The Peninsula Bangkok

Always first choice in BKK. And always the place where my best memory lies.

First of all, I rarely post bad reviews online because most of my trips are wonderful but this time is literally the worst hotel experience ever in my life. I have always been a “Peninsula fan” and had been to many Peninsula Hotels in the world, and twice in Peninsula Bangkok before. But this time is definitely the worst experience ever which ruins my Christmas mood. From the beginning of checking in, I was upset by the receptionist by asking me what time would I check out. I assumed that might be a later check-out time around 1pm instead of 12pm which I’m not quite sure. But it turns out the latest checkout time is still 12pm as usual because they’re busy during Christmas season. Sure, before 12pm check-out is totally fine with me because it’s the regular time to check out but what’s the point of asking me in the first place? Want me to leave as early as possible? I’m not sure about that. This receptionist also didn’t introduce any hotel facilities to me throughout the whole check-in process which is very unprofessional to me. Furthermore, she asked me for deposit. I explained to her that I don’t use a credit card, I can pay by debit card. She insisted that have to be in either cash or credit card, ask me to go 2nd floor to withdraw cash. Ok fine, I couldn’t even get my room keycard before handing her the cash. By the way, the room charge was already paid completely upfront before check-in. The very next morning when I finished my breakfast and got back to the room around 9.45am, I can’t open the door with my keycard, have to walk down to Lobby to replace it. And with the replacement keycards, one of them still failed to unlock the door, only one keycard is working. Around 11am, the front desk starts calling me to rush me to pay for the last night dinner bill, rushing me to check out so desperately? Can’t you wait till checking out and then show me the bills? Just like any other hotels do? And for the check-out, they let me wait for more than 30 mins which really wasted my time. It turns out it’s their fault to mistakenly calculate the bill. All I get was a simple “sorry for your inconvenience caused”. And FYI, I was really polite and nice to the staff all the time, no quarrels at all. Besides that, the general facilities are fine, the other staff are friendly. The room decoration is a little outdated, all the switch buttons are not very sensitive and have scratches here and there which is understandable due to it’s last refurbishment was done in 2013. To be honest, with the price paid ($1300 per night) for this suite which is 3 times more expensive than other rooms, I do expect more, especially during Christmas time. However it turns out you pay for the most expensive price to get the just average experience. Maybe it’s my fault to put too much expectations on Peninsula Hotel? Lastly, personal advice for those who still want to experience Peninsula Hotel, I think the regular rooms are good enough. That’s the best they can provide, no need to pay for extra. Personally, I will never choose Peninsula again. There are plenty more better options for this same price.