A Carla Bruni kind of hotel

Rub your shoulder with upscale, French-speaking travellers

From the outside, with a strangelooking design portraying people sitting tightly on a chair or something, Sofitel Bangkok Silom looks quite identical to The Nation office in Bang Na. Once through the hotel's transparent door, I know well that we're an ocean apart, without going into a single detail.

The hotel opened on September 1, 2003, on Silom Road, Bangkok's financial and, well, a pleasure district. Bangkok Bank headquarters is walking distance, while those seedy nightclubs are only stone throw from the lobby.

Here you have the very best, either business or pleasure.

After seven years in business, the owners decided to renovate to impress their upscale business and leisure travellers. Unlike Dusit Thani, its rival at the head of Silom Road, you won't find a pinch of traditional Thai heritage at the Sofitel Bangkok Silom. In other ways, the 469room Sofitel reflects the sophisticated cosmopolitan - a Carla Bruni kind of hotel.

"The old carpet is replaced by the light brown wooden floor, adding elegance to the modern aesthetic," says Virinya Maytheepattanachat, hotel's PR manager, noting on the renovation. "The white and cool grey on the walls and interior design gives some bright accents to the guestroom."

There are 308 Luxury Rooms, 128 Luxury Club Sofitel suites, 33 Prestige Suites and one Imperial Suite, the best of its kind.

The Luxury Rooms, the entry level for most guests, are fine, with a lively ambience, nice, puffy bed, TV sets and all.

What you won't have in the Luxury Room is the large space. The suites give the guest separate living rooms to organise a small meeting or even throw a small party before chasing the wild night in Silom.

My room, a Luxury Club Sofitel, is on the 35th floor. With exclusive checkin and separate breakfast room on the 27th floor, the business travellers should enjoy this privilege (since they don't have to mess in with throngs of tourists in the hotel lobby).

Apparently, room 3503 gives me a view of bustling Bangkok. From my room on the 35th floor I could imagine the sound of the city bouncing beyond the hotel's transparent window. Silom Road is flooded with red from the transfixed taillights, as Bangkok's commercial strip becomes a deathbed in the evening's traffic jam.

The small alleyways are dark yet arresting (in the Silom manner), as the tuktuks and motorcycles keep "flying" in and out the small sois every second.

The room has the usual suspects - flatscreen TVs with impressive channels for world news and entertainment, highspeed Internet via cable, excellent kingsize bed. The minibar keeps a good stock of drink - beer, gin, vodka and scotch.

Unlike other luxury chain hotels, Sofitel always pays more attention to the small details, as if it sits on the mind of the guest. The toothbrush set, for example, that most travellers forget to pack, is always right there in bathroom.

And, in a place like seductive Silom, Sofitel Bangkok Silom is mindful enough to add a condom to the minibar menu. The desperate guests don't have to run to the nearest 7Eleven.

When it comes to dinner, Sofitel Bangkok Silom offers different choices of delicacies.

The Mistral, on the second floor, offers Mediterranean cuisine. Then, you have V9 restaurant, with promising French food, long list of fine wine and a panoramic view of Bangkok skyline. The big fans of "spinning dinner" of Chinese delicacies will find their table at Shanghai 38 restaurant.

Lured by the city skyline and temptation for wine, I go to V9 for hamwrapped monk fish and avocado salad. They're fine. The "smoking head" better take note, as the French restaurant offers a separate smoking area - where you can puff without guilt.

While Silom is bustling, day and night, the hotel's spa, Anne Semonin, offers a peaceful escape through series of pampering treatment.

Here on Silom, you have two luxury hotels - Dusit Thani and Sofitel beyond the Silom and Narathiwas intersection. While Dusit Thani offers the elegant Thai heritage style, starting at around US$135 per night in Deluxe Room, sophisticated and modern Sofitel Bangkok Silom beckons you for the same type of room at around $90 per night.

Sofitel Bangkok Silom, bottom line, is a very fine hotel - where you'll rub your shoulder with upscale, French-speaking travellers.

AT A GLANCE

High point: Luxury hotel and best value for money in the city of Bangkok. It's within walking distance of the Chong Nonsi BTS station.

Low point: Stands high with "horizontal limit". You probably miss Dusit Thani for its spacious and expansive area.

Find it: On Silom Road, a short walk from the Narathiwas and Silom intersection

Pay for it: Sofitel Silom Bangkok is offering "I Love Chocolate" promotion, starting at Bt4,055 per night, with breakfast and chocolate breaks. Visit www.sofitel.com for other deals.

Call it: (02) 238 1999