Jump to content

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok: Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 13°43′25″N 100°30′52″E / 13.72361°N 100.51444°E / 13.72361; 100.51444
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Removing Mandarin_Oriental,_Bangkok_-_Riverside_Terrace_-_High_Res.jpg; it has been deleted from Commons by Túrelio because: Copyright violation: ht
Rescuing 3 sources and tagging 0 as dead.) #IABot (v2.0.9.5) (Pancho507 - 22010
 
(37 intermediate revisions by 33 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|a hotel in Bangkok}}
{{Short description|A hotel in Bangkok}}
{{advert|date=October 2018}}
{{advert|date=October 2018}}
{{Infobox hotel
{{Infobox hotel
| hotel_name =Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
| hotel_name =Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
| image = Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Bang Rak.jpg
| image = Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Bang Rak.jpg
| caption =View of Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok <br>from the [[Chao Phraya River]]
| caption =View of Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok <br />from the [[Chao Phraya River]]
| location =48 [[Oriental Avenue (Bangkok)|Oriental Avenue]], [[Bangkok]] 10500, [[Thailand]]
| location =48 [[Oriental Avenue (Bangkok)|Oriental Avenue]], [[Bangkok]] 10500, [[Thailand]]
| coordinates = {{coord|13|43|25|N|100|30|52|E|display=inline}}
| coordinates = {{coord|13|43|25|N|100|30|52|E|display=inline}}
Line 23: Line 23:
| footnotes =
| footnotes =
}}
}}
'''Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok''' is a [[star (classification)|five-star]] [[hotel]] in [[Bangkok]] owned in part and managed by [[Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]]. Located on the banks of the [[Chao Phraya River]], the original structure was the first hotel built in [[Thailand]] when it opened as The Oriental in 1876. Today, the hotel is one of two flagship properties of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.
'''Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok''' is a [[star (classification)|five-star]] [[hotel]] in [[Bangkok]] owned in part and managed by [[Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]]. Located on the [[Chao Phraya River]], the original structure was the first hotel built in [[Thailand]] when it opened as The Oriental in 1876. Today, the hotel is one of two flagship properties of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.


==History==
==History==
When [[Siam]] opened to foreign trade after the signing of the [[Bowring Treaty]] the sailors that manned the ships which conveyed this trade though [[Bangkok]] required accommodation on shore. To meet this demand, Captain Dyers, an American, and his partner J.E. Barnes opened a hotel called the Oriental Hotel. This burnt down in 1865.<ref>O'Nell. Page 176.</ref>
When [[Siam]] opened to foreign trade after the signing of the [[Bowring Treaty]], the sailors that crewed the ships though [[Bangkok]] required accommodation on shore. To meet this demand, Captain Dyers, an American, and his partner J.E. Barnes, opened a hotel called the Oriental Hotel. This burnt down in 1865.<ref>O'Nell. Page 176.</ref>


Several years later a partnership of Danish captains opened a replacement hotel.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120">Warren & Gocher. Page 120.</ref> In the 1870s the board of the Oriental Hotel decided with the opening of the new River Wing, upon 1876 as the official establishment date of the Oriental Hotel.
Several years later, a partnership of Danish captains opened a replacement hotel.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120">Warren & Gocher. Page 120.</ref> In the 1870s, the board of the Oriental Hotel decided the opening of the new River Wing in 1876 as the official establishment date of the Oriental Hotel.


===H. N. Andersen===
===H. N. Andersen===
In 1881 29-year-old [[Hans Niels Andersen]], a Danish businessman, bought the premises.<ref>Augustin and Williamson.</ref> His various business ventures led to him becoming a much respected member of the Western community in Siam. Andersen identified a need for a respectable hotel with good accommodation, a bar and a western menu to meet the needs of travellers and businessmen visiting to Siam.
In 1881, 29-year-old [[Hans Niels Andersen]], a Danish businessman, bought the premises.<ref>, Augustin and Williamson.</ref> His various business ventures led to him becoming a much-respected member of the Western community in Siam. Andersen identified a need for a respectable hotel with good accommodation, a bar, and a western menu to meet the needs of travelers and businessmen visiting Siam.


