In contrast to some reviewers, I had a delightful stay - extending one night to three. Being right on the river was captivating and hypnotising. Excellent [free] breakfasts; a block only from the backpacker-scene; wonderful room with hot shower; mediocre TV [but who cares]. The service was fine, if one is a bit patient.

The attiude here is so bad. It seems the reception finds it a bother when a guest asks something.

I told them the air conditioner was making a noise--was not fixed, told them there is an awful smell like from the drains---i got a dirty look.
The head receptionist shouts, & before u even have coffee she asks about paying.
Tried to speak to the manager, they wont tell u his name, & say we must come back later, plus get very anti & wont let u meet with him.

I have never been in such a situation, hotel managers are always ready to help, i have stayed all over the world.
I shall never come back to this hotel, & shall tell my friends never to come here---i know alot of people.

After 2 days we moved out, was planning to stay 2 weeks.

We stayed at New Siam Riverside (not to be confused with its sister hostel New Siam III, now re-named Super Siam, which is a couple of streets away) on our arrival in Bangkok in Nov 2007 and liked it so much we immediately booked to stay there when we came back to Bangkok from the islands. This is a cut above a typical backpacker hostel - more like a hotel than a hostel, clearly aimed at the 'flashpacker' market!

We had a deluxe riverview 2nd floor room with balcony, shared between 3 of us (2 double beds) which was extremely spacious, clean, comfortable and well-appointed (satellite TV, safe, mini-fridge etc), with a huge bathroom. We were pleasantly surprised by how quiet the room was and it was lovely to have a river-view. The staff were friendly and helpful with things like organising airport transfers and there are useful amenities like cheap internet access and a travel agenct in the lobby. We didn't actually use the small pool much as we were out sight-seeing all day but it was nice to have the option of a cooling dip! A decent breakfast buffet is included in the price of the rooms and you can eat it out on the riverside terrace which is a nice relaxed start to the day.

The location is fantastic: we found it a great base for sightseeing. There is a ferry pier less than five minutes walk down the street where you can pick up fast boats to tourist sights like the Grand Palace, or to connect to the SkyTrain service. The only difficulty we found was that as the place is still fairly new taxi drivers often didn't know where it was when we tried to get back in the evening, even with the help of the hotel card which gave the address in Thai - the easiest thing is to ask them for the Khao San Road and then from there ask for the Phra Sumeru Fortress at the top of Phra Athit Road , which is just up the street. Overall it was fantastic to have the Khao San Road only a few minutes walk away, but to be able to retreat to a quiet, calm hotel at a pretty bargain price.