The Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok is a Bangkok institution that offers incredible amenities and a very comfortable guest room. I greatly enjoyed my stay and consider this resort one that has aged very well.
Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok Review
I booked my room for less than $75/night. Prices have now gone up a bit, but this remains a reasonable option in Bangkok.
Location
I find this hotel in a great location on 494 Rajdmari Road, off of Rama Road, within walking distance of Central World and Central Embassy, a giant shopping center, and well-situated to get to many parts of the city. If you are using BTS, it is the Chit Lom stop and there is an upper entrance to the hotel from the station.
This hotel puts the “grand” in Grand Hyatt, with a soaring colonial façade and a vast atrium filled with natural light, trees, and running water.
Check-In
I booked a standard king bed room and did not expect a suite upgrade, as none showed available on the hotel’s website. However, during check-in I was thanked for my Globalist status and offered an upgrade to a suite…on a smoking level.
In my experience, smoking rooms are generally cleaned so well you cannot smell the smoke, so I accepted the upgrade. Even so, the check-in agent encouraged me to come back down if the smell was unpleasant.
Stepping off the elevator, the entire 20th floor certainly reeked of cigarette smoke, but the room was clean and I did not smell any lingering smoke.
Guest Room (Grand Suite King)
My corner suite included a living room with couch, desk, bar, and a guest bathroom.
The room certainly did not look modern, but was very classy and well-preserved.
The mini-bar contained alcoholic beverages and soft drinks for purchase plus a QR code to scan for a broader menu. Complimentary coffee, tea, and water were also provided, including a Nespresso machine with capsules.
The desk included a pair of universal power ports and air conditioning was controlled through a module on the wall.
A Bose Bluetooth audio player was available as well as a TV in each room.
The bedroom included windows overlooking a park below (as well as the Waldorf=Astoria hotel next door) and a sliding door to the bathroom.
Inside the bathroom was a closet to the left, a dual sink, and separate water closet with Toto washlet toilet, bathtub, and shower.
Shower amenities, like at most Grand Hyatt properties, were provisioned by Blamain Paris.
Grand Club
Lounge guests and Globalist members had access to the Grand Club for “hors d’oeuvres and drinks” each night. I put that in quotes because it really was dinner…a full dinner.
Think multiple salads, freshly-baked bread, soup, Thai dishes, carved meat with sauce, fruit and sweets for dessert, and free-flowing alcohol (beer wine, and cocktails).
I’m not going to lie…I came upstairs expecting a snack and walked away having eaten dinner (though I did have Taco Bell a bit later, just a couple blocks away). It’s tough to turn down free food, but it’s even tougher to turn down delicious food.
The lounge staff were also exceedingly kind, attentive, and made a fuss over every guest. It was great to see such a high level of service.
Breakfast was served downstairs, so I did not return to the lounge.
Breakfast In The Dining Room
My biggest surprise and biggest delight about this hotel was the breakfast. It blew me away. Of course I expected a buffet with a large selection of food items from around the world. But I did not expect such a high quality of food.
The coffee was superb and the barista knew how to make excellent latte art in my cappuccino.
Croissants were warm and flaky.
Fresh-squeezed juice went beyond orange juice to just about any juice you wanted. Smoothies were also available.
Fruit was ripe and sweet.
Thai food was delicious – I asked one of the chef’s to make me a plate of what she considered best and she presented me with this:
…and it was good.
The western breakfast was also good, with high marks for the omelet.
And there was more I was just too full to eat…pancakes, waffles, French Toast, and fresh salads too.
Breakfast is truly a treat here and if breakfast is important, know that you’ll enjoy a great breakfast here each morning.
Fitness Center
I did a couple pretty intense workouts here, in part to work off all the calories from breakfast. The fitness center is located on the fifth level and includes brand new TechnoGym equipment, including several elipicals, bikes, and treadmills separated by plexiglass barriers.