Encouraged by [[Prince Prisdang Jumsai]], Hans Niels Andersen formed a partnership with Peter Andersen and Frederick Kinch to build a luxury hotel. Designed by Cardu & Rossi, a team of local Italian architects, the Oriental was the first luxury hotel in Siam. The hotel opened on 19 May 1887 with 40 rooms and features which at the time had never been seen in Siam outside of a royal palace: a second floor (during a time of single-storey bungalows), carpeted hallways, smoking and ladies rooms, a billiards room and a bar capable of seating 50 patrons.<ref>O‘Nell. Page 178.</ref>
Encouraged by [[Prince Prisdang Jumsai]], Hans Niels Andersen formed a partnership with Peter Andersen and Frederick Kinch to build a luxury hotel. Designed by Cardu & Rossi, a team of local Italian architects, the Oriental was the first luxury hotel in Siam. The hotel opened on 19 May 1887 with 40 rooms and features which at the time had never been seen in Siam outside a royal palace: a second floor (during a time of single-storey bungalows), carpeted hallways, smoking and ladies' rooms, a billiards room and a bar capable of seating 50 patrons.<ref>O‘Nell. Page 178.</ref>
To ensure the success of the restaurant and a satisfactory level of service the owners lured the chef and butler away from the [[Embassy of France, Bangkok|French Consulate]] to work at the hotel.
To ensure the success of the restaurant and a satisfactory level of service, the owners lured the chef and butler from the [[Embassy of France, Bangkok|French Consulate]] away to work at the hotel.


The first major event that the hotel hosted was a grand banquet on 24 May 1888 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Wenande |first=Christian |date=2016-09-01 |title=The Copenhagen Post |url=https://cphpost.dk/2016-09-01/business-education/the-oriental-dane-who-founded-an-oriental-chain/ |access-date=2024-02-27 |website=The Copenhagen Post |language=en-GB}}</ref> After personally inspecting the hotel’s facilities in December 1890, King Chulalongkorn decided the hotel was up to the standard necessary to host visiting royalty. The hotel's first royal guests were the entourage of Crown Prince Nicholas of Russia (later Tsar [[Nicholas II]]) in April 1891.<ref name=":0" />
The first major event that the hotel hosted was a grand banquet on 24 May 1888 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.
After personally inspecting the hotel’s facilities in December 1890, King Chulalongkorn decided the hotel was up to the standard necessary to host visiting royalty. The hotel's first royal guests were the entourage of Crown Prince Nicholas of Russia, (later Tsar Nicholas) in April 1891.


A succession of owners followed until Marie Maire took over the ownership in 1910. She immediately went to work revamping the hotel. She sold it in 1932. During the Second World War the hotel was leased to the Japanese Army who used it as an officers club (under the management of the Imperial Hotel of Tokyo). At the end of the war it was used to house liberated Allied prisoners of war, who in the belief that it was a Japanese property ransacked the building.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/><ref>O‘Nell. Page 181.</ref>
Marie Maire took over ownership of the hotel in 1910 and immediately set to work renovating it. She sold the property in 1932, but during World War Two, it was leased by the Japanese Army and used as an officer's club (under management by the Imperial Hotel of Tokyo). Once World War Two ended, Allied prisoners who thought the hotel still belonged to Japan occupied and vandalized it.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/><ref>O‘Nell. Page 181.</ref>


