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I took a look at quite a few hotels on my recent visit to Bangkok, but the only one at which I stayed was the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok.
I had chosen the Grand Hyatt after doing quite a bit of research on the various Hyatt properties in the city (I wanted to make the most of my Globalist status) and as things turned out, that research paid off and I had a really nice stay.
The admin
- Length of stay: 3-nights
- Cost of stay: $641.17
- Paid with: World of Hyatt Credit Card
- Elite status at time of stay: Hyatt Globalist
- Points earned from the stay: 3,544 points (2,734 base + 820 elite)
- Upgrade instruments used: None
- Upgrade received: Club Floor Room*
*In the days leading up to my arrival, there were no standard suites available so, I suspect, this was the best room available.
World of Hyatt information
The Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok is a Category 3 property in the World of Hyatt which means that an award night will cost 9,000/12,000/15,000 points for off-peak/standard/peak seasons (off-peak dates are very scarce).
Location/getting there
You’ll find the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok in the Pathum Wan district of the city.
It sits next to the Erawan Shrine, across the (major) road from the InterContinental Bangkok (mini review) and the Holiday Inn Bangkok, a couple of blocks aways from the Central Embassy mall and the Park Hyatt Bangkok, a 2-minute walk from the Waldorf Astoria Bangkok, and a 5-minute walk from the St Regis Bangkok.
The closest BTS station to the hotel is Chit Lom, so if you’re arriving from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK) and want to take public transport, take the Bangkok Airport Rail Link to Phaya Thai station (the end of the line) and then change to the BTS rail service (you’ll need to get a separate ticket for this) heading for Kheha.
Chit Lom station is 3 stops away from Phaya Thai on the Kheha line and a 3-minute walk from the Grand Hyatt.
Pre-arrival
Originally, I was booked to stay at the Grand Hyatt Bangkok for 4 nights, but as I missed my connection in Doha, my new itinerary had me arriving into Bangkok in the early hours of the morning on the day after I was originally due to arrive.
I called the hotel from Doha airport (this was on the day that I should have been arriving in Bangkok) and explained my situation to the front desk and let them know that I was going to be arriving late and that I would only be using the room for 3 nights.
I had called to make sure that I wasn’t marked down as a no-show and that I didn’t have my reservation cancelled, so I didn’t ask for anything other than for my reservation to be kept intact.
The agent I spoke to was incredibly helpful and assured me that my reservation would be updated accordingly. Minutes after I ended the call, a new reservation confirmation was in my inbox showing that I was now staying 3 nights instead of 4.
That was incredibly efficient, but it got better.
Even though I had only notified the hotel of my changed itinerary less than 12 hours before I had been due to arrive (and less than 8 hours before the official check-in time), the Grand Hyatt only charged me for the 3 nights that I stayed and not the 4 nights that I had booked.
That was both generous and very, very kind.
Arrival/check-in
I was traveling light so I took public transport from the airport and as I wasn’t 100% sure of the best way into the hotel if you’re arriving on foot, I chose to walk up the main driveway to the hotel’s giant front doors.
The hotel lobby is both huge and impressive, and the view as you walk in looks like this:
Viewed from the mezzanine floor, this is what the hotel entrance looks like:
The main check-in area/front desk area is on the right side of the lobby, but as soon as I showed the desk agent my reservation, I was invited to head up to the 17th floor to complete formalities in the lounge.
At the entrance to the lounge (I’ll cover the lounge later), an agent took my passport and credit card, and as it was still breakfast time (it was around 9am), invited me to enjoy breakfast in the lounge as I waited to be checked-in and for my room to be made ready.
This was the second time in 24 hours that a Hyatt property had offered me a complimentary full breakfast on the day I was checking in even though I wasn’t entitled to one (the other property was the Hyatt Regency Oryx Doha), and I couldn’t help but note that in almost twenty years of top-tier status with Marriott, this has never happened to me once at a Marriott property 🙂
A few minutes after I sat down to a light breakfast, the lounge agent came over to me with my passport and credit card and informed me that my room would be ready as quickly as possible.
In the meantime, I was given a temporary room card which I could use to access all the public areas of the hotel and which I could use in the hotel elevators to access the lounge floor.
I finished breakfast and got down to some work and an hour later (at approximately 10:30am), the friendly lounge agent came back to let me know that my room was ready.
Let me quickly recap what has happened so far so you can see why, by this point, I was already loving the Grand Hyatt:
- I call on the day that I’m meant to be arriving to say that I’ll be turning up a day late, and not only does the property alter my reservation in a matter of minutes, but it also waives the cost of the night that I missed.
- I arrive at 9am in the morning and am invited to enjoy a complimentary breakfast in the lounge even though that’s not something that I’m entitled to.
