The Raweekanlaya Hotel Bangkok

The historic hotel is hidden away in the heart of inner Bangkok. It might not be the largest, one of the modern high-rises, or the most extravagant but its romantic charm and timeless appeal more than make up for it. The highlight is the food. The restaurant serves authentic Thai cuisine from traditional recipes. Several dishes are rare finds even in Bangkok. The pool and the garden are pretty. Especially in the early morning light. The scent of the toiletries is lovely. The service is great. We’ll go again for sure.

This hotel is in a great location near Thewet Pier, which made travelling around Bangkok by boat a fun and scenic experience. The room was comfortable and well-designed, and we also made good use of the gym, which was a peaceful and well-equipped space. The real highlight, though, was the small but tranquil pool set in the hotel’s beautiful garden—it felt like a hidden oasis right in the middle of a full-on, energetic city. A lovely place to retreat to after a day of exploring. We’d happily stay again.

Warning: They try to give you rooms without windows – completely unacceptable I was extremely disappointed with my experience at this hotel. When I arrived, the receptionist informed me that the room I had booked had no windows. I told her this was unacceptable, and she insisted that I had been informed via email. She even showed me a printed notice, but I never received any communication from the hotel — not even a booking confirmation or a reply when I contacted them earlier asking for an airport pickup (which they refused, saying I should’ve requested it 24 hours in advance). They kept insisting I had to take the windowless room, even though the photos on Booking show a charming property surrounding a garden and pool — which is completely misleading. Being offered a dark, closed-off room with no windows at all is unacceptable and would even be illegal in Europe, where rooms are required by law to have windows. Only after I said I would immediately leave a very negative review did they “magically” find a room with a window — but it faced a noisy road, and the glass was dirty, likely because the shutters are always kept closed to hide the ugly view. I kept pushing and checked Booking in real time, where I saw that rooms with garden views were still available for at least the first three nights of my stay. When I asked to be moved there, they agreed but made me pay extra. While I was happy to pay the difference, what I cannot accept is that for the last night of my stay, I’m being forced to move out of the garden room. This is outrageous. This hotel promotes itself as a peaceful paradise, but in reality, tries to pass off windowless rooms to guests unless you complain. I felt cheated and misled, and I don’t think this kind of behavior should be tolerated — especially from a property that appears so refined online.