Pool
Stepping outside, I admired the beautiful pool, which was empty in the early morning hours, but soon was filled with laughing children. Yes, this is more family-friendly than other Bangkok hotels, but it never got to be a pain.
There’s a nifty path leading from the pool to the fitness center:
Spa
A spa is available (though much more expensive than most massage parlors in Bangkok), as well as locker rooms that contain a sauna, steam room, and jacuzzi. Due to health protocols when I was there, only one person could be in the sauna and steam at a time and reservations were required.
I will note that another couple guys decided to sit down in the sauna while I was in there and the locker room attendant did not say anything.
Other Food + Drink
The hotel offers a lower lobby with a number of food and drink choices, including:
- Salvia (Italian)
- You&Mee (noodle house)
- Erawan Bakery
- Erawan Tea Room
- Bar @494
CONCLUSION
I greatly enjoyed the Grand Hyatt Erawan Bangkok: it truly beat all expectations. For that price, I would have spent a month here with my entire family – maybe one day. In the meantime, I look forward to returning.
@ Matthew — Why doesn’t anyone clean and/or paint the exterior of anything, ever in SE Asia? I swear one could make a killing running a painting business.
Anyway, looks like steal for $75/night!
@ Gene – they do regular painting. However, with the humid conditions, even after 1 year, a structure looks as if it has not been painted recently. Same issue with most of the 5*+ hotels in India.
I’m baffled by your enthusiasm from this older property, which is still stuck somewhere in the 1990’s.
I prefer it to the Park.
@ Matthew — Me, too. Something about the Park Hyatt is meh, especially considering the (pre-COVID) price. I like the IC as well. Maybe it’s because I like nice Club lounges and both the GH BKK and IC BKK have very nice lounges.
Thanks for the memories Matthew. I have stayed at the Erawan for many years and it is indeed special. I did try the Park, which is nice, but doesn’t have the same soul as the Erawan. The Park also does not have a club lounge
For the readers, the Erawan also has a exit to the SkyTrain level which makes for an easy walk to the train or over to the other hotels and Central. Great location.
Can’t wait to get back to BKK
I’ve not stayed at the PH, but see no reason to do so when the Erawan offers such great value, quality and location, plus earning points in the most valuable program.
Matthew, you are on fire with these reviews. While others have shut down over the year, you have been brave enough to venture where most of us don’t. Great pictures! Looks like an appealing place.
I haven’t stayed at the Grand Hyatt since the 90s. I’m glad that their service offerings haven’t gone downhill.
I stayed at this hotel 4 years ago. It’s definitely not new or modern but its decor is very classy and it’s well maintained. The breakfast buffet was massive. And at the lounge, the food they served in the afternoon was extremely high quality. The hotel is also very centrally located. You are right by several big malls. I did not use the pool or spa. There are so many good massage places nearby so why get an over priced massage at the hotel.
A nice review Matthew that does highlight both the difference in quality and experience, especially price wise in Hyatts around the world. Few hotel breakfasts compare to the ones you can get in good Asian hotels.
Thanks so much for this review and like others said ,it’s nice to see a travel blogger actually blogging about current travel.
Great review. I would almost certainly be happier in a place like this than a top-notch luxury hotel where the plant is brand new but the service can be somewhat too proactive/personalised for my liking (I really don’t need hotel staff remembering what I had for breakfast yesterday) and/or geared to people who prefer to stay in a bit of a bubble as opposed to mixing with locals and immersing themselves in the destination.
I held a multi-day conference in this hotel in 2015. Everyone loved the hotel. One person even said that it is the best business hotel that he has ever stayed in. I am not sure if it remains true today but in 2015 during the late evening, the Italian restaurant transforms into more of a night club where the unsuspecting might benefit from re-listening to the song “One Night in Bangkok.”
