another award for Mandarin Oriental Bangkok

Mandarin Oriental Bangkok's Noël Coward Suite is as incomparable as the man himself.

Premier Rooms have windows giving both river and city views

The Oriental Hotel has stood on its present grounds for 135 years

Is This The World's Best Hotel?

Some hotels are just places to sleep, others are legendary palaces of pleasure. Then there is Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, long known simply as The Oriental. In a class of its own, one has to wonder if this is the best hotel in the world.

The first hotel in Thailand, Mandarin Oriental Bangkok's 135 years of existence have seen many a famous personality sleep within its historic walls. The lucky ones have stayed in the hotel's famous Authors' Suites, named after writers associated with Southeast Asia in their works and travels. All top hotels have nice suites for their best guests; we see them in magazines all the time and look for the captions to see where they are. Mandarin Oriental Bangkok's peerless Authors' Suites are as immediately recognisable as they are unmistakable. They don't need captions; one look at the Noël Coward Suite or Somerset Maugham Suite tells you exactly where they are to be found.

There is simply no other accommodation in the world like the Heritage Authors' Suites; of those located at the front of the historic Authors' Wing, the hotel's original building, the Noël Coward Suite and Somerset Maugham Suite have traditional Thai furniture in the bedrooms. The living rooms extend warm welcomes with a home-like Western-style atmosphere; turn around to see the bedroom, though, and there is a Thai fantasy of luxury. The Joseph Conrad Suite is not as elaborate, but it is the only one to have its own patio, which is surrounded by the lush vegetation that gives the hotel's Garden Wing its name.

It's easy to sell a hotel based on its luxurious suites, but what about the 'regular' rooms? At Mandarin Oriental Bangkok, there is no such thing as a regular room; they were all designed to be special in one way or the other. Standouts among non-suite accommodation are the Premier Rooms, which are split-level, loft-like spaces with sitting area and sleeping area on two levels, separated by a few steps. The small alcove off the sitting area is a great place to take in the river views; since these rooms span the entire width of the building, they have the unusual design of windows on opposite walls, offering river views on one side and city views on the other. Premier Rooms are located in the Garden Wing; in the hotel's River Wing, all rooms have balconies with views of the Chao Phraya.