Tearing yourself away from Bangkok’s Chao Phraya River may seem like a hard ask, but there’s more to the Thai capital than the hotspots dotted along the contours of the river. With gratifying lucullan delights at every turn—whether they be within one of the city’s ubiquitous 7/11s, fried up on a street corner, or in one of the many trendy restaurants in Langsuan—abundant retail options, a thriving bar scene, and a place to escape from it all courtesy of the verdant Lumphini Park, central Bangkok is perfectly poised to discerning travellers wishing to look beyond the riverside. Sitting between Langsuan and Tonson within the leafy mixed-use Sindhorn Village, the Sindhorn Kempinski Hotel Bangkok offers a charming residential-style stay imbued with a wellness twist.
With that in mind, Albert Review checked into the Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok to see if the luxury hotel delivers on its promise of urban wellness.
The lowdown: Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok
The hook; why stay at Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok?
With a location destined to appease foodies with a desire to explore beyond the well-trod pockets along the river, Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok offers an urbane bolthole within urban Bangkok. A focus on wellness and a robust retinue of amenities and dining options coupled with spacious rooms and suites with residential touches make a compelling case for staycations and exploration alike.
How to get there
Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok is located in the Sindhorn Village—a verdant mixed-use precinct that’s also home to the Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok—on the corner of Langsuan Road and Soi Tonson. It’s a 30 minute to an hour’s drive from either Suvarnabhumi Airport (35km) or Don Mueang International Airport (27km), with drive time dependent on traffic.
Design and architecture
One of the most visually distinct hotel buildings in the city, the Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok makes a striking visual impression by combining brutalist design cues with organic architecture, with organic shapes and undulating forms executed in exposed grey concrete. The work of Bangkok-based firm Plan Architect, the facade of the building takes shape in a curved box form with recessed cavities, which contrasts the abundant greenery around it. An oversized tunnel leads into a cavernous vaulted lobby akin to an airplane hangar, with glass walls and earthy tones creating an indoor-outdoor connection.
The work of P49 Deesign, the spacious, light-filled lobby cultivates a calm environment with a black mullioned shrine-like structure housing an ever-changing lineup of florals, sitting under an oval-shaped opening that extends to the top of the building, letting in natural light and promoting ventilation. Surrounding the shrine-like centrepiece are marble tables and velour armchairs in a moody colour palette of forest green and black, providing the ideal setting for the Sindhorn Keminski Bangkok’s daily afternoon tea service.
Rooms and suites
The Sindhorn Keminski Bangkok is home to 274 rooms and suites, ranging from 66m² to 316m². The room categories comprise the Grand Deluxe Room, Grand Premier Room, and Executive Club Room, with the latter gaining guests entry into the executive club lounge. There’s also the Sealife Family Suite, which takes on an underwater theme and is located on level ten, alongside the Kempinski Kids’ Club. There’s also an array of classic suite options, ranging from one- to three-bedrooms.
We were hosted within the Grand Premier Room, the hotel’s second room category. Guests enter into the living room—and are greeted with healthy welcome treats of date bars and nuts on the table—which is flooded with light courtesy of floor-to-ceiling glass sliding doors which lead out onto a balcony overlooking Lumphini Park. Our Grand Premier Room was outfitted with a kitchenette, complete with a complimentary mini bar, and also had a washer and dryer tucked away near the entrance, with the bedroom and en-suite bathroom to the side. Despite the ‘room’ designation, the 70m² of floor space coupled with the separate living room and bedroom as well as the inclusion of kitchenette and laundry facilities gave the Grand Premier Room a feeling more akin to a small apartment than a room. With ample space for two people and the ability to accommodate up to four, we found the residential-style room ideally suited to longer-term stays.
Each of the 274 rooms and suites within the Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok employs an elevated palette of neutral cream, grey, and beige tones, accented with gilded details. This is complemented by Thai accents in the form of Benjarong porcelain, photographs of the ornate motifs and decorative tiles from Wat Ratchabophit, patterned lamps, bronze elephants, and the flower motif that graces the walls and rugs in each room.