===Germaine Krull===
===Germaine Krull===
[[File:Oriental Hotel Author's Wing (33113516105).jpg|left|thumb|The original 19th century Authors' Wing]]
[[File: Oriental Hotel Author's Wing (33113516105).jpg|left|thumb|The original 19th-century Authors' Wing]]
At the end of the war a six-person partnership each contributed US$250 to buy the hotel, badly run down from its wartime service. The partnership consisted of [[Germaine Krull]] (1897–1985), Prince Bhanu, General Chai Prateepasen, [[Pote Sarasin]] (prominent businessman and lawyer) and John Webster and [[Jim Thompson (designer)|Jim Thompson]], two Americans who had served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and who had stayed on in Thailand. Krull took the position of manager in 1947, despite no prior experience in the hotel field. Born in Germany, she had been best known as a photographer during the 1920s before service in the Pacific as a war correspondent for Agence France Presse. The hotel's restoration and restocking offered Thompson an opportunity to put to use his architectural and artistic abilities.
At the end of the war, a six-person partnership each contributed US$250 to buy the hotel, badly run down from its wartime service. The partnership consisted of [[Germaine Krull]] (1897–1985), Prince Bhanu, General Chai Prateepasen, [[Pote Sarasin]] (prominent businessman and lawyer) and John Webster and [[Jim Thompson (designer)|Jim Thompson]], two Americans who had served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and who had stayed on in Thailand. Krull took the position of manager in 1947, despite no prior experience in the hotel field. Born in Germany, she had been best known as a photographer during the 1920s before service in the Pacific as a war correspondent for Agence France Presse. The hotel's restoration and restocking offered Thompson an opportunity to put to use his architectural and artistic abilities.


The hotel reopened for business on 12 June 1947. Krull turned out to be a natural hotelier and during her reign restored the hotel to its position as the premier hotel in Thailand.
The hotel reopened for business on 12 June 1947. Krull turned out to be a natural hotelier and during her reign restored the hotel to its position as the premier hotel in Thailand.
Thompson soon left the partnership over a plan to build a new wing, though he stayed on in residence at the hotel for some time. To compete with popular clubs and a new local bar called Chez Eve, Krull established the Bamboo Bar, which soon became one of the leading bars in Bangkok.<ref>Samuels.</ref>
Thompson soon left the partnership over a plan to build a new wing, though he stayed on in residence at the hotel for some time. To compete with popular clubs and a new local bar called Chez Eve, Krull established the Bamboo Bar, which soon became one of the leading bars in Bangkok.<ref>Samuels.</ref>


In 1958 the ten-storey Garden Wing was built. It featured the city’s first elevator and was home to the Le Normandie Restaurant.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/>
In 1958 the ten-story Garden Wing was built. It featured the city’s first elevator and was home to the Le Normandie Restaurant.<ref name=" Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/>
In 1967, fearful that Thailand would fall to the communists, Krull sold her share to Italthai which at the time was well on its way to becoming one of the country’s most significant mercantile groups eventually totally some 60 companies involved in almost all aspects of the Thai economy.
In 1967, fearful that Thailand would fall to the communists, Krull sold her share to Italthai which at the time was well on its way to becoming one of the country’s most significant mercantile groups eventually totaling some 60 companies involved in almost all aspects of the Thai economy.


===Italthai===
===Italthai===
Italthai had been founded in the mid-fifties by Giorgio Berlingieri, an Italian born in Genoa and Dr Chaijudh Karnasuta, a Thai. Berlingieri felt that the Oriental had begun to rest on its laurels and had dropped behind its competitors. He wanted to develop the Oriental into one of the best hotels in the world. Too involved with his various businesses to devote time to the project, Berlingieri in November 1967 appointed 30-year-old Kurt Wachtveitl (1937– ), at that time manager of Nipa Lodge (a hotel that Italthai owned in Pattaya), as general manager of the Oriental.
Italthai had been founded in the mid-fifties by Giorgio Berlingieri, an Italian born in Genoa, and Dr Chaijudh Karnasuta, a Thai. Berlingieri felt that the Oriental had begun to rest on its laurels and had dropped behind its competitors. He wanted to develop the Oriental into one of the best hotels in the world. Too involved with his various businesses to devote time to the project, Berlingieri in November 1967 appointed 30-year-old Kurt Wachtveitl (1937– ), at that time manager of Nipa Lodge (a hotel that Italthai owned in Pattaya), as general manager of the Oriental.


