In 1970s Bangkok, there were few such grand hotels Dusit ThaniSituated between the city’s central business district and the lush expanse of Lumpini Park, the 23-storey modernist tower was the tallest building in Thailand at the time, and the hotel attracted a high-society clientele with novelties such as a discotheque, ballroom and other amenities. A top floor restaurant. But as the decades passed and flashy properties developed in even higher towers around the city, Dusit Thani lost its former luster and eventually became a reliable – but outdated – choice for (mostly) business travelers passing through the city. It became.
Courtesy of Dusit Thani Bangkok
It was high time to refresh. And last September, after a five-year reconstruction, the hotel once again returned to the upper level. Bangkok’s hospitality sceneThe original building was demolished to make way for a new multi-use, three-tower complex that, when it fully opens in 2025 as “Dusit Central Park”, will include a high-end shopping mall. , There will also be luxury residences and public spaces. rooftop garden. Dusit Thani’s new 39-floor perch, the first wing of the complex to open to the public, still features the original building’s signature golden spire on its roof (now covered with a large lattice case to match the new building’s proportions. enclosed in) and the classic gold-colored facade with feng shui symmetry.
Courtesy of Dusit Thani Bangkok
“The challenge of reopening the hotel, which has been an iconic icon in the hearts of many for five decades, lies in balancing the heritage, its Dusit Thani identity and new experiences that will be incorporated from design to every aspect of the guest journey. Are.” Adrian Rudin, managing director of Dusit Thani Bangkok, explains Travel + Vacation“The essence of the original hotel is still present, but expressed in a more subtle and sophisticated way.”
Courtesy of Pichan Sujaritsatit/Dusit Thani Bangkok
Guests who have passed by the original hotel will have a moment of déjà vu: two pillars, hand-painted by renowned Thai artist Paiboon Suwannakood and originally part of the hotel’s beloved Benjarong Thai restaurant, have been carefully preserved and now flank The elevator is descending into a glass-walled lobby. A rendering of the original multi-tiered waterfall is still the centerpiece of the courtyard, and it is surrounded by exactly the same plumeria trees that Dusit’s founder, Thanpuying Chanut Piaoui, planted nearly five decades ago. When the pH level of the waterfall stabilizes, even the resident koi fish (temporarily transferred to Dusit Thani’s Hua Hin outpost) will return home.
Other interpretations of the hotel’s 1970s roots are more subtle. Hong Kong-born designer Andre Fu, who led the new interior, updated the lobby’s signature lotus-leaf ceiling with a hexagonal design, under which the jade-colored Grand Lobby Bar now serves afternoon tea.anom (Thai sweets) and classic cha yen Tea with milk. In the airy rooms and suites, made of green, white gold and honey-coloured oak, the curves of the furniture nod to the shape of the base of the pillars in the original lobby. Intricate lattice paneling and champagne-coloured headboards are decorated with gold thread riffs on the Thai frescoes that used to line the Benjarong restaurant.
But even Fu’s flashy designs can’t compete with the rooms’ top benefit: the view. The reduction in room numbers – from 517 to 257 – means every room now has a full-length cantilever bay window overlooking Lumpini Park’s sea of trees and gleaming skyscrapers that sparkle like “Blade Runner” . View of the city after dark. That same view is the highlight of the marble-clad infinity pool on the fifth floor, and will also be the soothing backdrop for Thai massages at the Devarana Wellness Spa, which will open soon.
An electric tuk-tuk shuttle from the lobby takes guests to Benjarong and the hotel’s Bib Gourmand-listed Vietnamese restaurant, Thien Duong, which has found a new home in a lush tropical garden around the corner. On the ground floor of the hotel, you’ll now find the all-day restaurant Dusit Gourmet (try it). Crapo fried rice with Wagyu), and the Pavilion, which serves an excellent international breakfast buffet in the morning and specializes in Thai and Cantonese stir-fries, curries and dim sum at lunch and dinner. Soon, Italian chef Umberto Bombana (of the three-Michelin-starred 8 1/2 Otto e Mezzo Bombana in Hong Kong) will open his fine eatery, Cannubi, on the lobby floor, while three more cocktail bars – including a sky-high terrace – Launched at the end of the year.
