Whenever I visit Bangkok, I usually opt to stay right smack at the Pratunam area, either in front or behind the Platinum Mall, where I would spend most of my time at. It’s probably the most convenient location of stay for all travelers to Bangkok, in my opinion. However, this time round, we have a big group of 6 adults and 2 kids, so I chose to book an apartment for everyone to stay together instead of booking 3 or 4 hotel rooms. Part of the fun of travelling in a big family is always the communal living, and I seriously don’t mind all the help I can get with the kids. And so, since my BFF went to Bangkok recently and stayed at Shama Sukhumvit with positive feedback about it, I decided to book that place. It turned out to be such a perfect accommodation option for us!
Granted, it was a very last minute trip and I had to settle all the bookings within a matter of days. I didn’t do thorough research about the apartment, or check out the photographs of the rooms etc. I just booked the three-bedroom apartment when the price seemed fair enough and that was it. Quite frankly, when we were ushered into our apartment on Level 18 (highest floor of the hotel), everyone went, ‘WOW.’ It was way better than what I expected!
Ours was a penthouse unit (We were told that there are only 2 units of three-bedroom apartments and both are penthouse units), and it had ceiling to floor windows, pretty high ceiling and a really long living area!
Love the furnishing – It was cosy, spacious, clean and felt super homely!
Love the parquet flooring, comfortable sofa and abundance of chairs provided! Perfect for our group of 8 people to gather and chat after a day out at the malls. :)
The living area flowed seamlessly into the kitchenette and dining area, making the whole space look really big. The kitchenette was very well-equipped with cutlery, plates, cups, microwave, fridge, toaster, washing machine, oven, electric flask, etc. We didn’t use the kitchenette much because our stay was such a short one, but I imagine families with young kids especially would find this kitchenette extremely useful!
There was even a tray of titbits laid out on the dining table and the staff told us to help ourselves to it, complimentary by the hotel. 4 large bottles of mineral water were also provided on a daily basis. Wifi is provided complimentary too!
Now, the best part of this apartment is the fact that there are 3 bathrooms! Absolutely great for a big group like ours, so that we don’t have to take turns to use the bathrooms in the mornings! Not to mention – They are clean, equipped with great smelling shampoo and soap and have both bath tubs and standing shower areas.
The bedrooms are great too! The three rooms come in the configuration of 1 king sized bed, 1 queen sized bed and 2 singles respectively. We added one more extra bed for eight-year-old Joey and five-year-old Jayne slept with us on the king-sized bed. The master bedroom also came with a TV and a balcony area.
Everyone loved the apartment! We paid slightly more than S$500/night. Considering that’s for 8 people, it’s really affordable! The kids really enjoyed themselves and didn’t want to leave! (Well, I refused to let the kids play with the gadgets until we reached the apartment, so that’s them trying to catch up on play time! =P)
Now, as if the hotel’s not awesome enough, there’s a infinity pool just outside my apartment at Level 18! It’s such a pity that we didn’t get a chance to swim because we were hard-pressed for time, but it’s definitely a treat to have a good swimming pool that overlooks the scenery of Bangkok!
For families with kids, the hotel also has a Shama Kids Club, with toys and TV to entertain the kids. We didn’t visit the Kids’ Club but I heard that it’s pretty well-utilized by the guests, so it must be quite good. There is also a rooftop terrace if you would like to do some BBQ. I wish I could stay there for a week to enjoy a slow pace holiday!
The guest service was also great. We checked out of the hotel on Sunday morning before we left for Chatuchak Weekend Market. After a whole day of shopping, we got back to the hotel all sweaty and tired. The staff were so kind to allow us to bathe and freshen up at the swimming pool bathroom, so that we could leave for the airport and board our flight all clean and nice-smelling. Thumbs up for going the extra mile for us. :)
If you are interested to book this apartment for your next trip to Bangkok, here’s their main website. I booked mine from agoda.com though, so you might want to surf around the various booking engines to check out the best rates.