In 1972 the hotel acquired an adjacent property upon which it erected the 350-room River Wing.<ref name="Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/>
In 1972 the hotel acquired an adjacent property upon which it erected the 350-room River Wing.<ref name=" Warren & Gocher. Page 120"/>


===Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok===
===Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok===
The Group began with the opening of its flagship property, [[Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong|The Mandarin]], in Hong Kong in 1963, which soon built up a reputation for luxurious service. In 1974, Mandarin International Hotels Limited was formed as a hotel management company. The Group's intention was to expand into Asia and operate hotels with a standard of service comparable with their property in Hong Kong.<ref name="mandarinoriental.com">{{cite web|url=http://mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/mohg.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>
The Group began with the opening of its flagship property, [[Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong|The Mandarin]], in Hong Kong in 1963, which soon built up a reputation for luxurious service. In 1974, Mandarin International Hotels Limited was formed as a hotel management company. The Group's intention was to expand into Asia and operate hotels with a standard of service comparable to their property in Hong Kong.<ref name="mandarinoriental.com">{{cite web|url=http://mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/mohg.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014|archive-date=31 December 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091231013453/http://www.mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/mohg.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref>


In 1974 the company's hotel interests expanded further through the acquisition of a 49% interest in The Oriental, Bangkok. Through the management of both The Mandarin in Hong Kong and The Oriental, Bangkok, the Group was in an unusual position of having two "flagship" hotels. In 1985, the Company rationalized its corporate structure by combining these two properties under a common name, [[Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]].<ref name="mandarinoriental.com"/>
In 1974 the company's hotel interests expanded further through the acquisition of a 49% interest in The Oriental, Bangkok. Through the management of both The Mandarin in Hong Kong and The Oriental, in Bangkok, the Group was in an unusual position of having two "flagship" hotels. In 1985, the Company rationalized its corporate structure by combining these two properties under a common name, [[Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]].<ref name="mandarinoriental.com"/>


The hotel opened its renowned Oriental Spa in 1993 and finished a complete renovation of its rooms and suites in 2003. In 2006, The Oriental, Bangkok celebrated its 130th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/hotels.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref> In September 2008, the hotel formally changed its name from The Oriental, Bangkok to Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok.
The hotel opened its renowned Oriental Spa in 1993 and finished a complete renovation of its rooms and suites in 2003. In 2006, The Oriental, Bangkok celebrated its 130th anniversary.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/hotels.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014|archive-date=16 June 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616114857/http://www.mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/corporate/hotels.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> In September 2008, the hotel formally changed its name from The Oriental, Bangkok to Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok.


==Hotel==
==Hotel==
The hotel has contained 331 rooms, including 60 unique suites. The two-story Authors' Wing, the only remaining structure of the original 19th-century hotel, houses suites named after [[Joseph Conrad]], [[Somerset Maugham]], [[Noël Coward]] and [[James Michener]]. The River Wing contains deluxe two-bedroom suites named after former guests or personages associated with the hotel, including [[Barbara Cartland]], [[Gore Vidal]], [[Graham Greene]], [[Wilbur Smith]], [[John le Carré]], [[Jim Thompson (designer)|Jim Thompson]], [[Norman Mailer]], Thai author [[Kukrit Pramoj]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/bangkok/bangkok_literary.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref> Other suites are named after ships associated with the early Bangkok trade, such as ''[[Otago]]'' (once captained by Joseph Conrad), {{HMS|Melita}}, ''Vesatri'' and ''[[Natuna]]''.
The hotel has contained 331 rooms, including 60 unique suites. The two-story Authors' Wing, the only remaining structure of the original 19th-century hotel, houses suites named after [[Joseph Conrad]], [[Somerset Maugham]], [[Noël Coward]] and [[James Michener]]. The River Wing contains deluxe two-bedroom suites named after former guests or personages associated with the hotel, including [[Barbara Cartland]], [[Gore Vidal]], [[Graham Greene]], [[Wilbur Smith]], [[John le Carré]], [[Jim Thompson (designer)|Jim Thompson]], [[Norman Mailer]], Thai author [[Kukrit Pramoj]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/bangkok/bangkok_literary.aspx|title=Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014|archive-date=12 September 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120912005336/http://www.mandarinoriental.com/about_mo/media/press_kits/bangkok/bangkok_literary.aspx|url-status=dead}}</ref> Other suites are named after ships associated with the early Bangkok trade, such as ''[[Otago]]'' (once captained by Joseph Conrad), {{HMS|Melita}}, ''Vesatri'' and ''[[Natuna]]''.
[[File:Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Sala Rim Naam restaurant.jpg|right|thumb|260px|Sala Rim Naam restaurant and terrace]]
[[File:Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Sala Rim Naam restaurant.jpg|right|thumb|260px|Sala Rim Naam restaurant and terrace]]


