Hansar

Tucked down a small alley off of the Rajdamri Road, and behind the St Regis and Four Seasons, the Hansar is our top Bangkok pick in the contemporary luxury category. The 64-room Hansar offers modern and spacious rooms and suites, with entry-level studios starting at 59sqm.

Rooms feature an oversize work desk with adjustable ergonomic chairs, a large comfy sofa and lots of original art and Thai silk accents. For the price of an entry-level room at the nearby St Regis, you could get one of Hansar's Vertigo Deluxe Suites, an 82sqm room that features lovely teak flooring, a raised oversize King bed and what the hotel calls the “sexiest bathroom” in Bangkok (we agree, by the way).

Expect floor-to-ceiling windows, balconies in most rooms and free minibars that are restocked every day (including Singha beer!). There are other nice touches here, like replenished ice buckets in the morning, turndown service and a very helpful and eager concierge desk.

As the Hansar is a small hotel, it has a small hotel vibe (i.e., there is not much life). The small pool and wooden deck area on the 8F can usually be enjoyed alone, and the restaurants, while perfectly adequate, can be a bit empty.

The best views are actually from the Studio rooms, but we found some of them to have an odd plumbing smell (which the front desk confirmed was the case for many of these).

We recommend the Urban or Vertigo Suites, located on the front side of the hotel. As this property is sandwiched between apartment and office buildings, don’t expect great views or much sunlight from these rooms. And if you’re like us and need a mobile office when traveling (even for pleasure trips), Hansar is a great choice, as the workspaces here are truly excellent and won’t give you a bad back.

The hotel offers a limo pick-up or drop-off service for 1900 baht (BMW sedan), which is not far off from the car service rates you’ll get from the main airport provider, AOT. All in all, a great city hotel.