, Ritz Carlton, Marriott, Marriott Exe Apts, Grand Hyatt............ Yes things do take long in VN but all of this is specifically because of a sharp right turn that the government took early on in COVID when they essentially said "we don't need tourism like all of our neighbors, we can grow our economy even without it"- this was happening as the trade kerfuffle between the US and China was brewing and so the government was very much so proven correct. There are around 30 hotel projects in the country that I know of that are all stalled becuase regardless of if there's a demanding market, the confidence in the government's commitment to tourism didn't start rising until very late in COVID (if at all... VN still hasn't even gone back to pre-covid visa policies). My best guess is the visa policies will change in the middle of 2023, which will spur progress announcements at the projects and we will start seeing things open Q4 2023 and beyond.
Appreciate the detailed reply. Well in that case I’ll just keep my eyes peeled. My next visit to Vietnam is in May, so hopefully there’s somewhere brand new to stay by then. Looking forward to your upcoming vids in SEA this year. Cheers and all the best for the channel.
What a pity about the room….I generally love the style, quality and vibe of everything Japanese. Looking much forward to a review of a Rosewood hotel. It is very high on my list to book for one of my future travels. Just curious whether it lives up to the hype. Thank you for the review!
Waiting for Bangkok prices to cool off a bit- they’re peaking in ways I never imagined right now. When the MO and Capella in Bangkok are nearly as expensive as Raffles Singapore, something’s wrong 😅 Thanks as always for the support 🙏🏻
Bangkok and some other cities as far south as Saigon have rainy seasons during the southwest monsoon from May until November. Typically, tropical afternoon showers are the predominant feature and won’t derail a holiday. The hottest months, April & May should be avoided by those not used to the heat though. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
@@tfft The Shangri La Bangkok is wonderful. Stayed twice 17 years apart and the hotel is still on point. There are many nice 5 stars in BKK. Our last 2 were Sukhothai and the Banyan Tree. They are next to each other, but very different. At $140/night including the ++, they were bargains.
Not sure what upgrade you’re speaking about. If the room is fine for you then be my guest, but I could name a dozen or two hotels off the top of my head that are in the same price range and don’t have so many wear and tear issues in the room. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
I used to patronize the Okura very often, like 10 years ago. It was always fantastic, but a not very satisfactory stay a few years ago made us move to Siam Kempinski, where the rooms may not be much better, but the whole experience definitely was. However, I used to love their breakfast and I still believe their pool is one of the best in Bangkok. Oh, I reckon my room was always of a higher category than yours, probably affecting as well the experience.
@@tfft I saw the hotel being built as we often stayed in an apartment nearby. The problem is the resort is more adult oriented, which is not (yet) our way.
Every time your camera lingers over an extensive breakfast buffet, I find myself hoping it will find a corned-beef hash - but it never does. I like Asian food but can't bear the thought of it for breakfast. Nice review.
That's an easy one, the Kimpton Maa-Lai ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OdKUk53KwXo.html or if you're willing to splash out a bit more, the Rosewood perhaps. Thanks for watching 🙏🏻