==Awards==
===Restaurants<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/dining/Restaurants/|title=Bangkok Fine Dining - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>===
Source:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/news/|title=Bangkok Hotel News - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>
* Le Normandie: Contemporary French cuisine
* Lord Jim’s: Seafood and prime cut grill
* Sala Rim Naam: Traditional Thai cuisine
* Terrace Rim Naam: Authentic Thai dishes
* The China House: Classic Chinese cuisine
* Riverside Terrace: International BBQ
* The Verandah: International all-day dining
* Ciao Terrazza: Italian cuisine
* Kinu by Takagi :Japanese Kaiseki dining

===Lounges and bars<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/dining/Lounge_and_Bar/|title=Bangkok Fine Dining - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>===
*The Authors' Lounge: Traditional afternoon tea served with old world charm
*The Bamboo Bar: Live Jazz & Blues Bar

===Additional services and facilities===
* The Oriental Spa<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/spa/|title=Bangkok Luxury Spa - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>
* The Oriental Thai Cooking School<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/leisure/cooking_school/|title=5-Star Hotel in Bangkok - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>

==Awards<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mandarinoriental.com/bangkok/news/|title=Bangkok Hotel News - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok|publisher=Mandarinoriental.com|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>==
*Named “Best City Hotel in Asia” and one of the “Top 20 Hotels Worldwide” (''[[Travel + Leisure]]'''s annual World Best Awards 2009)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.travelandleisure.com/worldsbest/2009|title=2009 World's Best Hotels - Travel + Leisure|work=Travel + Leisure|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>
*Named “Best City Hotel in Asia” and one of the “Top 20 Hotels Worldwide” (''[[Travel + Leisure]]'''s annual World Best Awards 2009)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.travelandleisure.com/worldsbest/2009|title=2009 World's Best Hotels - Travel + Leisure|work=Travel + Leisure|accessdate=29 December 2014}}</ref>
*Best City Center Hotel Spa Worldwide (Luxury Travel Advisor, December 2008 - Awards of Excellence)
*Best City Center Hotel Spa Worldwide (Luxury Travel Advisor, December 2008 - Awards of Excellence)
*Urban Spa of the Year (AsiaSpa Magazine, November 2008 - AsiaSpa Awards)
*Urban Spa of the Year (AsiaSpa Magazine, November 2008 - AsiaSpa Awards)
*Named one of the 400 Best Hotels (Forbes Traveler, November 2008)
*Named one of the 400 Best Hotels (Forbes Traveler, November 2008)
*No. 8 in Overseas Leisure Hotels - Asia & the Indian Subcontinent (''[[Condé Nast Traveller]]'', October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards
*No. 8 in Overseas Leisure Hotels - Asia & the Indian Subcontinent (''[[Condé Nast Traveller]]'', October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards)
*No. 13 in Spas in Overseas Hotel (''Condé Nast Traveller'', October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards)
*No. 13 in Spas in Overseas Hotel (''Condé Nast Traveller'', October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards)
*No. 3 in Top 20 International City Hotels (Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report, September 2008 - The World’s Best Hotel, Resorts & Hideaways)
*No. 3 in Top 20 International City Hotels (Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report, September 2008 - The World’s Best Hotel, Resorts & Hideaways){{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}
*Named one of top 50 hotels in the world 2023 <ref>https://www.top50hotels.com {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>
*Named on Cond''é'' Nast Gold list 2023 <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/thailand/bangkok/mandarin-oriental-bangkok | title=Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok – Hotel Review }}</ref>
* 2023 Tripadvisor tTravellers' choice award<ref>https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g293916-d301411-Reviews-Mandarin_Oriental_Bangkok-Bangkok.html {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>


==Photo gallery==
==Photo gallery==
<gallery>
<gallery>
Image:Mandarin_Oriental_Bangkok_Oriental_Spa.jpg|The Oriental Spa
Image:Mandarin_Oriental_Bangkok_Oriental_Spa.jpg|The Oriental Spa

