Five-star Grand Millennium Sukhumvit

When visiting a city like Bangkok, an oasis from the traffic, not to mention the humidity and heat that permeates the air is an absolute necessity (except for during a brief welcome stint of, if lucky, a continuous period of six weeks or so during December – January). If coming during the hottest season you will want to move from air-con to air-environs.

 

Then Grand Millennium Sukhumvit, one of the latest top-tier additions, is a worthy choice which has struck the right balance in being geared towards both the business traveller and holiday maker.

 

In a vibrant city like this, with its contrasting mix of basic low-slung shop house areas and high rise condominium and office buildings, this modern icon is a welcome and fresh landmark in an otherwise relatively uninteresting architectural landscape. With is sail-like shaped and glass-dominated façade it is also designed to catch the eye of all citizens and visitors. Even more so, the whole hotel is design-oriented with a blend of contemporary and Thai flavours, boasting most enjoyable surroundings and venues.

 

This five star hotel is also unusually well-positioned (in this spread out city with under-dimensioned public transportation and infrastructure), adjacent to both the city’s subway and the elevated city sky train, ‘BTS’. In addition the elevated highway is not far away and the hotel is within close proximity of the upcoming station for the airport train.

 

Grand Millennium Sukhumvit is the first in Thailand from Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, a hotel operator which offers many fine examples of hospitality in the region (and that are launching many more design-driven hotels and resorts) where one can stay in style. A resort version of Millennium has also opened on Phuket

 

As an upscale hotel it comes with a number of eye-catching details with an overall fresh and modern context – which is signature standard for the Millennium hotels. This includes, as already mentioned, the building itself which when illuminated at night really comes out in full splendour; shining like a beacon.

 

The fashionable interior is just as exciting. Once inside, Grande Millennium Sukhumvit also shows its visitors its most welcoming suite after 6 p.m. Enter the rounded marble-floored lobby, with the reception desk on your right hand side, accentuated by crystal chandeliers hanging high up in the ceiling.

 

Turn to the left and you are suddenly in a jazz lounge haven (also decorated with chandeliers). This venue called In Blue’s logo actually looks a bit 50’s style in its graphic design is reminiscent of legendary jazz label Blue Note. And yes, indeed you get jazz in the evening and a fabulous beverage menu including “funky cocktail creations” and with happy hour on drinks. This really deserves to be the talk of the town and a preferred venue for lovers of all styles of jazz.

 

The trio playing, on the occasion of this review in 2008, was really excellent in performing jazz tunes from all the legends, modern classics as well as unfamiliar but beautiful tunes.

 

The lobby level’s Flourworx should not be disregarded, and is worthwhile as a stand-alone combined eatery/café, where a combination of food service, deli, bakery, sandwich, soup, and coffee and tea speciality is on offer. Top end beverage from Ronnefeldt teas and Illy café are being served and you can enjoy afternoon high tea during certain hours of the day.

 

Behind and above the band a green-lit steel and glass fibre staircase leads up to the dining venues on level 2. Or take the lift and walk out on an illuminated glass walkway. See details for dining venues at Grande Millennium Sukhumvit

 

On Sundays the brunch combines all three restaurantswhich include the Tapas Y Vino wine bar where mouth watering genuine Spanish and French tapas are cooked a-la-minute and matched with ample choices of wine from all parts of the world. This dark-lit tapas eatery comes with a large Spanish ham as décor and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. Choose from the Old World/New World cellar and enjoy Spanish guitar music in the evening.

 

On this floor, one of the perhaps unexpected attention-grabbingdetails is the Gents room (and most likely the Ladies’ too) – proof of how this hotel has been designed into the last detail. This is a plush and totally stylish restroom, so shimmering that even men will want to linger there for longer than what is usually the norm. Then try to imagine how much time the ladies will appreciate their dedicated room… 

 

Continuing upwards in the building the meetings and conventions facilities on floor 3-5 welcomes a lot of distinguished guests to its opulent Grand Ballroom and meetings rooms; all equipped with the latest high tech and designed with a nice, stylish ambience.

