Shangri-La never let us down. This is the fourth time we've stayed there in the last 5 years. Currently the hotel is being renovated and as at March 2009 around 200 rooms were unavailable due to renovations. The pool area had already been renovated.We were warned about the renovation work and offered an alternative hotel by HotelTravel.com, which was very thoughtful of them. However, we chose to stick with Shangri-La for sentimental reasons. Due to the renovations our room was not available when we arrived. We were immediately upgraded to a Horizon room, which is similar to an executive river view room except it has a balcony and a separate bath and shower.We've stayed in a Horizon room before and welcomed the opportunity to do so again.There is something special about staff remembering who you are and referring to you by name. The rooms are made up after breakfast but when you return after dinner it is nice to find the sheets turnd down, the curtains drawn and slippers waiting by the bed. That's the kind of service you get at Shangri-La. A lot happens on the river and I seem to spend a fair amount of time on the balcony watching the world go by. It is particularly interesting at night. From the hotel you can see the King's Palace to the north, which looks spectacular at night. One interesting thing that always gets me is that I never seem to be waiting for a lift. The lobby on each floor has a number of security cameras and I wouldn't be surprised if someone is employed to watch for guests heading towards the lift ... and send a lift to the correct floor. It looks to me as though the renovations will not be completed much before Christmas 2009. Having said that, I never saw any materials or tradesmen on site. Clearly, a great effort has been made to preserve the experience for the guests. One note regarding noise however, the renovation work takes place between 9:00am and 8:00pm daily. If you're planning to lie low in your room for most of the day you WILL hear some impact noise in the distance. We always ensure that we have a couple of afternoons by the pool as it faces west enabling the guests to enjoy the sunset. You can expect to find us back there in 2010.

We loved this hotel on the river. The location was excellent being very close to the skytrain so very easy to get around Bangkok. We especially loved having breakfast next to the river and watching all the riverboats. The Thai restaurant in the garden and next to the river was absolutely wonderful. We ate there 2 evenings and what a highlight watching the riverboats and Bangkok by night. When we arrived we were offered rooms at the top of the Shangri la wing for a little extra money. I think these were the Horizon Club rooms.The rate included use of the business centre on the top floor and breakfast in the lounge. We looked at the room and busines centre and decided to stay with our original booking of deluxe room in the Shangrila wing. We were so pleased we made this decision as we would not have misse the sumputous breakfast next to the river for anything.The pool was in a very nice setting in the garden but was always very crowded.

quite expensive hotel but brillant service,very nice food including goose leaver in the buffet... large swimming pool

excellent hotel in an ideal location with easy access to all sites etc staff very friendly and helpful in every way booked a river view room which was excellent spotlessly cleaned every day by very proffessional staff i would also like to commend HOTELTRAVEL.COM for there excellent customer service,excellent room rates and a hassle free service i would highly recommend this company to anyone wanting an excellent holiday at an excellent price and easy bookings

A very nice hotel. The carpet in the room needs to be replaced. The resturants had excellent food, but were a bit overpriced.

when we arrived we were warmly greeted by the hotel staff and given a beautiful garland..the room was great and we were served tea by our bulter and then given a lovely bowl of fruit...our bulter also offered to unpack our suitcases..There were fresh flowers in the room and in the bathroom and you could have aroma therapy in the room at night while you slept..They also provided us delightful treats which were presented in lovely boxes. We could have stay there for a month or year..if only...and lastly the view from our balcony was fantastic..thanks for the memories

This hotel is one of my favourite in the world. The feeling is an oasis of opulence, beauty and tranquility. The huge floral displays of singapore orchids everywhere are gorgeous. And the dinner buffet is quite excessive and exquisite. The Thai and Italian restaurants are wonderful. And the swimming pool very inviting. I never leave enough time in Bangkok just to enjoy the hotel.

Stay was absolutely enjoyable though our advance booking was not processed correctly (reservation existed for only one night i/o for two as confirmed. Staff was very helpful, though. However, the Shangri-la is Hghly recommendable. Rooms very claen, the Hotel itself an awsome display of elegance and style. Location close to ferry and street markets. Best feature: the breakfast. A buffet that leaves no nutrituous desires unfulfilled ! I cannot praise it highly enough !

The hotel was as expected very grand and beautiful. We accepted an upgrade offered at a very reasonable rate and ended up in a suite, (having booked a deluxe room for a family of 4), which was wonderful and came complete with a butler...as well as free afternoon tea, cocktails and canapes and an endless supply of smoothies and other soft drinks by the pool. The staff were very attentive and very lovely with the children. We only ate in one of the hotel resturants once but found it disappointing. It was supposedly the best resturant with a great reputation but we found the food rather bland and uninteresting. It certainly didn't reflect the richness and excitment of Thai cuisine which we love. The breakfast, afternoon tea and canapes were great though. The Shangri-la location is fantastic...great views over the river with easy acess to water taxis on one side....and a lovely area full of gem shops and great food stalls on the other. The Shangri-la deserves it's reputation as one of the worlds finest hotels. Every public space as been made beautiful with fantastic attention to detail and every request we made to a staff member was met with grace and patience. It was a treat at the end of quite a busy holiday travelling around Thailand and Vietnam so the charm and luxery were very much appreciated.

Excellent view from balcony. Would recommend to my friends.

My wife & I spent 2 weeks at the Shangri La Bangkok & we had probably the best holiday we've ever had. We could not fault the hotel at all. We also checked out other hotels such as the Marriott & the Peninsular, but they were dark, dingy & very staid in comparison. Perhaps the best feature was it's location, only a short 3 minute walk to the Skytrain. We were able to relax at the hotel as a resort & then simply catch a train to anywhere in Bangkok.

Excellent in all respects . And I am a difficult customer

Great view of the river, and good friendly staff.

Superb hotel in all respects. Excellent, airy room, beautiful decor. Very helpful and attentive staff. Quick response to quetsions and small repaires needed as well as excellent and quick room service. Restaurants superb, buffet by the river betten than at the aclaimed and neighbouring Oriental. The only negative element - prices in the lobby ! I paid US$15 for a small mug of tea. Avoid drinking tea there ! Otherwise - next to perfection . That is why I go there again.

This is in a class of it's own.. Just got to try it. A VERY nice luxurious hotel..

Hotel is extremely well positioned but is tired, especially corridors. Rooms are small and a bit tired but paying extra for a river view room with balcony is definitely worth it.Peninsula and Oriental much smarter (but more expensive) and Marriott Resort and Spa better for a family.

We has a wonderful short break at the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok. It is in a superb location on the river enabling quick transportation by either road or river. It was excellent in evey way.

Good Hotel

First class hotel - more expensive than most, but well worth it as a treat for a couple of nights...especially after a long flight from the UK. Beautifully appointed, helpful staff and worth paying the premium. Also, per my girlfriend the pillows were the "best in the world".