Sofitel Sukhumvit | Foodadvisor Blog

Bangkok is worth a trip and not just – as sung by the band Alphaville – for one night. During my stays in Thailand over the past few years, I have tried to keep my time in the capital as short as possible – the hustle and bustle definitely didn’t seem to be conducive to relaxation.

However, I have to admit that in the last few years I have increasingly enjoyed exploring Bangkok. I always rely on my Thai friends to show me places that are mostly hidden from the guided tourists. This may also be the decisive reason why I have adapted my travel behaviour with regard to Bangkok.

The Sofitel Sukhumvit has become a permanent fixture and a must-visit for me – hospitality really is still a priority in this hotel! With its trendy rooftop bar, this five-star hotel not only has one of the most breath-taking viewpoints in the city, but also one of the most innovative culinary temples of indulgence, BELGA.

We arrived early in the morning and were warmly welcomed at the Sofitel Sukhumvit – even though we took a “taximeter” from the airport this time, we immediately felt at home from the moment we entered the hotel grounds – what more can you expect.

The reception was very courteous and we were greeted in better English than we are able to speak ourselves. The actual check-in took place for us on the 31st floor, in the Club Millésime – a very pleasant and relaxed experience. With a non-alcoholic welcome drink, we didn’t have to wait at the reception, but could lean back after our arrival and look forward to what was to come.

After the check-in procedure, we were kindly allowed to go to our Prestige Suite a little earlier – here we were shown around the rooms by an experienced buttler. At the Sofitel Sukhumvit, the suites are always accompanied by butlers who are at the service of the guests during their stay. It was very pleasant that we were able to enjoy all the advantages of Club Millésime during our entire stay and “let ourselves go”, so to speak.

The staff of the hotel is highly motivated, service-oriented and, above all, their hearts are in their work, which is clearly noticeable as a guest and makes a big difference.

There are many 5-star hotels where service is a priority, which are luxurious and perhaps also unique in terms of buildings, furnishings and services. What is often missing, however, is genuine cordiality and the right attitude of the staff. Only when the staff themselves really feel comfortable and enjoy interacting with the guests does the true feeling of hospitality and comfort arise.

Now to the hotel and the conditions on site – although I should mention that some time has passed since our last stay due to the pandemic, which is why it is quite possible that some rooms and locations have already been technically and visually upgraded.

The hotel itself

The Sofitel Sukhumvit Bangkok is a five-star Accor hotel in the heart of Bangkok. From here, you can reach every tourist hotspot of this lively metropolis quickly and inexpensively by public transport.

The hotel building is a complex high-rise with a large access road and an impressive entrance hall. From the restaurant, the Voila! on the 2nd floor, you can look directly into the lobby during breakfast, for example, because the architects have left a recess here.

There are five guest lifts at the heart of the building – these ensure that guests are “dropped off” at the desired floors in no time at all. For security reasons, an access card is required to get to the respective floors. Therefore, each guest has to “unlock” the respective “floor buttons” in the lift by means of his access card before selecting the respective floor – so it is better never to forget the card!

WiFi is available throughout the Sofitel and, as far as our requirements are concerned, it got high-performance.

In the room

The Prestige Suite made a very pleasant impression on us – as with all Sofitel rooms, there is of course a more than fantastic bed – you don’t want to get up in the morning.

With Sofitel My Bed, a standard has been created that makes it possible to get the maximum amount of relaxation out of every night. It’s great that you can also bring this sleeping experience home. Even if it is not cheap, a good night’s sleep is worth a lot more than a modest TV programme on a big screen.

The Prestige Suite also includes a very nice marble bathroom with a large mirror, good lighting and very fragrant beauty products – green orange – as well as a bathtub with a window to the bedroom.

If you wish, you can even watch TV in the bath – a separate TV is installed in the bathroom for this purpose. A spacious rain shower provides a refreshing start to the day.

The minibar is very well stocked, with Rittersport chocolate and especially “spring-fresh” Perrier – if you know the Thai Singh Soda, you will learn to appreciate such a delicious and digestible mineral water as Perrier.

The books in the room are real classics – so if you feel like browsing, there is a wide selection of antiquarian works in various languages.

The maid was very friendly and cleaned the rooms very professionally – the room was like new and the fact that our daughter was not entirely innocent of the many crumbs, she took calmly. The fact that the hoover emits a pleasant fresh menthol scent while vacuuming is a fine touch.

Amenities

We were kindly given chocolate and fruit in our room – very lovingly presented in a bird cage and all of high quality.

Unfortunately, some ants came with the treats to the room – but after all we are still in the tropics so not too bad.

