“Mediocre...”

Truthfully, it was ok. It's hard to say that there was anything stellar about it. From the cab on our way there, we were quite impressed since the buildings had very nicely maintained exteriors and the premises were gated although I really wonder if it was just because it was really just the novelty of being in Bangkok itself.We arrived at the hotel around midnight and we were just about ready to head to bed. Perhaps we were getting more and more impatient, but the service was quite slow. We were initially put in a Smoking room which I don't think was part of the criteria in the Expedia reservation (I may have missed it but if it's not in the reservation criteria, I think this is definitely needed). I had reserved a King size but they were fully booked so they asked us to compromise with two Twin sized beds. Also, My friend and I are both Japanese and we both speak English well but it seemed that the hotel clerks were trying to either impress or comfort us by calling on the Japanese-speaking Thai hotel clerk who explained the facilities and escorted us to our room. Sure, I guess it was nice but then his Japanese was quite horrific and we would have appreciated if we just continued the whole process in English. The next morning was okay. We had a free buffet-style continental breakfast where the food was actually pretty good. Surprisingly the fruit wasn't as tasty as I was expecting but I've realized that that is generally how fruits are in Thailand.

“Poor Service, Average Food, Not interested in us.”

This hotel whilst new, modern and clean didn't cater to the Western Market at all. Pizza that came with tomato sauce on the side? No thanks. We stayed during the civil unrest in Bangkok and the hotel was very behind on the news and the latest openings and closures of the shops and skytrain. They were not keen to let us leave the hotel - everytime we asked for a taxi they were no, no, red shirts there. Dangerous. It was almost like they didn't want us to leave the hotel at all. We left anyway and got taxis on the street and did things with a minimum of fuss and disruption. Our room wasn't cleaned every day despite our constant requests. The Day Spa was horrendous..

“Only go if you feel it's at a discount”

This is a hotel attached to an intown Duty Free shopping centre. This means noisy tour groups of shopaholics, and a generally 'for the masses' approach to things. Additionally, because its revenue seems thereby guaranteed and the hotel is run quite economically (it is owned by Accor), corners are cut. Eg, the breakfast buffet is a range of tasteless dishes, a call for a housekeeping item does not get any response until you call twice (this happened more than once during my stay), the lobby is grand but infested by mosquitoes. The interior design is also a disappointment. When one first sees the lobby, one might be impressed by its spaciousness, but it doesn't take long (perhaps daylight?) to realise that the investment in design is merely superficial. In a country that is a major producer of wooden goods, Accor have decided to make use of a veneer on the interior woodwork that is sufficiently cheap as to already be scuffed everywhere. The sliding doors of the wardrobe / cabinet may be cool at first, but wobble and the "art" decorating the rooms is highly dubious. Food ordered in the room or had anywhere in the building is more expensive than at the Mandarin Oriental and matches the breakfast in quality (see above). Its sole advantage is the location (near a station) which is not much.