Bangkok has a new luxury hotel — next to the city's most peaceful park
Bangkok took the title of the world's most visited city in 2024, with 32.4 million travellers taking a bite of the Big Mango last year. Its recent starring role in The White Lotus season three has boosted its appeal further, and now the Thai capital has the ultimate luxury endorsement: an Aman hotel.
Aman enjoys cult status within the hospitality industry. The brand invented the high-end boutique hotel concept almost four decades ago and has since expanded to 36 properties that remain the byword for exquisite taste. Aman is also famous, make that infamous, for charging truly eye-watering prices — just the thought of the £150,000 joining fee and £11,500 annual subs for gym membership at its New York property puts me in a cold sweat.
Bank managers look away now, devoted Aman fans from Mark Zuckerberg to Kate Moss gather round: there's an argument that despite rates starting at £830 a night, its new Bangkok property is actually a relative bargain, at least compared with the group's two other urban properties. Rooms in New York are rarely less than £2,000 and those in Tokyo are north of £2,500.
In Thailand you'll arrive in style because the rate includes a limousine transfer and fast-track service through Suvarnabhumi airport, where it can sometimes feel like 32 million of those 32.4 million visitors are in front of you in the immigration queue. The hotel throws in a complimentary minibar, restocked daily with everything from champagne to kombucha, and breakfast — the kimchi omelette is delicious.
If that sounds something like sufficient bang for your buck, the question is: can this place deliver an authentic Aman experience? Aman, after all, is a Sanskrit-derived word meaning 'peace', and the group's enduring appeal hinges on its minimalist aesthetic and seamless service, conjuring a state of uncomplicated calm in even the most contrary guest. I did indeed feel ridiculously relaxed from the second I stepped into Amanyara's cathedral-like lobby in Turks and Caicos. I was perfectly chilled at the Acropolis-style Amanzoe in Greece and soporifically content amid the airy splendour of Amangalla in Sri Lanka. But peace and quiet in Bangkok, that 24/7 hot mess of belching traffic, human ant trails, go-go bars and general bedlam?
Squirrelled away, though, in Pathumwan, the Mayfair of Bangkok, is a wondrous anomaly: Nai Lert Park. It is seven serene acres of botanical beauty and birdsong over which now tower the 36 sparkling storeys of the new Aman Nai Lert Bangkok. It's a promising location to give peace a chance.
In the early 20th century Nai Lert, full name Lert Sreshthaputra, was Thailand's answer to Richard Branson, Conrad Hilton, Harry Gordon Selfridge and Willy Wonka rolled into one. He pioneered the city's public transport systems, cut the ribbon on Hotel de la Paix, one of Bangkok's first luxury hotels, opened its best department store and established its first ice factory, paving the way for all manner of sweet treats. Nai Lert's great-granddaughter Naphaporn Bodiratnangkura, who now runs the family business that includes the park, wanted to honour her ancestor's incredible legacy with an appropriately remarkable hotel, so she turned to Aman.
Four and a half years and £144 million later and I'm greeted at the hotel's discreet entrance by a welcoming committee that has the poise and grace that ten years at a Swiss finishing school couldn't top. It's April 10, eight days after the launch and just two weeks after the Myanmar earthquake that brought Bangkok to a temporary standstill. I suspect there's a fair bit of swan action behind the scenes, but with an 'Amansanti'(eg staff member) to guest ratio of more than 4:1, there's never any hint of paddling in public.
I'm whizzed up to the vast light-flooded lobby on the ninth floor, where the stunning triple-height atrium is anchored by a 12m sculpture, inspired by a century-old chamchuri tree in the park below and adorned with 6,000 gold leaves. It's a wildly impressive but surprisingly warm, unintimidating space. This area sashays into the glamorous 1872 bar (the year of Nai Lert's birth), which serves tea-infused martinis from a 3D-printed miniature replica of the entrepreneur's old water tank, and beyond to Arva, a romantic Italian restaurant where the truffle pasta is worryingly moreish.