The marble-clad bathroom is similarly well-equipped for long-term stays, with every detail considered; from the stone bench in the shower to the oversized freestanding bathtub overlooking the park and the city beyond.
Tea and coffee
Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok has in-room tea and coffee facilities in the form of a kettle and Nespresso coffee pod machine. Tea bags are by Suwirun, an organic tea factory in Chiang Rai, with English breakfast, Earl Grey, lemongrass, and oolong tea on offer, while coffee pods are by Nespresso, with both caffeinated and decaffeinated options available.
Bathroom products
Bathroom products are by Spanish luxury skincare and spa brand Natura Bissé, from the Rosemary & White Tea line. Expect to find individually packaged tubes of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash in the shower, as well as hand soap and body lotion by the bathroom sink and an additional body wash by the freestanding bathtub. While we’re a fan of the products themselves, we would have liked to see them in full-sized refillable pump bottles, to reduce single-use plastic waste.
Comfort factor
With many guests staying at the Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok for extended periods of time, it’s no wonder the hotel has the comfort factor down pat. Plush yet adequately firm beds ensure a comfortable sleep, while an extensive pillow menu has options for every kind of sleeper. The large room size means one is never wanting for space, and we appreciated the hotel’s use of natural temperature control through passive design principles, as opposed to the over-reliance on blasting the air conditioner as is common in many luxury hotels around Asia.
Food and drink
The Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok is home to an array of cosmopolitan dining and imbibing experiences. All-day restaurant Flourish serves Thai and Middle Eastern classics and fusion dishes on the ground floor, while Japanese fare can be found at Ki Izakaya on the ninth floor, with small plates, sushi and sashimi, and noodle soup dishes on offer. There’s also the casual French bistro-style outposts, Bistrot De La Mer, while freshly made pastries and lighter fare can be found at the Berthold Delikatessen, named after the hotel group’s founder Berthold Kempinski. The on-site jazz bar, Firefly, successfully transports imbibers around the world in a glass thanks to whimsical cocktails and a varied whisk(e)y menu, and is home to the Casa Del Habano cigar corner.
We dined at Flourish which had a dedicated vegetarian menu combining the restaurant’s Thai and Levantine dishes. The calibre at Flourish was mixed; the Pad Thai Jae was one of the best pad thais we had on this sojourn to Thailand and the Tom Kha Jed Jae was also delicious. Unfortunately the flavour profile of the green curry was so off-balance it rendered the dish virtually inedible, an affliction that extended to a couple of the dips in the Oriental Cold Mezze (specifically the moutabal/baba ganoush and the mouhamara).
There’s also a rather aesthetically pleasing afternoon tea on offer in the Lobby Lounge. Tapping into the wellness theme, there’s the option to choose either a classic or vegan-friendly afternoon tea, with both accompanied by an impressive array of organic hot and iced teas. We tried the Guilt-Free Set, which was impressively presented on a forestial themed platter complete with a dry ice display. While beautiful, the taste factor was somewhat lacking, so we’d recommend opting for The Verdant Set, which offers traditional European pastries and bites.
Tell us about the breakfast
Breakfast is served in the ground-floor restaurant Flourish, with a buffet spread on offer. It’s worth noting that the buffet isn’t limited to the items at the front; it also runs into the seating area in the middle (we initially missed this on the first day, as did a few other guests). The buffet had a combination of western, Asian, and Levantine dishes on offer, with the hot and prepared dishes at the front and fresh and dried fruit, fresh coconuts, juices, cheeses (including a section dedicated to vegan cheeses), and pastries in the middle area. Overall, we were satisfied with the options available, with both wellness-minded and classic breakfast dishes available. Don’t go past the mango and sticky rice with coconut milk.
