BANGKOK
BANGKOKSLEEPINGBANGKOKSLEEPINGBangkok Pride GAY & LESBIAN
(www.bangkokpride.org) A week-long festival of
parades, parties and awards is organised by
the city’s gay businesses and organisations.
Held in mid-November.
Bangkok World Film Festival FILM FESTIVAL
(www.worldfi lmbkk.com) Home-grown talent
and overseas indies arrive on the silver
screens. Held in mid-November.
December
King’s Birthday FESTIVAL
Locals celebrate their monarch’s birthday
with lots of parades and fi reworks. Held on
5 December.
4 Sleeping
At fi rst glance, deciding where to lay your
head in Bangkok appears an insurmount-
able task – there are countless hotels in
virtually every corner of this sprawling city.
Making this task slightly easier is the fact
that where you stay is largely determined
by your budget. Banglamphu and the tourist
ghetto of Th Khao San still hold the bulk of
Bangkok’s budget accommodation, although
the downside is that it can be diffi cult to get
to other parts of town. Cheap rooms are
also available around lower Th Sukhumvit,
although you’ll have to put up with sex tour-
ists and touts. Chinatown also has its share
of hotels in this category, with the added
bonus of anonymity. And there’s a decent se-
lection of budget digs on Soi Ngam Duphli,
near Th Sathon.
Those willing to spend a bit more can con-
sider staying in ‘downtown’ Bangkok. Both
Th Sukhumvit and Th Silom have heaps of
midrange options, often within walking dis-
tance of the BTS or MRT. The sois opposite
the National Stadium, near Siam Sq, have
some good midrange options, and have the
benefi t of being close to the BTS.
Upper Sukhumvit is home to many of
Bangkok’s boutique and upscale designer
hotels. And the city’s most famous luxury
hotels are largely found along the riverside
near Th Silom.
KO R ATA NAKOSIN, BA NGL A MPHU &
THONBURI
Ko Ratanakosin, the most touristed area of
Bangkok, was until relatively recently utterly
devoid of lodging options. But with the ad-
vent of the boutique-hotel craze, a few river-
side shophouses are being transformed into
charming tourists’ nests.
Although Banglamphu is ground zero for
budget accommodation in Bangkok, this
doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the only or even
the best place to stay in town, but prices are
generally low, and services such as internet
cafes, travel agents and beer stalls are avail-
able in abundance, making it a convenient
base.
In recent years many longstanding
Banglamphu guest house owners have con-
verted their former hovels into small hotels,
leading to an abundance of new, good-value
midrangers and posh backpacker hostels.
Although some see this as the gentrifi cation
of Th Khao San, it’s added a dimension of
accommodation that was previously lacking.
It would be impossible to list all of
Banglamphu’s accommodation options in
this book. Instead, we’ve chosen a select few
that stand out, typically those away from
the main strip, which can get pretty noisy. If
you’ve got the time, explore a bit and check
out a few guest houses before making a
decision – there are increasingly attractive
options spanning all price levels on outly-
ing streets such as riverside Th Phra Athit,
leafy Soi Ram Buttri and the residential side
streets off Th Samsen. During the high sea-
son (December to February), however, it’s
probably a wise idea to take the fi rst vacant
bed you come across. The best time of day
to fi nd a vacancy is around check-out time,
10am or 11am. Th Khao San & Around
Diamond House BOUTIQUE HOTEL $$
(Map p 60 ; %0 2629 4008; http://www.thaidiamondhouse.
com; 4 Th Samsen; r 2000-2800B, ste 3600B;
aiW; bus 32, 516, river ferry Tha Phra Athit) De-
spite sharing real estate with a rather brash
Chinese temple, there’s no confl ict of design
at this eccentric, funky hotel. Most rooms
are loft style, with beds on raised platforms,
and are outfi tted with stained glass, dark,
lush colours and chic furnishings. There’s
a lack of windows, and some of the suites
aren’t that much larger than the cheaper
rooms, but a rooftop sunbathing deck and
an outdoor Jacuzzi (!) make up for this.NapPark Hostel HOSTEL $
(Map p 60 ; %0 2282 2324; http://www.nappark.com; 8
Th Tani; dm 550-750B; aiW; river ferry Tha Phra
Athit) This exceedingly well-done hostel fea-
tures dorm rooms of various sizes, the small-
est and most expensive of which boasts six
pod-like beds outfi tted with power points,
mini-TV, reading lamp, and wi-fi. Daily