• Bangkok's best cocktail bars
The fingerprints of the architect and interior designer Jean-Michel Gathy, renowned for his artistic interpretation of local heritage, are everywhere. Thoughtful details include the 3,000 spinning tops behind the reception desk that form the Thai numeral one in a nod to Nai Lert, the country's numero uno, tactile barklike bronze light fittings that echo the park's persimmon trees, while hundreds of metallic 'lasagne' sheets are suspended from Arva's ceiling.
The 52 suites, on floors 11 to 18, are a masterclass in clean-lined understatement, a symphony of cream, toffee and taupe tones, with warm woods, baby-soft leather furniture and a mesmerising contoured installation, a sort of sexy spin on an Ordnance Survey map, across one wall. While the circular tub in the swanky bathroom is so huge, it probably should have a lifeguard on duty. Most overlook the park canopy. Mine also looks across to apartment blocks where I watch one well-groomed woman 'walk' her fluffy purse pooch on her balcony. Another more harassed female flounces into a hammock on hers while her toddler amuses himself underneath it.
The fabulously cool 25m outdoor infinity pool's centrepiece is an intriguing elliptical void through which bursts an ancient sompong tree, thought to be Bangkok's third-tallest tree. Its branches create natural protection that throws every flavour of shade on your standard sun umbrella and contrasts spectacularly with a horizon of high rises. I do miss watching the procession of long-tail boats, water taxis and canal barges glide along the Chao Phraya River available from other luxury waterfront properties such as the Mandarin Oriental, but, in compensation, Pathumwan is close to upmarket dining and shopping malls such as Siam Paragon and Gaysorn Village.
• 21 of the best hotels in Bangkok
With such great Thai food on the doorstep, the hotel has decided not to compete. Apart from the excellent Italian cucina, the Aman also has Hiori, a lively teppanyaki restaurant with a carefully curated list of sakés and Japanese craft beers, and Sesui, an intimate eight-seat omakase counter where I'm entranced by the two chefs as they create 19 tiny courses of perfection before my eyes, including surgically sliced goldeneye snapper, delicately flavoured black throat sea perch and matcha ice cream.
Wellness is a central pillar of the Aman ethos. In Bangkok it has partnered with the Hertitude Clinic, responsible for tweaking Thailand's rich and famous, to offer jet lag-slaying cryotherapy and IV infusions, while the main Aman spa menu offers a lullaby to blissful sleep. I have to peel myself off the treatment bed after my jasmine-scented Lert Siam massage. I don't have time for the three-day detox devised by the tennis star Novak Djokovic, Aman's recently appointed and first global wellness adviser. His programme includes Pilates, yoga, a circulation-improving beating with birch sticks and … flower meditation — you make a garland to lay at a spirit house in the park.
• 10 of the best things to do in Bangkok
Djokovic is undoubtedly a brilliant athlete but he's only ever one dodgy line call away from an on-court hissy fit so I'm not convinced he has ever made a floral tribute for the gods. But if he manages to remain in a state of uncomplicated calm at Wimbledon this year, I'll take that back and give thanks to Aman.
