We just got back from a week long holiday in Bangkok, and it was a much needed break for all of us. Okay, maybe not for Noah, since he’s perpetually in play mode, but he did get to skip school for a week, so he got a break from playing in school (and played in Bangkok instead). I mean, playing in school is so tough, isn’t it? He has to build tall buildings with blocks, play with cars and dinosaurs, splash water at his friends during water play, and listen to his teachers read fun books. No wonder he’s exhausted after his three hours at school every day!
C has been swamped with work recently, and was also travelling a little more than usual for work too, so he badly needed a break. I’ve been begging him to take us on a family holiday for the longest time, partly because I’ve missed spending quality time together as a family, and also because I wanted to travel a little before starting on our next IVF cycle. I think I’m emotionally ready to do that soon, after our recent failed cycle, so when C managed to get a couple of days off work, I jumped at the chance to go on a holiday.
C got a relatively good deal on our Cathay Pacific flight tickets, and we flew off to Bangkok on Friday afternoon, after C got back from his business trip on Friday morning itself. The flight itself was pretty uneventful, although Noah didn’t get a kids-pack (another friend who took SQ said her three kids all had a kids-pack each!). I also brought along Noah’s flight logbook, which I had won in the Simply for Flying‘s giveaway some time back, and passed it to a flight attendant, so that he could get the pilot to write a short note in it for Noah. Unfortunately, the flight attendant forgot about it, and we ended up with some comments from three different flight attendants instead. Haha. Oh and remember how I painstakingly packed an entertainment kit for Noah? Well, he didn’t even touch it, because he was GLUED to the screen. I considered switching the in-flight entertainment off, but I figured that it was a holiday after all, and just let him be.
All packed and ready to go
At the airport
Checking out our plane
Noah’s flight logbook
Busy watching cartoons on the flight
For this trip, C, as usual, did all the research on possible holiday destinations. We wanted to go somewhere nearby, so that we didn’t have to waste too much time travelling, and it was a toss-up between Vietnam and Thailand, since Malaysia was also affected by the haze. We decided on Bangkok, since the last time we were there together was more than 10 years ago, and because C wanted a resort-like hotel, we chose Siam Kempinski.
A good hotel was very important to us, because we were going to be there for 8D7N. We wanted to be able to relax comfortably, and Siam Kempinski was perfect because it was located right in the city, yet the minute you stepped into the hotel, you’d feel as though you were in a hotel that was tucked away in the middle of nowhere. (I erm, forgot to take photos of the hotel, so if you want to take a look at what the hotel’s exterior looks like, please visit the Siam Kempinski website k?) It was indeed a quiet oasis, connected to Siam Paragon by a short sky bridge, which meant that we could walk to the mall in less than five minutes. The BTS Skytrain station is directly in front of Siam Paragon, so if we needed to take a train, we could walk there in about five minutes too.
Bangkok is famous for its traffic jams, so we avoided taking taxis or tuk-tuks, and either walked or took the Skytrain to our destinations. To be honest, we didn’t really need to even leave the area, since there were so many great restaurants at Siam Paragon, and the Bangkok Ocean World was in the basement of Siam Paragon. (Our review of the Bangkok Ocean World will be up soon, so do look out for it!)
The corridor from our lift lobby to the main lobby
Our room
Bathroom
He thought he could sleep on the bed
But we made him sleep in the cot instead
He loved having bubble baths in the huge bathtub!
The pool was really nice, and ever since we got Noah his Puddle Jumper, he has been extremely comfortable in the water, as you can see from the photos. He absolutely loves being in the water now, and even tells us not to hold him at all. The multiple saltwater pools were all 1.2m deep, apart from the kids’ pool, which we didn’t try. The hotel also has duplex cabanas, which offer direct pool access, but since Noah can’t actually swim yet, they weren’t a good option for us (plus they were more expensive).
Loving the pool
Our hotel room rate didn’t include the breakfast buffet, and we opted not to add it, since we figured we could get some buns or find a McDonald’s nearby. In the end, we ordered room service for breakfast on the last two days, because we were sick of eating bread for breakfast. It was still way cheaper than having the breakfast buffet! The nearest McDonald’s (in Siam Paragon) only opens at 10am, so we took the free hotel buggy to another nearby mall to have our McD’s breakfast on Saturday morning, before heading to Chatuchak. There’s a BreadTalk next to the Gourmet Market (a large supermarket) in Siam Paragon, so we got our buns there. Noah also wanted some milk, so we randomly picked some Thai UHT milk from the supermarket for him. So glad that he’s less picky with his milk and food these days!
Sawadee-kap!
Room service (French Toast)
Enjoying some Thai UHT milk
If you’re thinking of going to Bangkok, I highly recommend Siam Kempinski, especially for its accessibility. We had a great time there, will not hesitate to stay there again on our next visit to Bangkok.
PS. I’ll be blogging about what we did and where we ate in Bangkok, so do check back soon to read those posts! In the meantime, you can take a look at some of our photos from this trip on Instagram, by searching for #GWTTinBKK.
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