At 314m (1030ft) high, Thailand’s tallest building — King Power Mahanakhon — is impossible to miss. Between the 6th and 18th floors, the Standard hotel is just as eye-catching, with playful explosion-in-a-paint-factory interiors by Spanish artist and designer Jaime Hayon, a must-visit Mexican restaurant, a can’t-miss Chinese restaurant, and a split-level rooftop club on the 78th floor alongside a glass-floor sky walk. “There’s no party like a Standard party,” the tagline goes — so expect pool parties, DJ sets, disco nights, drag queen bingo and bar crawls galore.
Overall score 9/10
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Rooms and suites
Score 9/10
The delightful rooms — 155 in total — are less exuberantly styled but no less cool than the rest of the hotel, featuring different colour schemes and a variety of mid-century modern furniture depending on the category. The picks of the bunch are the airy corner-positioned Suite Spots, and the Balcony Suites, with their burnt orange velvet beds, separate living rooms and outdoor table and chairs overlooking the higgledy-piggledy neighbourhood. Only the entry-level Standard Prince rooms are missing the oversized Japanese-style soaking tubs found in other categories, but everyone gets a free mini-bar stocked with beers, snacks and soft drinks, trendy Thai-designed bathrobes, and complimentary access to the Thailand’s highest observatory deck — Mahanakhon Skywalk.
Food and drink
Score 9/10
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The Standard’s scene-stealer is Mexican restaurant Ojo — a glamorous golden honeycomb enveloping the 76th floor of the Mahanakhon tower. At the helm is chef Francisco Paco Ruano, who’s brought dishes such as esquites (baby corn with pecorino and jalapeño mayonnaise) and lechon with pipian (suckling pig with green mole sauce) all the way from his award-winning restaurant in Guadalajara. From Ojo, guests can hop in an exclusive glass lift up to Sky Beach, a dazzling rooftop bar with glass walls, vertiginous bleachers and a terrifying sky walk. On the lower levels, there’s an outpost of lauded Hong Kong restaurant Mott 32 — The Standard Grill — where a made-to-order breakfast buffet is served; all-day bar and restaurant The Parlour; and bijoux black and white tea room Tease.
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What else is there?
Score 8/10
Sherbet orange cabanas and yellow candy-stripe parasols surround the sixth floor outdoor swimming pool, where you can order frosé and float in the water while staring up at surrealist views of the tower. Adjacent to the pool is an Olympian-worthy gym, with sparkly male and female steam rooms. There’s no spa, which is unusual in Thailand; but just around the corner is one of the city’s best massage joints, Perception Blind Massage. Here, visually impaired therapists harness their intuition to deliver sublime foot and body massages (perceptionblindmassage.com — prices start from £10).
Where is it?
Score 8/10
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The Standard is located in Silom — Bangkok’s business district. Set on the south side of the river, the neighbourhood is a thrilling mish-mash of shiny new office blocks, luxury malls, massage joints, street markets, food courts, gay bars, and stacks of brilliant bars and restaurants. If you fancy a stroll or a ride on a swan-shaped pedalo, Lumpini Park is about a 20 minute walk from the hotel. Bangkok’s top attractions — Wat Pho, the Grand Palace and Chinatown — can be reached in about 40 minutes by taking the Sky Train from nearby Chong Nonsi station. Outside of rush hour, a taxi or tuk tuk will shave 15 to 20 minutes off the journey time.
Price B&B doubles from £198
Restaurant mains from £11
Family-friendly N
Accessible Y
Lee Cobaj was a guest of The Standard Bangkok
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