This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue
Susan d'Arcy was a guest of Aman Nai Lert Bangkok, which has B&B doubles from £830 (aman.com). Fly to Bangkok
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The Independent
6 hours ago
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An insider's guide to hidden Comporta – the Hamptons of Portugal
I first discovered Comporta nearly 10 years ago. An unspoilt beach area just over an hour's drive from Lisbon, this was where the smart set from the city and in-the-know Europeans had their holiday homes. On the southwest coast, it sits between the Atlantic Ocean and the Sado River estuary, where cork and pine forests give way to long stretches of powdery white sand (where Madonna apparently went to ride her horses when she lived in Lisbon). It was so chic, it even had its own signature look: Comporta style. Arriving for my first visit in the summer of 2017, I got it. Comporta was a vibe: think boutique, bleached-wood cabanas and no-fuss beachside shacks serving the best giant grilled bass with a side of garlic-soaked razor clams. Brightly coloured throws were unfurled casually between wild dunes, and sundowners were taken in cool kaftans on sunken beach beanbags to chilled-out tunes. I was blown away. This really was an undiscovered gem – but was it the Ibiza of Portugal or its Hamptons? I couldn't decide. Nearly a decade on, that debate has at least been settled. This is now firmly known as the Hamptons of Europe, and it's certainly no longer the secret it once was. While much of the land remains protected and unspoilt (no highrises here, thank you very much), this is where you'll find some of the most expensive real estate in Europe. And the Comporta crowd has spread its wings too, right down to Grândola and Melides – where Christian Louboutin opened his stunning Vermelho boutique hotel a couple of years ago. Stylish eco-resorts are now dotted between the famous beaches, and you'll also find CostaTerra Golf & Ocean Club – more than just a golf resort, it's a secluded enclave where George Clooney, Sharon Stone, and Princess Eugenie with her husband Jack Brooksbank, retreat in luxurious privacy. Even Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are rumoured to be scoping out a home here. Along the main beaches – Comporta, Pego and Praia do Carvalhal (my favourite) – the old local-run shacks have been made over into must-go restaurants and monied beach clubs. Sublime Beach Club (the offshoot of one of the area's first boutique hotels, Sublime Comporta), and Lisbon's cool-kid restaurant and club, JNcQUOI, have both established chic sandy outposts here. Even Comporta's signature aesthetic – think pom-pom cushions, macrame hangings, mid-century furniture and oversized rattan lampshades – has made its way into stylish hotels from London to New York to Paris. So yes, this once-secret haven is very much having a moment, and setting the tone for hippy-chic living well beyond its Atlantic shores. Still, I'm happy to report that there are still pockets of quiet magic to be found, faithful to Comporta's original spirit. One of the most special is the Independente Comporta, which has made it its mission to carve out a soulful, cool corner as an antidote to the area's flashier interlopers. The Independente collective already has two fantastic properties in central Lisbon – one in a grand old house that once belonged to the Swiss ambassador, now a treasure trove of kooky elegance. The collective's core ethos is to bring together the sociability of a cool hostel with the laidback luxe of a boutique hotel – with a quirky twist. Think large communal tables where you can meet fellow travellers, and gorgeous eclectic rooms surrounded by work from local artists and artisans, so creativity is always at the heart of all their properties. At Independente Comporta, this essence really comes into its own. The moment you turn through its gates, there's a sense of retreat within a retreat. Surrounded by nature and built around the idea of an 'aldeia' – the Portuguese name for small farming villages – this is the perfect place for families and friends to come together, while also enjoying their own private space. There are 40 rooms (some with interconnecting doors for families) and 34 villas (from studios to five-bedroom super-cool and stylish houses), all with private gardens or patios. There's also a large communal hall – the Casão – used for yoga classes, hangouts, or a work-from-paradise setup for digital nomads. There's a regenerative spa which uses herbs from the Independente's own curated gardens, a large pool, an outdoor bar, and fire pits where guests can gather after dinner, drink in hand, communing under the stars. And so it is here we spent