- With a check-in time of 4pm, the property has my room ready for me at 10:30am.
The property had exceeded my expectations three times before I had even entered my room for the first time – that was great customer service.
The room – ‘1 King Bed Club Access’
My room was towards the end of the corridor on the same level as the lounge (17th) and according to the hotel’s website, this style of room is ~430sqft/40sqm in size.
As you enter this room, the bathroom and the closets are on the left, and as you can see in the image above, the sleeping area is straight ahead.
As you would expect, the King bed sits in the middle of the room, and there’s a glass table, a chair and a bench-style sofa in one corner.
On the wall opposite the bed is a long table with, as is standard in most hotel rooms, an unnecessarily large TV, a kettle, a coffee maker, and a shelving unit which hides the minibar and drinks cabinet.
This is what the minibar menu looks like:
The wall between the bedroom and the bathroom can be opened up…
… but for privacy, it’s very easy to close.
You can’t really call the bathroom modern (because it isn’t), but it offers a separate bath/tub and shower …
… toiletries by Balmain …
…and for anyone who had left something urgent at home, there’s a long list of items that the hotel can provide upon request.
Back in the main part of the room…
The closets are a good size (pretty standard for hotel like this), there are multiple universal power outlets by the table, both sides of the bed have access to power and both sides of the bed have access to a keypad that controls pretty much everything in the room.
The view from this room was unremarkable …
…and anyone who is a particularly light sleeper may wish to use the ear plugs provided because just a few floors down, the BTS runs from 06:00 to midnight every day.
I’m neither a light nor a heavy sleeper and in the three nights that I stayed in this room, I wasn’t disturbed by the BTS at all. I could hear it, but it wasn’t loud enough to keep me awake or to wake me in the night.
The Grand Club
The Grand Club occupies part of the hotel’s 17th floor and looks like this:
As a place to relax, it’s nice. It’s light and there are plenty of places to take a seat.
As a place to get some work done, it’s not so great. The chairs are a little low for laptop work and there are very few power outlets around, so while I did manage to get a little work done in here, I didn’t hang around long.
The lounge has offers food and drinks twice a day (breakfast and evening) but access to the coffee maker, water and sodas is available all day long.
The menu items on offer changed from day to day, but these images should give you a good idea of what to expect.
Breakfast buffet (click or tap to enlarge):
There was a good choice of dishes on offer with traditional hot ‘Western’ food sharing space with a flavorful Southeast Asian/Chinese selection as well as the usual cereals, fruit, yoghurts, cold cuts, cheeses, and pastries.
I had breakfast in the lounge once (on the morning I arrived), but I made the most of my World of Hyatt status and enjoyed a complimentary breakfast in the main restaurant on the remaining three mornings of my stay.
Dinner service (17:30 – 19:30 daily):
I didn’t have dinner in the lounge (there’s so much good food in Bangkok, it’s a shame to waste time eating in the lounge), but out of interest, I tried the ‘spicy shrimp soup’ after I took some of the pictures you see above, and it was the hottest thing I think I have ever eaten.
It was delicious. But it would probably be confiscated as a hazardous substance if you tried to take even an ounce of it through airport security.
The breakfast
Breakfast is offered in served the Dining Room between 06:00 and 10:30 daily and if it’s not included in your room rate (or if you don’t get it as an elite benefit), it costs THB1,065 (at the time of writing) which is approximately $30.
The Dining Room is located to the left as you walk through the hotel’s front doors, and it takes up a significant part of the ground floor.
If I was to say that the breakfast buffet is big or large, that would be an understatement, and I really wouldn’t be doing the buffet justice. It’s huge. And it offers foods/dishes from a variety of places and cultures around the world.
From the European/western culture there are cereals …
… and all the things that you usually find in a ‘western’ breakfast buffet:
From the Middle East and India there are curries and traditional mezze dishes.
From Southeast Asia, China, and Japan there are a whole variety of hot and cold items (the red curry was very nice as were the various dumplings).
For the health conscious, there are salads and fruit.
And to round the whole thing off, there are breads, jams, pastries, cakes, and juices.
The important thing that I should point out is that the buffet isn’t just huge. It’s also very, very nice.
I didn’t bother with any of the ‘western’ offerings (I can get those at home), so I concentrated on the Southeast Asian/Chinese dishes and while I’m no expert, they tasted great.
One of the highlights of this short trip was when I was adopted by one of the chefs at breakfast (an older, non-English speaking lady), who through sign language and not much else, guided me through the best things to eat and what to pair them with every time I got up from my table – I loved it!
