lev123

agreed---one point, if you are arriving in the evening, it will be chaos....Soi 11 is very busy on Friday nights, so hopefully he will approach the hotel from the back side and not from the Suk. either way, the fare is to the hotel safe travels

Another vote for President Palace...also (if you care) the gym and pool are very nice. finally, you can usually get a better rate from the hotel directly - not a visible one, but if you see a rate on Agoda, booking.com, etc -send a note to the hotel and they will give you a cheaper rate. I will be back there for New Year's--can't wait!

Soi 5 on the way to Gulliver's....as soon as you move away from Sukhumvit Road, there is an alley that cuts from Soi 5 to Soi 7 and there is a donner kebab place right there.

I would go with the Dream. While I have not stayed there, I do know where it is. I have stayed at Aloft and I did not like it. Sure the rooms were OK, but the rest of the place was crap. The gym was tiny and the pool area was incredibly small, with almost no chairs or area to hang out in the sun. They do have a tuktuk to drive to the SUK, but they are understaffed and make you wait 10-15 minutes for it. Another option (my usual) is the President Palace on Soi 11. Middle of the street, great pool and gym and likely cheaper than either of the two options you are looking at. (sorry to make your decision harder)...you will have a great time no matter where you go.

It depends on what you would buy at Duty Free. If you want a particular high end brand of whiskey or tequila, it may make sense, as the 7-11 or Food Marts, etc will likely not carry specific high end western brands. The taxes on certain alcohols (wine) are excessive, so if you like wine, it does make sense. I never do duty free, as I almost never drink in my room, so the answer for me is no. When I get back to my room, maybe a bit of room service, but then it is time for fun. - and maybe a beer or two from the mini-bar.

on Soi 11 across from the Au Bon pain (closer to the Suk) there is a great little place to get soup (place has a few chairs and tables) and usually during the day there are one or two folks selling fried chicken. Both are amazing.

to the OP…I have also stayed at Aloft and not a fan. The rooms are fairly small and the gym and pool suck. yes, the bed is ok…but even though I did bring company there…felt way too much like a "family" hotel…plus depending on what floor you are on, it could be loud from Levels. And finally, no room service. your company might want a snack! President Palace, Grand President….Le Fenix and maybe Dream before Aloft

Scuttler, the beds in Citadines are Queen size (might have even been a double) or some type of smaller queen…was fine. President Palace beds are huge. Lev123

Another vote for Tarntip massage on Soi 7 . . almost directly across from Eden. The massages are excellent, both Thai massage and oil massage. No extras, but that is what Eden is for. The Thai massage is awesome. Also, for the best foot massage, try RainTree on Soi 11, across from the AuBonPain.

I prefer the President Palace, which you can get for around 2100 baht. A cheaper -but still very good option is the Citadines on Soi 11- - in your price range. Next to Oscars, almost opposite Levels/Aloft hotel. guest friendly as well… and comfortable. I have stayed there a few times. One last thought would be the Citadines on Soi 8 - directly across from Soi 11…a bit cheaper, guest friendly with a great 24 hour tuk tuk service to the Suk.

I stayed last week (and put another review on TripAdvisor). . .great location, girl friendly, etc. Great gym, pool…. perfect PS - -booking with them directly is cheaper than agora or booking.com. if not, e-mail the hotel directly and they will match/lower the price.

Kimao,,,,, The vans are gone? I will be in BKK next week staying on Soi 11. Are the food vendors still there? Why are the vans gone?

Gilbert, For freelancers on Soi 11, you can try Levels in the Aloft hotel, although there will also be plenty of non-FL thai women there as well. There will also be FL in the Hilary Bar on Soi 11 and for guaranteed FL heaven, you should go to Climax in the basement of the Ambassador Hotel (entrance is next to the Au Bon Pain) If you are looking for slightly older, meatier FL, you can make the 5 minute walk to the BeerGarden on Soi 7 (shortcut discussed earlier in this thread). Plus, Beergarden a great place to hang out and have a beer in the afternoon. Enjoy

I have seen the gate locked after midnight. Not sure if it locked every night, but I imagine so. As to the question about room rates at the President Palace and Grand President...I booked President Palace last time through booking.com or Agoda the hotel actually sent me an e-mail with a decent rate and suggested I book directly with them in the future! (which I will do) My suggestion here, for those hotels is to look at at Agoda price and send an e-mail to the hotel asking them if they can give you a better price (they definitely can!)

Andy2462 and Suay mak mak, regarding the path, the shortcut across from the biergartern is excellent and does put you back on Soi 11, next to the RainTree massage (across from Au Bon Pain). The door to the green gate gets locked late at night, I think around 11:00PM. If you are in the sub ski 7 (Eden, Dr. BJ etc) the street appears to curve at the end, but it does not lead to Soi 11. I know, because I was attempting to find a shortcut as well. A "plug" for President Palace on Soi 11. Great service, decent size rooms, decent pool and gym and no joiner fee. Back on the Soi in August and again for New Year's eve!

I have stayed at their "Sister" properties on Soi 11 - President Palace and Grand President. Both did not have a joiner fee for one woman and took IDs. They might charge a fee for the second girl, as the room is for two people.

I have looked at it and was not too impressed. I recommend the President Palace across the street. girl friendly, great breakfast (which I usually skip) and also a nice pool area. I stayed at the President Palace last week, so my recommendation is current. Grand President is also OK, and Citadines on Soi 11 (next to Oskars) is also OK.

If you like that area, I stayed at the Citadines on Soi 8 in August and it has a tuk tuk running 24 hours. I would call it at 2:00 or 3:00 AM after leaving climax and they would pick me (and FL) up no problem. no joiner fee or hassles....pretty cheap as well

Also worth a look if you are willing to forgo the Hyatt points is the fairly new Sofitel on Sukhumvit. It is right after Soi 11, so close to Nana BTS, and walking distance to both Nana and Cowboy (and nearly across the street from Insanity)

the area is fine...but if you are willing/able to walk one more block, there are much better options on Soi 11 (President Palace, Grand President, Citiadines Soi 11-or Citadines Soi 8), I would recommend the other places

what will the piss test show? drugs? It certainly will not catch STDs/HIV . . .for that , you need a blood test.

Soi 11 has plenty of choices: Grand President, President Palace, Aloft, Sali, Citadines all girl friendly (I have stayed at all of them) Citadines is cheapest President Palace has best gym and pool Soi 8 has many options as well. I like the Citadines there, as they have a 24 hour tuk tuk that will take you/pick you up from the Suk. I would call them a 2:00 AM with BG with me and they would pick us up with a smile.