a few dreamy days reconnecting with that original away-from-it-all Comporta spirit. A short drive from the beach (yes, you need a car here – public transport is sporadic at best and taxis are rare and pricey), the Independente still captures the cool, calm oasis Comporta was originally known for. Rooms are beautifully designed, with pieces sourced from local makers who were responsible for Comporta style's origin story. And if you're lucky, you'll get directions to the no-name roadside shop – an Aladdin's cave of boho-chic cushions, hand-painted jugs, and woven rugs and lampshades. When we finally found it, it was so laidback, the shopkeeper was taking a siesta in the back room and we had to wake him up to pay for our haul, picked up for a fraction of what we'd have paid at a high-end interior shop. 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For our sundowners, we walked to Pego Beach instead, sinking our toes into the cooling sands while sipping mojitos to the chilled-out classics drifting down from the JNcQUOI Beach Club. And in Comporta town itself, my advice would be to skip the big-name restaurants for the local favourite, Cegonha (meaning stork – a local emblem, as they nest on the electricity poles). If you can find better buttery garlic clams than they do here, then please send me the name. Comporta town is also great for shopping. Head to the undercover market in the old stables for homeware and beachwear. With summer 2025 all about boho-chic and crochet-everything, you might need an extra suitcase. Lusa Market, a pop-up at Atlantic Club Comporta, is perfect for oysters and chargrilled sardines on bread, with a live DJ from Thursday to Sunday. And if you fancy a jaunt away from the beach, I'd recommend a visit to Cais Palafítico da Carrasqueira, a small fishing village about 7km from Comporta town. A tangle of wooden walkways and working fisherman huts, it's completely unspoilt – and great for pictures for the 'gram, not to mention picking up oysters that have come straight from the sea. In an increasingly hectic world, it's important to find somewhere that truly values peace and quiet in nature. As we packed up the car to head back to the city for our flight home, I realised that's what Independente Comporta does best: it has preserved the true soul and chilled-out vibe of Comporta. This isn't Portugal's Ibiza or its Hamptons. It's Comporta style that has finally come of age and into its own. A stay at Independente in June and September will cost from €390 for a double room and €525 for a villa/studio. A double in July and August starts from €510 and €690. Find out more information here
Times
15 hours ago
- Times
Bangkok has a new luxury hotel — next to the city's most peaceful park
Bangkok took the title of the world's most visited city in 2024, with 32.4 million travellers taking a bite of the Big Mango last year. Its recent starring role in The White Lotus season three has boosted its appeal further, and now the Thai capital has the ultimate luxury endorsement: an Aman hotel. Aman enjoys cult status within the hospitality industry. The brand invented the high-end boutique hotel concept almost four decades ago and has since expanded to 36 properties that remain the byword for exquisite taste. Aman is also famous, make that infamous, for charging truly eye-watering prices — just the thought of the £150,000 joining fee and £11,500 annual subs for gym membership at its New York property puts me in a cold sweat. Bank managers look away now, devoted Aman fans from Mark Zuckerberg to Kate Moss gather round: there's an argument that despite rates starting at £830 a night, its new Bangkok property is actually a relative bargain, at least compared with the group's two other urban properties. Rooms in New York are rarely less than £2,000 and those in Tokyo are north of £2,500. In Thailand you'll arrive in style because the rate includes a limousine transfer and fast-track service through Suvarnabhumi airport, where it can sometimes feel like 32 million of those 32.4 million visitors are in front of you in the immigration queue. The hotel throws in a complimentary minibar, restocked daily with everything from champagne to kombucha, and breakfast — the kimchi omelette is delicious. If that sounds something like sufficient bang for your buck, the question is: can this place deliver an authentic Aman experience? Aman, after all, is a Sanskrit-derived word meaning 'peace', and the group's enduring appeal hinges on its minimalist aesthetic and seamless service, conjuring a state of uncomplicated calm in even the most contrary guest. I did indeed feel ridiculously relaxed from the second I stepped into Amanyara's cathedral-like lobby in Turks and Caicos. I was perfectly chilled at the