Spa and facilities
The Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok is home to one of the best urban wellness fitouts in the Thai capital. Located on level nine, the infinity sky pool is one of the coolest city pools we’ve seen, while the gym is not only well-equipped with strength and cardio machines, but also has comprehensive body scanning equipment. The hotel also holds a running club on Saturday mornings and has a wide range of fitness classes available for an additional fee.
Wellness factor
Spread over two floors, the Sindhorn Wellness by Resense spa is a 2700m² oasis dedicated to the pursuit of wellness. One of the most beautifully designed hotel spas, the expansive space is home to 21 treatment rooms and five exercise studios as well as a hammam, sauna, steam room, cold chamber, tepidarium, and whirlpools.
I tried the detox circuit, which promises to “free yourself from everyday stress and recharge your battery on a journey to pure tranquillity and relaxation,” through a three-part treatment — all undertaken in a set of flimsy mesh disposable panties and bra. The detox circuit kicks off with a moderately relating hydro bath—though the hydro-massage spa jets were somewhat feeble—followed by a mud wrap and a stint on a zero-gravity dry-floatation bed, and capped off with a Scottish shower which sees aspiring detoxers blasted with alternating jets of hot and cold water. Herded through the circuit by a capable therapist—who did seem to take particular pleasure in hosing me with said jets of water, it must be said—I emerged feeling more relieved than relaxed. But, my skin did feel amazingly smooth post mud wrap.
The service
Service was mixed depending on the location in the hotel and time of day. On our first day, we had housekeeping staff ringing our doorbell while we were getting ready to head to the hotel’s in-house restaurant for dinner and said they were here to clean the room. As we didn’t require any cleaning an hour after checking in, we requested they come back in an hour while we were at dinner. Not twenty minutes later, we had a staff member enter the room while we were mid-shower and were forced to throw on a bathrobe and tell them it wasn’t exactly a great time for a cleanup.
Despite timing issues, housekeeping itself was thorough and the turndown service (complete with a lavender tea and healthy nibbles) was appreciated.
The service in the ground-floor restaurant Flourish could have been more attentive; after all the dishes were brought to the table, we found it difficult to get any staff member’s attention. There was also a point where a staff member noticed our empty water bottle and promptly whisked it away without offering a refill—or staying long enough for us to ask for one. We’d also have appreciated a brief run through of the breakfast setup on our first morning, as the fresh fruit, pastry, and charcuterie area was tucked out of sight and led to us—and a few other guests—not realising it existed until the next day.
Family affair
Each of Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok’s generously sized rooms and one- to three-bedroom suites are equipped to accommodate from four to ten people, making them ideally suited to family or multigenerational travel. There’s also a dedicated ocean-themed Kempinski Kids Club on level ten, which caters to younger kids with toys and games that work to keep children engaged while teaching them about the environment.
Sustainability initiatives
The Sindhorn Keminski Bangkok adheres to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) framework and the EarthCheck Certified monitoring program. The construction of the hotel itself entailed conserving and replating older trees from the original site to preserve the area’s native plant life, while the landscaping of the Chevaa Garden and outdoor terraces works to filter air quality and provide residents and guests with green space. The architecture of the hotel uses triple-layered glass to insulate the building from noise and heat, which soundproofs rooms and reduces the need for air conditioning.
The hotel works to conserve water through low-flow bathroom fixtures and staff training in water-saving measures, while towels and linens are changed every two days unless requested by guests.
All of Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok’s on-site restaurants and bars use locally grown organic produce.
AR Verdict
With its focus on wellness, its verdant surroundings, and its spacious, residential-style rooms and suites, the Sindhorn Kempinski Bangkok makes for a cosmopolitan stay well-suited to those looking to bed down for an extended period of time in the Thai capital.
Sindhorn Keminski Bangkok is open for bookings, with rooms priced from $500AUD/night.
Address: 80 Soi Ton Son, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok, Thailand
Words by T. Angel