File:Mandarin Oriental, Bankgok - Kinu by Takagi - High Res.jpg|Kinu by Takagi

File:MOBKK LOBBY FINAL 01SQ.jpg|Hotel Lobby






File:The Verandah.jpg|The Verandah
</gallery>
</gallery>


Line 116: Line 93:
* [[Mandarin Oriental, New York]]
* [[Mandarin Oriental, New York]]
* [[Mandarin Oriental, Miami]]
* [[Mandarin Oriental, Miami]]
* [[East Asiatic Building]]


==Notes==
==Notes==
Line 125: Line 103:
*Augustin, Andreas. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160303205852/http://www.famoushotels.org/article/303 "Oriental Hotel - Historic Data“]. Accessed 26 September 2008.
*Augustin, Andreas. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160303205852/http://www.famoushotels.org/article/303 "Oriental Hotel - Historic Data“]. Accessed 26 September 2008.
*{{cite book|author1=Germaine Krull |author2=Dorothea Melchers |title=Bangkok: Siam's City of Angels|location=London|publisher=Robert Hale Limited|year=1964|id = ASIN B0000CM48L|pages = 191 pages}}
*{{cite book|author1=Germaine Krull |author2=Dorothea Melchers |title=Bangkok: Siam's City of Angels|location=London|publisher=Robert Hale Limited|year=1964|id = ASIN B0000CM48L|pages = 191 pages}}
*Lim, Victor. [https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20090316035050/http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/1-23-2006-87070.asp "The legendary Oriental Bangkok – the grand dame turns 130"]. Accessed 27 September 2008.
*Lim, Victor. {{usurped|1=[https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20090316035050/http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/1-23-2006-87070.asp "The legendary Oriental Bangkok – the grand dame turns 130"]}}. Accessed 27 September 2008.
*{{cite book| author=O’Nell, Maryvelma| title=Bangkok - A Cultural and Literary History| year = 2008| publisher= Signal Books| location= Oxford| isbn = 978-1-904955-39-9| pages = 248 pages}}
*{{cite book| author=O’Nell, Maryvelma| title=Bangkok - A Cultural and Literary History| year = 2008| publisher= Signal Books| location= Oxford| isbn = 978-1-904955-39-9| pages = 248 pages}}
*Samuels, David. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080513054531/http://www.mensvogue.com/food/cellar/articles/2008/03/bamboo "Taste of History"]. Accessed 26 September 2008.
*Samuels, David. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080513054531/http://www.mensvogue.com/food/cellar/articles/2008/03/bamboo "Taste of History"]. Accessed 26 September 2008.
Line 143: Line 121:
[[Category:Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]]
[[Category:Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group]]
[[Category:Hotels in Bangkok]]
[[Category:Hotels in Bangkok]]
[[Category:Bang Rak District]]
[[Category:Bang Rak district]]
[[Category:Hotels established in 1876]]
[[Category:Hotels established in 1876]]
[[Category:Unregistered ancient monuments in Bangkok]]
[[Category: Unregistered ancient monuments in Bangkok]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures on the Chao Phraya River]]
[[Category: Buildings and structures on the Chao Phraya River]]
[[Category:1876 establishments in Siam]]
[[Category:1876 establishments in Siam]]

Latest revision as of 14:07, 5 December 2024

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
View of Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
from the Chao Phraya River
Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok is located in Bangkok
Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
Location within Bangkok
General information
Location48 Oriental Avenue, Bangkok 10500, Thailand
Coordinates13°43′25″N 100°30′52″E / 13.72361°N 100.51444°E / 13.72361; 100.51444
Opening1876
ManagementMandarin Oriental Hotel Group
Other information
Number of rooms393
Number of suites35
Number of restaurants8
Website
MandarinOriental.com/bangkok

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok is a five-star hotel in Bangkok owned in part and managed by Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group. Located on the Chao Phraya River, the original structure was the first hotel built in Thailand when it opened as The Oriental in 1876. Today, the hotel is one of two flagship properties of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.