Acropolis-style Amanzoe in Greece and soporifically content amid the airy splendour of Amangalla in Sri Lanka. But peace and quiet in Bangkok, that 24/7 hot mess of belching traffic, human ant trails, go-go bars and general bedlam? Squirrelled away, though, in Pathumwan, the Mayfair of Bangkok, is a wondrous anomaly: Nai Lert Park. It is seven serene acres of botanical beauty and birdsong over which now tower the 36 sparkling storeys of the new Aman Nai Lert Bangkok. It's a promising location to give peace a chance. In the early 20th century Nai Lert, full name Lert Sreshthaputra, was Thailand's answer to Richard Branson, Conrad Hilton, Harry Gordon Selfridge and Willy Wonka rolled into one. He pioneered the city's public transport systems, cut the ribbon on Hotel de la Paix, one of Bangkok's first luxury hotels, opened its best department store and established its first ice factory, paving the way for all manner of sweet treats. Nai Lert's great-granddaughter Naphaporn Bodiratnangkura, who now runs the family business that includes the park, wanted to honour her ancestor's incredible legacy with an appropriately remarkable hotel, so she turned to Aman. Four and a half years and £144 million later and I'm greeted at the hotel's discreet entrance by a welcoming committee that has the poise and grace that ten years at a Swiss finishing school couldn't top. It's April 10, eight days after the launch and just two weeks after the Myanmar earthquake that brought Bangkok to a temporary standstill. I suspect there's a fair bit of swan action behind the scenes, but with an 'Amansanti'(eg staff member) to guest ratio of more than 4:1, there's never any hint of paddling in public. I'm whizzed up to the vast light-flooded lobby on the ninth floor, where the stunning triple-height atrium is anchored by a 12m sculpture, inspired by a century-old chamchuri tree in the park below and adorned with 6,000 gold leaves. It's a wildly impressive but surprisingly warm, unintimidating space. This area sashays into the glamorous 1872 bar (the year of Nai Lert's birth), which serves tea-infused martinis from a 3D-printed miniature replica of the entrepreneur's old water tank, and beyond to Arva, a romantic Italian restaurant where the truffle pasta is worryingly moreish. • Bangkok's best cocktail bars The fingerprints of the architect and interior designer Jean-Michel Gathy, renowned for his artistic interpretation of local heritage, are everywhere. Thoughtful details include the 3,000 spinning tops behind the reception desk that form the Thai numeral one in a nod to Nai Lert, the country's numero uno, tactile barklike bronze light fittings that echo the park's persimmon trees, while hundreds of metallic 'lasagne' sheets are suspended from Arva's ceiling. The 52 suites, on floors 11 to 18, are a masterclass in clean-lined understatement, a symphony of cream, toffee and taupe tones, with warm woods, baby-soft leather furniture and a mesmerising contoured installation, a sort of sexy spin on an Ordnance Survey map, across one wall. While the circular tub in the swanky bathroom is so huge, it probably should have a lifeguard on duty. Most overlook the park canopy. Mine also looks across to apartment blocks where I watch one well-groomed woman 'walk' her fluffy purse pooch on her balcony. Another more harassed female flounces into a hammock on hers while her toddler amuses himself underneath it. The fabulously cool 25m outdoor infinity pool's centrepiece is an intriguing elliptical void through which bursts an ancient sompong tree, thought to be Bangkok's third-tallest tree. Its branches create natural protection that throws every flavour of shade on your standard sun umbrella and contrasts spectacularly with a horizon of high rises. I do miss watching the procession of long-tail boats, water taxis and canal barges glide along the Chao Phraya River available from other luxury waterfront properties such as the Mandarin Oriental, but, in compensation, Pathumwan is close to upmarket dining and shopping malls such as Siam Paragon and Gaysorn Village. • 21 of the best hotels in Bangkok With such great Thai food on the doorstep, the hotel has decided not to compete. Apart from the excellent Italian cucina, the Aman also has Hiori, a lively teppanyaki restaurant with a carefully curated list of sakés and Japanese craft beers, and Sesui, an intimate eight-seat omakase counter where I'm entranced by the two chefs as they create 19 tiny courses of perfection before my eyes, including surgically sliced goldeneye snapper, delicately flavoured black throat sea perch and matcha ice cream. Wellness is a central pillar of the Aman ethos. In Bangkok it has partnered with the Hertitude Clinic, responsible for tweaking Thailand's rich and