Budget stay in perfect location – ibis Siam, Bangkok

For my recent stay in Bangkok to attend the TBEX travel convention, I picked the ibis Siam as my first hotel. I have previously stayed at the ibis Sathorn and ibis Nana in the city and ibis hotels are some of the cheapest hotels I’d recommend in Bangkok. They are some of the best designed budget rooms, clean and well maintained, so I expected more of the same!

BKK Map ibis SiamService: The service at this ibis was the best I’ve experienced at any ibis to date! The staff was friendly and professional. It was the first of any Accor hotel in Asia that recognized my Accor LeClub Platinum status and even offered a free welcome drink and fruit plate in my room! They were able to answer some questions I had and were helpful throughout my stay. The housekeeping staff was equally friendly, prompt and thorough, leaving the room well made every day, without intruding.

BKK ibis Siam BathRoom: If you have read my reviews of the other ibis hotels above, you know exactly what to expect: The rooms are carbon copies of eachother. They are small and use the space very well, with a comfortable bed, a work desk against the window with a bench to sit or store luggage and a small closet. A small TV is provided on the wall, as well as a safe in the closet and tea/coffee facilities. The room has laminate wood flooring, which makes it feel clean and cool, a purple/burgundy splash of color and some art on the wall. The furniture is in light beige-brown, keeping everything bright. The bathroom is very small, with the sink in one corner and the shower in the other, with a toilet inbetween. There is not a lot of room left, but it all works surprisingly well. The tiles are more upscale than in some other ibis hotels, with some mosaic tiles as backdrop above the sink! The soap and shampoo come in eco-friendly dispensers – works fine for me! The internet in the room is free and reasonably fast at an average measured speed of 3.8 Mbps. It was fine during the day time, but slowed to a crawl late in the evenings, so it’s ok for email or messaging, but don’t expect to get a lot of work done or stream videos! The sound insulation of the rooms is limited, so you should wish for considerate, reasonably well behaved neighbors – you will hear otherwise. At least I didn’t hear any street noise!

BKK Mercure PoolAmenities: The ibis has a 7/11 convenience store at the lobby level which is open around the clock. It’s clean and has all the snacks, drinks and necessities. That includes local SIM cards, which I recommend for cheap mobile data! The ibis shares the restaurant with the Mercure Siam in the same building, giving you a slightly nicer and more expensive breakfast than other ibis hotels! You also have access to the pool and gym at the Mercure for THB200 ($6) per day. These shared amenities make this ibis a little more upscale than other ibis and you can use (and pay for) them when you need them!

Conclusion: I paid only $38/night for the room and that made it a great deal! Between the great location, the friendly staff, the slightly newer building and the access to the amenities of the Mercure, I prefer the ibis Siam over any of the other ibis properties in town. The toughest competition is probably the Mercure in the same building: You can often get a room there for only $10 more, so check out my Snapshot: Mercure Siam review (coming soon) to see if it is worth it to you.


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