History

[edit]

When Siam opened to foreign trade after the signing of the Bowring Treaty, the sailors that crewed the ships though Bangkok required accommodation on shore. To meet this demand, Captain Dyers, an American, and his partner J.E. Barnes, opened a hotel called the Oriental Hotel. This burnt down in 1865.[1]

Several years later, a partnership of Danish captains opened a replacement hotel.[2] In the 1870s, the board of the Oriental Hotel decided the opening of the new River Wing in 1876 as the official establishment date of the Oriental Hotel.

H. N. Andersen

[edit]

In 1881, 29-year-old Hans Niels Andersen, a Danish businessman, bought the premises.[3] His various business ventures led to him becoming a much-respected member of the Western community in Siam. Andersen identified a need for a respectable hotel with good accommodation, a bar, and a western menu to meet the needs of travelers and businessmen visiting Siam.

Encouraged by Prince Prisdang Jumsai, Hans Niels Andersen formed a partnership with Peter Andersen and Frederick Kinch to build a luxury hotel. Designed by Cardu & Rossi, a team of local Italian architects, the Oriental was the first luxury hotel in Siam. The hotel opened on 19 May 1887 with 40 rooms and features which at the time had never been seen in Siam outside a royal palace: a second floor (during a time of single-storey bungalows), carpeted hallways, smoking and ladies' rooms, a billiards room and a bar capable of seating 50 patrons.[4] To ensure the success of the restaurant and a satisfactory level of service, the owners lured the chef and butler from the French Consulate away to work at the hotel.

The first major event that the hotel hosted was a grand banquet on 24 May 1888 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.[5] After personally inspecting the hotel’s facilities in December 1890, King Chulalongkorn decided the hotel was up to the standard necessary to host visiting royalty. The hotel's first royal guests were the entourage of Crown Prince Nicholas of Russia (later Tsar Nicholas II) in April 1891.[5]

Marie Maire took over ownership of the hotel in 1910 and immediately set to work renovating it. She sold the property in 1932, but during World War Two, it was leased by the Japanese Army and used as an officer's club (under management by the Imperial Hotel of Tokyo). Once World War Two ended, Allied prisoners who thought the hotel still belonged to Japan occupied and vandalized it.[2][6]

Germaine Krull

[edit]
The original 19th-century Authors' Wing

At the end of the war, a six-person partnership each contributed US$250 to buy the hotel, badly run down from its wartime service. The partnership consisted of Germaine Krull (1897–1985), Prince Bhanu, General Chai Prateepasen, Pote Sarasin (prominent businessman and lawyer) and John Webster and Jim Thompson, two Americans who had served in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and who had stayed on in Thailand. Krull took the position of manager in 1947, despite no prior experience in the hotel field. Born in Germany, she had been best known as a photographer during the 1920s before service in the Pacific as a war correspondent for Agence France Presse. The hotel's restoration and restocking offered Thompson an opportunity to put to use his architectural and artistic abilities.

The hotel reopened for business on 12 June 1947. Krull turned out to be a natural hotelier and during her reign restored the hotel to its position as the premier hotel in Thailand. Thompson soon left the partnership over a plan to build a new wing, though he stayed on in residence at the hotel for some time. To compete with popular clubs and a new local bar called Chez Eve, Krull established the Bamboo Bar, which soon became one of the leading bars in Bangkok.[7]

In 1958 the ten-story Garden Wing was built. It featured the city’s first elevator and was home to the Le Normandie Restaurant.[2] In 1967, fearful that Thailand would fall to the communists, Krull sold her share to Italthai which at the time was well on its way to becoming one of the country’s most significant mercantile groups eventually totaling some 60 companies involved in almost all aspects of the Thai economy.

Italthai

[edit]

Italthai had been founded in the mid-fifties by Giorgio Berlingieri, an Italian born in Genoa, and Dr Chaijudh Karnasuta, a Thai. Berlingieri felt that the Oriental had begun to rest on its laurels and had dropped behind its competitors. He wanted to develop the Oriental into one of the best hotels in the world. Too involved with his various businesses to devote time to the project, Berlingieri in November 1967 appointed 30-year-old Kurt Wachtveitl (1937– ), at that time manager of Nipa Lodge (a hotel that Italthai owned in Pattaya), as general manager of the Oriental.