Despite everything, the hotel proactively sent someone to deal with the ants using a biological agent that is harmless to humans.

The pool

The pool area is clearly laid out, the staff is very friendly and you immediately feel at home. In addition to the bar, pool guests can enjoy cold orange-flavoured water, some fruit and daily newspapers.

The water in the pool is very refreshing, not to say that it was cold. This is certainly also due to the fact that the pool was in the shade from about 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM during our stay – so a workout in the in-house gym is a good idea during this time.

Gym & Spa

The bright and appealing workout area of the Sofitel Sukhumvit is equipped with very high quality equipment from TechnoGym – so working out is twice as fun.

The staff at the Gym are remarkably friendly and competent, making it easy to find your rhythm even in an unfamiliar training environment.

The Club Millésime

The reception at Club Millésime was very friendly and we felt at home from the first moment. At the club, guests are offered a variety of options, ranging from an exquisite breakfast to an aperitif before exploring Bangkok’s nightlife. Here are a few notes on what they offer.

Breakfast

The club is a very pleasant place to have breakfast – as long as you have a table by the windows – where the lighting is much better and the view is breath-taking.

For breakfast, there is a small but fine buffet area and daily changing a la carte offers.

Guests can choose from the world’s most popular breakfast variations – service at Club Millésime takes place at the table.

Le Gouer

The daily tea & coffee reception “Le Gouer” at Club Millésime is a pleasant routine – here you can enjoy a coffee, tea or soft drink in a relaxed atmosphere. This is accompanied by pastries and small refined bites.

Chic Aperetif

The daily “Chic Aperetif” at Club Millésime is a real socialising moment – here, in addition to soft drinks, wine & beer, excellent cocktails are served. There is also a small but delicious buffet – you should take advantage of this event before heading out into Bangkok’s nightlife or to the in-house restaurant – for example BELGA.

The fact that Club Millésime offers free coffee, tea and soft drinks all day is a great gesture – why this does not also apply to the minibar for Club Millésime members is not really clear to me – I would welcome a change here.

BELGA

The restaurant on the top floor Sofitel Sukhumvit alone would be worth a visit to Bangkok. During our visit to BELGA, we enjoyed the tartar and the excellent mussels, among other things. The tartare was delicious as always and especially the small peeled and pickled cherry tomatoes completely convinced us once again.

We were also served a truffled mayonnaise, but this time we had it “dressed” a little “spicy” – a real treat. A good Perrier and tapped Duvel went well with it – a rounded affair. The service was, as always, impressively friendly and professional – this is what makes a visit to this restaurant a real pleasure.

If you want to know more about BELGA, please visit the related article.

Voila!

Voila! is primarily the main breakfast restaurant of the Sofitel Sukhumvit, but also serves as an ideal venue for brunch or dinner events. During our stay, we explored the breakfast there.

Breakfast

The welcome at Voila! was very warm and we were offered refreshing smoothies before we were led to the table, which we thought was great. In addition, we were immediately asked about our coffee preferences and our first order was taken.

Worth mentioning at Voila! is the very nice cutlery, especially the knives are appealing and cut remarkably well, which is not often found in Asia.

The service was courteous and professional throughout, which is why we felt very well looked after at Voila! What was striking and very pleasant was that the tables in Voila! tables were continuously and unobtrusively cleared of used dishes – that’s how it should be.

Not surprising for a French-style establishment was the excellent quality of the patisserie products.

These scored points across the board – both visually and in terms of taste, everything was noteworthy delicious, sweets not too sweet and each of an existing good consistency – just almost like in France.

Conclusion

A visit to the Sofitel Sukhumvit was definitely one of our highlights in Bangkok. Apart from the excellent location of the hotel, both the interior and the staff exude a real holiday feeling. Here, guests’ wishes are read from their lips and genuine service is a priority.

The management has a knack for meeting the needs of the very different guests – a stay at the Sofitel Sukhumvit should be a memorable experience, and it is.

Added to this are the advantages of the Club Millésime and the BELGA with its exceptional cuisine by Bangkok standards. The Belgian specialities paired with an almost endless range of first-class beers is unparalleled – especially if you also visit the rooftop bar with its unique view.

Of course, even in five-star establishments there are always details that can be optimised, but in this establishment, you have to look for them.

However, I have one suggestion for improvement – it would be a nice service for the suites and in the spirit of Planet21 to give each guest a full-day BTS ticket for at least one day of their stay – that would be a fine thing.

I give you a crystal-clear recommendation to visit this house once and enjoy the atmosphere on site.