16 Best Hotels in Silom and Bang Rak, Bangkok

A modern aesthetic and a trendy focus on healthy living sets this hotel apart from the competition. The rooms are smartly decorated with creamy walls, pillows, and rugs, offsetting dark woods and deep browns. Glow, the all-organic restaurant, offers an excellent breakfast buffet which includes made-to-order mains and fresh juices. The hotel is also home to the highly praised Thai restaurant Nahm and has sleek indoor pool and gym facilities.

A favorite with repeat Bangkok visitors, the Pullman projects a New York aesthetic with a Parisian flair, with the full-service Anne Semonin Spa and Scarlett Wine Bar---a rooftop indoor-outdoor bistro with a good selection of French wines and cheeses, popular with locals and expats during sunset happy hours. There are three other trendy dining venues in the hotel, including 25 Degrees, a custom burger eatery with a fully stocked bar open 24 hours. Rooms and suites are well-decorated, and there's an executive lounge for guests on the higher floors.

One of Bangkok's most prestigious riverfront properties, the Shangri-La rivals even the more famous Mandarin Oriental. Crystal chandeliers illuminate the palatial marble lobby, and the adjacent lounge offers marvelous Chao Phraya views through floor-to-ceiling windows. The peace of the gardens is interrupted only by the puttering of passing boats. In the luxurious Krungthep Wing, a separate tower across the garden, the rooms are larger and quieter, with balconies overlooking the river—a rare treat in Bangkok. The hotel is a short walk from BTS Saphan Taksin.

An architectural gem, this elegant hotel is designed around the five elements of water, earth, wood, metal, and fire: the "earth" rooms, for example, resemble blue caves, and "water" rooms come with bathtubs overlooking the Bangkok skyline. Rooms have giant monitors as well as Macs; the many other amenities include complimentary minibars. The pool is set on an outdoor terrace with great views, the fitness center is state of the art, and the views over Lumphini Park are unbeatable.

With beautiful rooftop venues and abundant flair, the ultraluxurious Tower Club section of Lebua, on the 53rd through 59th floors, has spacious rooms with stunning upper-floor views and prices to match. The fancier rooms come with full kitchens, washers and dryers, and private balconies. Tower Club privileges include free tapas, high tea, and cocktails in the Tower Lounge, along with priority reservations at any of the State Tower building's restaurants. The hotel is at the end of Silom Road near the river, convenient to most attractions.

After checking in on the ground floor, you'll soar up the elevators to your room at this 60-story hotel—the light-filled suites in the impossibly slender tower all have sweeping city views. Native woods in everything from large desks to walk-in closets give each room a warm glow. A fully equipped spa offers the latest treatments, and a 53rd-floor sundeck beckons with a relaxing whirlpool. The rooftop restaurant Vertigo is one of Asia Pacific's highest open-air eateries.

You'd expect to find this charming little hotel on Paris's Left Bank—the rooms are small but comfortable, and each is individually decorated with an unerring eye for detail. It's one of the few low-key lodgings in an area dominated by office towers. Families should consider one of the suites, which are big and with kitchenettes. A ground-floor restaurant serves Thai food and doubles as a sitting room. The hotel entrance is just down Soi Anuman Rojdhon off Surawong.

This hotel prides itself in its Thai heritage and has been very well maintained since it was built in 1970, playing up its old-fashioned aesthetic. Prices are fair considering the area, rooms are spacious and comfortable, and there is a large pool and a well-equipped fitness center. An in-house fortune-teller will read your palm and consult your astrological parameters for a small fee.

This unique hotel started life in 1917 as one of Bangkok's first cinema houses, and the art deco stained-glass window and original theatre marquee have been preserved, along with an original 35mm projector and screen. The location, on a short alley off Charoen Krung Road, is superb for exploring the shops and street eateries nearby. There are only three suites, plus four dorms for budget travelers.

Of the luxury hotels along the riverfront, this 28-story palace is most popular with tour groups. All the well-appointed rooms face the river, but standard rooms tend to be long and narrow, making them feel cramped. Thara Thong is a standard Thai restaurant, with subtle classical music accompanying your meal. A glassed-in bridge leads to the adjacent River City Shopping Complex. The hotel runs a free shuttle boat service to the BTS Saphan Taksin station every 30 minutes.

The family that runs the Siam Heritage has created a classy boutique hotel with a purpose—to preserve and promote Thai heritage. Each room is individually furnished, mostly with pieces from northern Thailand. The bedrooms have teakwood floors, and the bathrooms have stonework in place of tiling. The attention to detail is seen in the painted elevator doors, colorful woven bedspreads, and other touches.

Spread over 6 landscaped acres on Sathorn Road, the Sukhothai has numerous courtyards that make the hustle and bustle of Bangkok seem worlds away. Standard rooms are spacious and furnished with teakwood and Thai-silk touches. The one-bedroom suites, by contrast, are exquisite, with oversized teak paneled baths and dual washbasins and mirrors. The hotel's Colonnade restaurant, where breakfast is served, is set in a pavilion on an artificial pond. Both the Thai restaurant, Celadon, and the Italian restaurant, La Scala, are outstanding.

From gigantic sparkly Muay Thai boxing gloves on room beds to a swimming pool with an underwater sound system and twinkly LED lights, the high-flying W is loaded with snazzy design and high-tech touches. Rather than standard or deluxe rooms, here they're called "wonderful" or "spectacular." The hotel is a nightlife hot spot, known for its annual Songkran pool party and weekly ladies' and guys’ nights with free-flow bubbles at Woo Bar.

Most of the guests at this hotel on Surawong Road are from Japan, perhaps because of the many Japanese businesses in the immediate area, but its location near Lumphini Park, Patpong's night market, and Silom Road makes it an appealing option for anyone. Standard rooms are small and windowless, so make sure to ask for one of the deluxe rooms. There's not much of a view, however. The hotel offers traditional Thai massage, and there is also a row of traditional massage centers on the street. Sarika Cafe, at the mouth of the soi, is a good little restaurant if the hotel's coffee shop doesn't do it for you.