In 1972 the hotel acquired an adjacent property upon which it erected the 350-room River Wing.[2]

Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok

[edit]

The Group began with the opening of its flagship property, The Mandarin, in Hong Kong in 1963, which soon built up a reputation for luxurious service. In 1974, Mandarin International Hotels Limited was formed as a hotel management company. The Group's intention was to expand into Asia and operate hotels with a standard of service comparable to their property in Hong Kong.[8]

In 1974 the company's hotel interests expanded further through the acquisition of a 49% interest in The Oriental, Bangkok. Through the management of both The Mandarin in Hong Kong and The Oriental, in Bangkok, the Group was in an unusual position of having two "flagship" hotels. In 1985, the Company rationalized its corporate structure by combining these two properties under a common name, Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group.[8]

The hotel opened its renowned Oriental Spa in 1993 and finished a complete renovation of its rooms and suites in 2003. In 2006, The Oriental, Bangkok celebrated its 130th anniversary.[9] In September 2008, the hotel formally changed its name from The Oriental, Bangkok to Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok.

Hotel

[edit]

The hotel has contained 331 rooms, including 60 unique suites. The two-story Authors' Wing, the only remaining structure of the original 19th-century hotel, houses suites named after Joseph Conrad, Somerset Maugham, Noël Coward and James Michener. The River Wing contains deluxe two-bedroom suites named after former guests or personages associated with the hotel, including Barbara Cartland, Gore Vidal, Graham Greene, Wilbur Smith, John le Carré, Jim Thompson, Norman Mailer, Thai author Kukrit Pramoj.[10] Other suites are named after ships associated with the early Bangkok trade, such as Otago (once captained by Joseph Conrad), HMS Melita, Vesatri and Natuna.

Sala Rim Naam restaurant and terrace

Awards

[edit]

Source:[11]

  • Named “Best City Hotel in Asia” and one of the “Top 20 Hotels Worldwide” (Travel + Leisure's annual World Best Awards 2009)[12]
  • Best City Center Hotel Spa Worldwide (Luxury Travel Advisor, December 2008 - Awards of Excellence)
  • Urban Spa of the Year (AsiaSpa Magazine, November 2008 - AsiaSpa Awards)
  • Named one of the 400 Best Hotels (Forbes Traveler, November 2008)
  • No. 8 in Overseas Leisure Hotels - Asia & the Indian Subcontinent (Condé Nast Traveller, October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards)
  • No. 13 in Spas in Overseas Hotel (Condé Nast Traveller, October 2008 - Readers’ Travel Awards)
  • No. 3 in Top 20 International City Hotels (Andrew Harper’s Hideaway Report, September 2008 - The World’s Best Hotel, Resorts & Hideaways)[citation needed]
  • Named one of top 50 hotels in the world 2023 [13]
  • Named on Condé Nast Gold list 2023 [14]
  • 2023 Tripadvisor tTravellers' choice award[15]
[edit]
  • The Oriental Spa
    The Oriental Spa

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ O'Nell. Page 176.
  2. ^ a b c d Warren & Gocher. Page 120.
  3. ^ , Augustin and Williamson.
  4. ^ O‘Nell. Page 178.
  5. ^ a b Wenande, Christian (2016-09-01). "The Copenhagen Post". The Copenhagen Post. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
  6. ^ O‘Nell. Page 181.
  7. ^ Samuels.
  8. ^ a b "Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group". Mandarinoriental.com. Archived from the original on 31 December 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  9. ^ "Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group". Mandarinoriental.com. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  10. ^ "Press Kits - Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group". Mandarinoriental.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  11. ^ "Bangkok Hotel News - Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Bangkok". Mandarinoriental.com. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  12. ^ "2009 World's Best Hotels - Travel + Leisure". Travel + Leisure. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  13. ^ https://www.top50hotels.com [bare URL]
  14. ^ "Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok – Hotel Review".
  15. ^ https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g293916-d301411-Reviews-Mandarin_Oriental_Bangkok-Bangkok.html [bare URL]

References

[edit]
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Oriental Bangkok.

13°43′25″N 100°30′52″E / 13.72361°N 100.51444°E / 13.72361; 100.51444

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Mandarin_Oriental,_Bangkok&oldid=1261321931"