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Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
Bangkok, Thailand · Mandarin Oriental · Grand Luxury
Danish captains and Italian architects Cardu & Rossi opened The Oriental on 19 May 1887 as Siam's first luxury hotel on the Chao Phraya, with carpeted upstairs corridors and a bar for fifty when most Bangkok lodging was single-storey. King Chulalongkorn vetted it for royal guests in 1890; Crown Prince Nicholas of Russia arrived in 1891. Authors' Wing names still track Conrad, Maugham, and Coward.
- 331 rooms
- Opened 1876
- Neighborhood: Bang Rak riverside
- Architect: Italian architects Cardu; Rossi
- Interiors: Jeffrey Wilkes
About Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok
- Captain Dyers's earlier Oriental burned in 1865; the board later treated the 1876 River Wing opening as the official founding date.
- Hans Niels Andersen bought the premises in 1881 and pushed the full luxury rebuild with Prince Prisdang's encouragement.
- Japanese forces used the hotel as an officers' club in WWII; Allied prisoners later vandalized it thinking it was still Japanese-held.
- Germaine Krull, Prince Bhanu, Jim Thompson, and partners each put up US$250 after the war to restart the ruined house.
- Anne-Sophie Pic's Le Normandie holds two Michelin stars; The Bamboo Bar has staged live jazz since 1953, and HBO filmed Sam Rockwell's Season 3 White Lotus monologue there.
History
Established in the mid-19th century as a rest house for foreign seafarers on the Chao Phraya River, the original structure was destroyed by fire in 1865 and rebuilt, officially opening as The Oriental luxury hotel on 14 May 1887 under Danish captains and designed by Italian architects Cardu and Rossi.[Mandarin Oriental History PDF](https://photos.mandarinoriental.com/is/content/MandarinOriental/corporate-bangkok-PK-history) Hosted royalty, authors like Joseph Conrad and Somerset Maugham, and celebrities; key milestones include Tower Wing (1958), River Wing (1977), and partnerships leading to its renaming as Mandarin Oriental in 2008; recent USD 90 million restoration of River Wing in 2019 by Jeffrey Wilkes.[Mandarin Oriental History PDF](https://photos.mandarinoriental.com/is/content/MandarinOriental/corporate-bangkok-PK-history)
A USD 90 million restoration of the River Wing, completed in 2019 and designed by Jeffrey Wilkes, is the largest-ever single renovation spend at a Thai hotel. HBO filmed Season 3 of The White Lotus here in 2024, including Sam Rockwell's episode-five monologue at The Bamboo Bar.
The setting
Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok commands 48 Oriental Avenue on the Chao Phraya riverfront in Bang Rak — where, in April 1876, the first hotel in Thailand opened as The Oriental, predating the modern city's skyline by a century. The private pier accesses the Chao Phraya express ferry network; Asiatique The Riverfront is twenty-two minutes by river, and Wat Arun stands opposite on the Thonburi bank. The surrounding Bang Rak district's former European quarter — the French Mission building and colonial trading houses on Oriental Avenue — provides a singular layered history that no other Bangkok hotel can claim, confirming this as the most storied riverfront address in the Thai capital.
Restaurants and bars
- Anne-Sophie Pic at Le Normandie — Restaurant · French · Chef Anne-Sophie Pic · Two MICHELIN Stars
- Lord Jim’s — Restaurant · Seafood
- The Verandah — Restaurant
- Sala Rim Naam — Restaurant · Thai
- Baan Phraya — Restaurant · Thai
- The Bamboo Bar — Bar
- The China House by Chef Fei — Restaurant · Chef Chef Fei
- The Authors' Lounge — Bar
- Riverside Terrace — Restaurant
- Ciao Terrazza — Restaurant
- Terrace Rim Naam — Restaurant
Experiences
- Shuttle boat service to ICONSIAM — A complimentary shuttle boat service connects the hotel to ICONSIAM.
- Fitness & Wellness Centre — Energising workouts alongside gentle meditation and yoga.
- Muay Thai / boxing studio — An on-site Muay Thai and boxing studio.
- Yoga house — A dedicated yoga house on the property.
Amenities
- The Oriental Spa
- swimming pools
- fitness centre with tennis courts
- Muay Thai/yoga studios
- jogging track
- private teakwood shuttle boats
- Sauna
- Hot tub
- Butler service
Awards
- Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star (2026)
- MICHELIN Three Keys (2026)
- Travel + Leisure World's Best Hotels (2026)
- World's 50 Best Hotels (2026)
- Andrew Harper Members Choice (2025)
- Condé Nast Traveler Gold List (2025)
- La Liste World's Best Hotels (2025)
- Asia's Leading Luxury Hotel (World Travel Awards)
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