The pool and gym
The pool and residential spa and club are on the 5th floor of the Grand Hyatt Bangkok and while I didn’t get around to taking pictures of the gym (which is large), you can see a 360 view of the facility on this hotel page.
I was more successful getting pictures of the pool and at around 10:00 on a warm January morning, this is what it looked like.
There was no shortage of loungers and what you can’t see in the images above, is the hot tub that sits at one end of the pool.
All the tables by the loungers had drinks menus together will call buttons so there’s no need to take a break from sitting around when you get thirsty 🙂
The pool area seemed like a nice place to relax and with the space that’s all around it, it looks like it would have to get very busy before it felt uncomfortably crowded.
Dining/drinking options
The Grand Hyatt Bangkok offers a variety of dining options that I didn’t try out but that you should probably know about.
Salvia – Italian restaurant open for lunch and dinner.
Gaston – a French-style bistro open for lunch on the weekend and dinner every day.
The dining room – The hotel’s all-day dining restaurant serving breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner 7-day a week.
You&Mee – A small casual ‘noodle house’ that offers more than just noodles between 11:30 and 21:00 daily.
Erawan Bakery – A coffee shop on the lower ground floor that’s opn between 07:00 and 21:00 daily.
Bar @494 – the hotel’s small but award-winning wine bar that stocks some very high end wines and champagnes and which is open between 12:00 and midnight daily.
Erawan tea Room – A restaurant offering ‘Thai inspired’ afternoon tea and meals that’s open from 10:00 to 22:00 daily.
I think the best advice that I can give here is to say don’t eat in the hotel.
I don’t say that because the hotel restaurants aren’t good (I’m sure they’re fine). I say that because if you’re in Bangkok, you’re in one of the best foodie cities in Southeast Asia, so go out and enjoy it 🙂
Overall
The Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok got off to a good start with me and it just got better from there.
The service at the front desk, the lounge, and at breakfast was nothing short of fantastic, the room was a great size, the bed offered a comfortable place to sleep, the breakfasts were delicious, and the hotel’s location (where BTS lines meet) worked very well for me.
If you’re looking for a St Regis/Park Hyatt experience then, clearly, this isn’t it. But if you’re just looking for a great place to stay while you’re visiting Bangkok, the Grand Hyatt should be high on your list of places to choose from, and I’ll definitely be back.
Related:
See inside the InterContinental Bangkok (post renovations)
See inside the newly opened InterContinental Bangkok Sukhumvit
See inside the first Marriott Autograph collection property in Bangkok & Thailand
Why would ANYONE take public rail with luggage in Bangkok. You’d have to be out of your mind. Utilize the Grab app and get a Premium Car for $20 or just jump in a cab. Even your hotel can arrange private transport starting at about 1800 baht (55$). Don’t ever use the rail link. If it’s busy you’ll be squeezed in for 30 minutes with luggage then you’ll be dealing with the sky train with luggage plus lots of ups and downs. Certain stations are “ok” but accessibility is not BTS strong suit so you’ll at one point be carrying luggage up and downstairs.
As for the Grand Hyatt. It’s excellent… no idea what district it’s in that you called it but the more relatable term is the Ratcaprsong shopping district. This hotel it’s every tick except views ain’t that great.
The answer to this is traffic. Sure the public transportation sucks, but so does trying to get around Bangkok during rush hour.
My happy place … being based in Singapore, we take a break at Grand Hyatt Erawan a couple of times a year. A bowl of khao soi at You&Mee is a must, and as you write there’s so much other great food around. We’ve never received a complimentary suite upgrade — don’t know whether it’s their policy to upsell those — but have been able to use SNAs a few times. We also prefer to take the train into town and avoid the traffic. It’s easy with just a small suitcase.
I’ve stayed there twice in the last year, I’d say you hit the nail on the head, I really like that house. The staff are uniformly outstanding. Not a big fan of the light control, but no other complaints.
Very nice and comprehensive review. I really enjoy the view from the club lounge and found the food there surprisingly good. For most situations the hotel is really nice. My wife ran into one of the exceptions when we stayed there last time around a half dozen years ago when she went outside to smoke one evening and didn’t realize the smoking area was directly outside the Italian restaurant. That would have been fine except the restaurant turns into a hooker bar around 9:00 and despite being around 40 and wearing baggy sweats, my wife was under extreme scrutiny and received much unwanted attention. She got back to the guarded elevator with some difficulty while actually being pursued. That experience left a pretty bad taste in her mouth and I agree. Just a warning should you be staying there with your wife.
the “free” breakfast on the day of arrival, cost them basically nothing (if you are not mr creosote) but it makes such a difference in welcoming the guest/customer and setting the mood for the stay and ones impression of the company
Very true.