Chatrium Hotel Riverside Bangkok

We chose the hotel partly because its boat was advertised as going to ICONSIAM, but it doesn’t go there, which was disappointing. The boat crew also weren’t especially friendly, a letdown given Thailand’s generally high service standards. Inside the hotel, service felt uneven for the price. A lot of staff had limited English, and we had to call housekeeping whenever we wanted the room tidied instead of it happening proactively. The rooms themselves were comfortable, spacious, and very clean, and we really liked the river view. It was a good hotel, though not a great fit for what we paid. The rooms and view were definite pluses, but service fell short of expectations. There are likely better Bangkok options in this budget range.

During my business trip, I was upgraded to a room on the 32nd floor, with a lovely river view. The complimentary ferry made it easy to get around and explore during my free time, and the food was excellent. Even on a work visit, I found it easy to relax and enjoy the hotel. Everyone was polite and helpful. The reception team even used my name whenever I called, and the receptionist who checked me in welcomed me with a genuine smile. I had a very pleasant stay at Chatrium Hotel Riverside Bangkok and would gladly return. I highly recommend it.

The busiest parts of the hotel made it hard to relax. The place was extremely full, and breakfast and the pool were often overcrowded. Breakfast was chaotic: getting food took a long time, then at exactly 10:30 staff began clearing everything. Guests were rushing for coffee and nearly bumping into one another. One day the pool was so packed that people arrived with towels and left again because no sunbeds were free. I know it was high season, but I visit Bangkok every January and have seen medium and large hotels handle guests and logistics much more smoothly. Running every room at full capacity while trying to offer everything may cost the hotel regular customers over time. External events also made guests feel secondary. After breakfast, we took coffee to the outdoor terrace, but the breakfast manager told us to leave because they were setting up for an event. With so many people and events, the hotel felt more like an airport than a holiday retreat. I missed a personal, customer-focused touch. It wasn’t cheap, and I was unfortunately unhappy overall. I wouldn’t stay again, as smaller hotels offer a much better experience in this regard. There were good points. Service was fast and efficient, staff took extra care with requests, and breakfast had a good selection. Free water delivered to the room was a lifesaver. Housekeeping also came back in the afternoon to tidy up, close curtains, arrange slippers, and straighten things after the morning clean. It was thoughtful, if a little unnecessary only hours later. At first we weren’t sure who was entering the room, but eventually understood the routine. We had two rooms for five days, and both had issues: a safe that didn’t work, a leaking shower head with weak flow, and a door key device that ran out of battery. The hotel sent technicians promptly each time, though repairs took a while. Some things felt dated, and it seemed they fixed problems as they came up instead of checking or renovating rooms ahead of time.

They made our anniversary staycation feel special from the start. The team called ahead to ask where we’d prefer to sit for dinner, upgraded our room, and left a thoughtful anniversary cake. The room decorations were lovely too. Service was excellent at every step, from an easy, welcoming check-in to attentive restaurant staff and a sweet housekeeping team. It exceeded all our expectations and set a high bar. Please keep this up, we’ll be back every year. 💖