 

Level 6 is another floor for the taste buds, incorporating the Japanese and Italian experience at Terra Roku, featuring both semi-private rooms (can be shielded with curtains) with a floor that can be rotated in order to change the angle of the seating, and lovely al fresco dining on a sizeable garden terrace. The restaurants boast high chairs seating, a sushi bar with seats and two wine cellars.

 

Next come the outdoor pool and spa facility on level 7, which is also the bottom floor for the majestic atrium that takes up a significant part of the building’s interior and reaches all the way to the building’s roof. This wide open space is impressive no matter if you look up or down from a higher level in the building where you can lean over the rail on the walkways outside the hotel rooms. From certain angles this atrium reminds of a luxury cruise ship or one of those casino hotels in Las Vegas.

 

In the front of the hotel this atrium is covered by glass which plays a significant role in giving the building its architecture.

 

The Antidote, the suitable name of this spa, intended as the antidote to modern life, a remedy for counteracting negative effects, has water bubbles as a theme for its modern décor. A dark-lit corridor, where décor of large rings of glass and wood hangs from floor to ceiling, leads to the seven treatment rooms, along the edges of atrium floor. There are doubles for couples and each room comes with a circled shower cabin, featuring a rain shower. This cabin also has a silk drape on outside, for unusually shy guests who cannot be satisfied with the non-transparent shower cabin glass.

 

The spa room has a marble stone floor and come with glass décor on the walls with fresh frangipani petals.

 

Antidotes also features a Pedicures & Manicures Salon with two chairs and a nail bar with three stations serving Acrylic Nail Arts in 3D.

 

Treatment products are the world leading Dermalogica from the U.S and the local premium product PanPuri, consisting in the finest Eastern botanical ingredients.

 

A massage treatment to recommend was the one with deep pressure to release areas of tense, knotted tissue, consisting in long massage strokes and a skin rolling technique to relieve stress and tension and improve circulation. It did the job well, or rather the therapist did.

 

Then, relax in the conservatory cum library on level 15, which is another bonus surprise indeed, at this five-star venue. This space is large enough for at least another two rooms, but instead devoted to a this public space for the guests, coming with towering book cases and access ladders which provide plenty of reading materials amid comfy chairs and potted palm trees. The ceiling goes up three stories and walls of glass face Asoke road and overlooks parts of downtown.

 

Time to introduce the rooms, there are five types (with a minimum of area of 38 sqm.): Deluxe, Grand Deluxe, Executive Club Room, Executive Suite and finally a Presidential Suite.

 

Designed in the ‘new millennium chic’ style the comfortably appointed rooms come in hushed tones of brown, gold, silver and white, complemented by elements of Thai art: on-the-bed  cover, a nice silver pattern on the wallpaper  and in the form of Buddhist black and white framed photos.

 

The design mainly reflects the sign of the times yet it is hard to see how this could become out of date any time soon. But who can predict the future? I come to think back in time of when Sting sang: “I want my MTV…” back in the ‘80s. These days we need to reword that into “I want to play my MP3…” A Media Hub accommodates this need where you can play iTunes and MP3s on the in-room hifi. You can connect your computer, not only to wireless broadband but also to this screen.

 

A feature that has become the norm is the ‘rain shower’ that also this hotel is equipped with. The bathroom also comes with a beautiful marble slab sink.

 

You can dip into the bathtub with is designed for romance if you are a couple. If you stay in a club room you can enjoy aromas from the superb Molton Brown toiletries to fill up the bath with bubbles.

 

Watch TV from the batch and hear the sound on the bathroom’s loudspeaker.

 

Another five-star standard is the pillow menu. And for any needs and room service, just use the 1Touch button.

 

A smart hotel room design element is to use mirrors. Here one corner to the right of window is covered with a floor-to-ceiling. The effect is obviously that when you look at the mirror the room actually feels larger than it actually is.

 

The Executive Club Lounge which is also available deserves a mention where guests are provided with an abundance of complimentary services. Club rooms cover level 22-28 and club guests get glorious views of the city from the opulent club lounge on 24th floor.

 

The final detailed to mention is the roof-top putting course, coming a bunker and situated on the adjacent parking building.

Text and images: Joakim Persson

 

 

See also image gallery for Grand Millennium Sukhumvit, Bangkok

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