Muangphol Mansion

The rooms were spotless, and the staff were kind. There were a few little ants, but that’s Thailand, they’re everywhere. The rooms are small, though I really liked having a bathtub, and the prices are very reasonable. It’s an old hotel, but you can’t beat the location. It’s two buildings from Bangkok Art & Cultural Center, with several malls and lots of restaurants nearby.

I stayed one night and wouldn’t come back. We arrived by bus from Krabi early, and at 6 a.m. the receptionist said checking in at 7 would mean paying for a full day. Since my wife was sick and we were exhausted, I paid the half-day fee and asked if we could come in at 6:30. They said no, we had to wait until 7. There was barely a reception area, just a small restaurant with really uncomfortable seats. Once we got into the tiny room, our two suitcases left almost no space to move around. We were practically hopping over the bags. The Agoda photos felt misleading, and the staff were incredibly rude. Don’t stay here.

The location is the main draw: MBK center is right across the road, with other shopping centers close by too. The rooms are clean, though old-fashioned and not updated. A good budget option for travelers.

You get what you pay for, though the hotel next door looked cheaper and better from the outside. The best thing here is being so close to the shopping, but I wouldn’t stay again. We first saw the double room, which looked frighteningly worn and dirty at a glance. We switched to a twin room for about 1100 baht. Its furniture and windows were worn too, and the loosely shut windows let in traffic noise, though it didn’t bother me. The walls and ceiling had decent paint, and the room itself, its textiles, and the sheets were clean. At night, a urine smell began coming up through the pipes. I only noticed it in the morning before using the bathroom, and it wasn’t pleasant. They provide just soap and toilet paper, with no extras.