famous, to offer jet lag-slaying cryotherapy and IV infusions, while the main Aman spa menu offers a lullaby to blissful sleep. I have to peel myself off the treatment bed after my jasmine-scented Lert Siam massage. I don't have time for the three-day detox devised by the tennis star Novak Djokovic, Aman's recently appointed and first global wellness adviser. His programme includes Pilates, yoga, a circulation-improving beating with birch sticks and … flower meditation — you make a garland to lay at a spirit house in the park. • 10 of the best things to do in Bangkok Djokovic is undoubtedly a brilliant athlete but he's only ever one dodgy line call away from an on-court hissy fit so I'm not convinced he has ever made a floral tribute for the gods. But if he manages to remain in a state of uncomplicated calm at Wimbledon this year, I'll take that back and give thanks to Aman. This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue Susan d'Arcy was a guest of Aman Nai Lert Bangkok, which has B&B doubles from £830 ( Fly to Bangkok
Times
15 hours ago
- Times
These bars show off the best of Bangkok's nightlife scene
Forget the backpacker bars of Khao San Road — Bangkok is a playground for nightlife aficionados, with sky-high bars offering panoramic views of the illuminated cityscape and speakeasy-style hideaways crafting some of Asia's most innovative cocktails. This article contains affiliate links that can earn us revenue And sometimes you don't even need to leave your hotel. BKK Social Club at the Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River impresses without trying too hard: gilded arches and rose gold columns channel 1970s Buenos Aires, while the recently refreshed menu includes Argentinian and Mexican-inspired cocktails. A cigar terrace adds to the grown-up charm (cocktails from £11; In the St Regis hotel, near Lumphini Park, Zuma Bangkok brings a modern take on the Japanese izakaya experience. DJs create a vibrant atmosphere nightly, with live percussionists adding energy on weekends. The sleek open kitchen setting complements a menu of modern Japanese dishes. A highlight is the miso black cod, which is rich, tender and pairs beautifully with the koi peach highball (mains from £10, cocktails from £8; For cocktails in a majestic setting visit Bar Sathorn, set in the House on Sathorn, an elegant 19th-century neoclassical mansion. This architectural wonder features monthly-changing local mixes, including 12 signature cocktails infused with Thai ingredients. Standouts include the Rice Flower (vodka-based with Thai basil and soju) and the Ambassador's Favourite, its take on Old Fashioned blending whisky, cognac, tropical fruits and Thai flower essence (cocktails from £9; • Read our full guide to Bangkok On the sixth floor of the W Bangkok, the Wet Deck offers a view of Bangkok's skyline that has made it a popular spot in Sathorn, a district known for its mix of creativity and nightlife. While the rooftop pool and bar are open to hotel guests throughout the day, it's the Sunset Splash parties that draw a wider crowd. These regular events have transformed the space into one of the city's most stylish gathering spots, where house beats flow from dusk till dark, bridging Asian and global electronic music scenes (entry £11; For something more refined, Penthouse Bar + Grill at Park Hyatt Bangkok delivers Manhattan-style sophistication across three top floors. The multi-venue space includes a gorgeous rooftop bar, but it's the signature grill restaurant that steals the show. The exclusive whisky room stocks rare single malts, while the motorcycle-themed cocktail bar draws a stylish crowd after 10pm (cocktails from £8, mains from £29; • 21 of the best hotels in Bangkok For an even more elevated experience, the bar at Ojo restaurant commands the 76th floor of the King Power Mahanakhon building in Silom and at 300m is one of Thailand's highest rooftop bars. The crystal cave-inspired design and Mexican-themed drinks go along with panoramic city views, and there's an elevator heading to the building's Skywalk observation deck (cocktails from £8, mains from £35; While the rooftop venues give you a bird's-eye view of Bangkok, the city's soul reveals itself at street level. Down in Chinatown's frenzied lanes, the Red Rose restaurant and jazz bar provides a refuge within the Shanghai Mansion, once a department store and now a boutique hotel. The venue serves great cocktails, with live jazz setting the mood on Friday and Saturday evenings (cocktails from £9; Min Sett Hein was a guest of Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok at Chao Phraya River, which has B&B doubles from £441 ( W Bangkok, which has B&B doubles from £148 ( and Park Hyatt Bangkok, which has B&B doubles from £281 (