I’d be a bit cautious on bringing the family. The outside and Italian restaurant area becomes rife with prostitutes and sleazeball men in the evening. On our last stay there my wife was seriously harassed by men when she was outside one night wearing sweats at the age of 40. She managed to escape to the elevator but it was a harsh experience for a fereng. That pretty much wiped our love for the hotel.
That’s horrible. I didn’t see any of that. Did the men think your wife was a prostitute?
Yes. If she had been dressed nicely I might understand the mistake but sweat pants and shirt? Anyway, just a free warning to others. Now we stay at the Royal Orchid and like it much better although the club lounge in the Hyatt is better. The Sheraton does better breakfast though and has peacocks.
As I have made three long trips to Thailand this year I can say I have spent many nights at both the Grand Hyatt and Hyatt Regency. Rooms are nicer at the Hyatt Regency but service and food is better at the Grand Hyatt.
I also have spent a number of nights at the new Hyatt Regency on Koh Samui…terrific!
As hotels have been cheap Bangkok has seemed like a place to spend money and earn points. Surprisingly IHG offers pretty good value on points if you have their credit card. I did 12 nights (three four night stays) at the Intercontinental Bangkok for about 11,000 points a night when the room rates were $100+
I am currently at the Kimpton Maa-Lai which is one of the best new hotels in Bangkok (worthy of a review) using free nights from my IHG credit cards. I have also used IHG points this year at the new Intercontinental in Phuket.
I also stayed at the Hyatt Regency and I’ll be comparing the two shortly and agree with your assessment.
Basically, Hyatt hotels start with the best (lobby) and it gets worse as you go up. The lobby looks unique and is the highlight. The hallways on the guest floor is what you’d expect for a chain with no character. The room has basic carpeting and unexciting furniture. The room is just so plain which is the common thread of all upscale Hyatt hotels outside of Vienna. The only thing that isn’t plain is the horrible local tile design in the bathrooms. Yikes. The food looks good, I’m sure the service is ok, and the lobby is cool.
I stayed there last month as well. I had the corner executive suite just down from the club lounge. Same corner side as your view. This is an awesome hotel for the price. It is a big bonus this is part of the Amex hotel’s collection so no need to use valuable Hyatt points for an inexpensive stay.
Plus, if you use your Amex benefit you get a double upgrade. One for using a Hyatt suite upgrade and a second one for the Amex benefit (they gave me my Hyatt globalist benefits using the Amex credit even though they didn’t have to).
Thanks for the write up – I’ve missed my favorite hotel in BKK for the last 2 years. I spent a year working in BKK a few years ago and stayed in most of the 5 star hotels (Landmark, JW Marriot, Renaissance, Intercontinental, Sheraton, MO, Shangri-La, etc) Grand Hyatt Erawan beats them all. Breakfast downstairs is fantastic, and while the hotel is certainly not “modern”, that’s part of the appeal.
Looks great. Can’t wait to stay there. I would like to pose a question… why on Earth does this hotel still offer smoking rooms? I’m not trying to be ugly or ignorant, but is that something that travelers from Mainland China demand? It just seems like a shame for a hotel like this to ruin a few floors with smoking rooms.
Nice review Matthew, the Grand Hyatt Bangkok is indeed a great hotel.
But please use the spelling check next time:
It’s Balmain, hors d’oeuvres, and conclusion.
Great article and review nevertheless. Thank you
Thank you Erik.
It’s a great hotel when there isn’t civil unrest in Bangkok and bombs are exploding just up the block at the Erawan Shrine.
Thanks for all the great info! I’ve read both this review and the Hyatt Regency. My husband and I are going to Thailand later this year for the first time and trying to decide between those two properties in Bangkok for 3 nights. Which would you suggest for a relatively short stop in Bangkok? We do have globalist status if that makes a difference from your perspective.
Do you want to eat at your hotel at night or will you be going out? Grand Haytt is older, but the Grand Club is very nice. Great breakfast too. I guess the Globalist benefits are better at the GH and I like the location better too.