Imperial Queens Park Reviews

This is an excellent hotel ideally situated near the sky train we only spent 2 nights in Bangkok which for us was enough Be aware if you make your own way to the Grand Palace and you are approached by someone who tells you it's closed until 1 o'clock but can get you a tuk tuk to see the Big Bhudda for 20 baht it's a scam You will end up being taken to a jewellers and a tailors shop If you want to eat at a great bistro it's directly across the road fron the hotel called the Grenadine owned by a young Welsh guy superb Thai and English food

First visit to Bangkok and the Far East, and what an introduction - very opulent and clearly 4* Hotel with very attentive staff, yet it cost us £18 pppn room-only. Very well presented, very nice rooms, good facilities, although the pools were rather cold and never warmed up, being partly shaded from the sun by the two towers.

Breakfast varied in price depending on whether you got charged the general rate or the continental rate - it isn't cheap, but it's not extortionate either, and there is a good choice of food, hot and cold. Did not eat any other meals in the buffet restaurant, but the in-house Vietnamese was pretty good with first-rate service (again) - my only comment would be that the flavours were often intense, but not having tried Vietnamese before I don't know if this was good or bad. This was the most expensive meal we had in Bangkok though, as the major hotels do charge significantly higher prices than independent restaurants.

Location, for a tourist, was good, halfway-down Sukhumvit - 5mins walk from a Skytrain station through a nice little park during the day, 10mins walk by road at night. Designer shopping was also within a short walk, while the Skytrain gave excellent access to much of the rest of Bangkok, and was frequent and easy to use.

Entertainment - could not comment - there was a lounge-bar with a singer, but we were usually out-and-about. The tour-operator inside the hotel wasn't the rip-off that mediterranean package-holidaymakers would expect, but I suspect seasoned travellers could still sort a lot of the outings themselves for similar or less money.

In short, a very good base to explore the city from without spending unnecessary money on luxuries you won't need.

Nearby in Bangkok there was a great little local ";restaurant"; a few minutes walk from the hotel main entrance - turn right out of the hotel, walk towards Sukhumvit. About half-way there (few hundred yards, past the massage parlours), there will be a little courtyard on the lhs with a restaurant on either side of the narrow entrance and more within. We ate at the restaurant on the rhs of the entrance - it has only ~3 tables outside and 7 or 8 inside, looks completely unimpressive, yet served cheap and tasty (and genuine!!!) Thai food.

A better-known restaurant, Cabbages and Condoms, is also walkable, albeit ~30mins walk west along Sukhumvit then a fair way down a narrow alleyway on the left.

As regards the rest of Bangkok, there is bound to be loads written already, the only points I will add are:-
- that Tuk-tuk drivers WILL try and rip you off by taking you somewhere else, and taxis are cheap and reliable;
- that it's a very impressive city with something for everyone;
- you should go to the chatuchak weekend market, but you probably will get lost in the (30,000?) stalls there!;
- we never felt threatened, even when walking down back-streets at night.