Shangri-La Bangkok is the big resort of Bangkok's riverside: 802 rooms in two wings on the east bank of the Chao Phraya in Bang Rak, with two pools, tennis courts, six restaurants, three bars and its own dinner boat on one site. Its strongest practical argument is that the hotel says it has direct access to the BTS Skytrain and the public ferry terminal, so it pairs river views with an easy way into the rest of the city. It suits families, groups and first-time visitors who want a lot of hotel for the money; travelers looking for an intimate or cutting-edge dining hotel have better-matched options upriver and downriver.
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This editorial review is based on the hotel's official pages, not on a stay. Check availability on Expedia.
Location and getting around
The address is 89 Soi Wat Suan Plu, off New Road (Charoen Krung), in the old trading district where the river hotels cluster. The hotel does not name the station or pier on its pages, but it does say it has direct access to both the Skytrain and the public ferry terminal, and that is the deciding advantage over riverside rivals that rely on a hotel shuttle boat. The Skytrain covers Silom, Siam and Sukhumvit, and public river boats give you a second option, both of which avoid the slow road traffic around Charoen Krung and Sathorn.
Airport transfers take about 40 minutes by road from either Suvarnabhumi or Don Mueang, according to the hotel, and it also points travelers to the Airport Rail Link with a change to the BTS. Valet parking is available for guests who arrive by car.
Rooms: which wing to book
The choice of wing matters more here than at most hotels, because the two wings feel like separate properties sharing a garden.
Shangri-La Wing
The 25-storey main tower holds 673 of the rooms and suites. Its entry-level Deluxe rooms are 36 square meters and face the city with only a partial view of the river, so anyone who booked for the water should budget for a River View or Balcony room. Horizon Club rooms add lounge access, with breakfast, afternoon tea and evening drinks, and connecting rooms are bookable in this wing, which is the one families should look at.
Krungthep Wing
The Krungthep Wing is the quieter half, with its own entrance and lobby. Every one of its 44-square-meter rooms faces the river from a private veranda, and the wing sits next to Chi, The Spa and its own pool. It is the better fit for couples and for anyone who wants the river without the traffic of an 800-room lobby, with the trade-off that suite guests walk to the main wing for breakfast.
Dining and bars
With six restaurants and three bars, you can eat in for several nights without repeating a cuisine. None of the restaurants appears in the current MICHELIN Guide selection, and the hotel's own award page lists a Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star rating for 2026, so the draw is range and river setting rather than destination cooking. The one outside distinction the hotel reports for a restaurant is Tre Forchette from Gambero Rosso in 2025 for Volti, its Tuscan grill and pasta room on the lobby level. Every venue lists smart casual dress.
- NEXT2 Café is the riverside all-day restaurant, with buffets at breakfast and dinner and a surf-and-turf buffet on Friday and Saturday nights. Buffet prices are published and quoted net, which makes budgeting simple.
- Shang Palace, on level 3 of the main tower, is the Cantonese room, with an all-you-can-eat dim sum lunch on weekdays.
- Salathip serves Thai dinners in teak pavilions at the river's edge.
- Lobby Lounge and The Long Bar share the river frontage; the lounge serves afternoon tea in a birdcage stand, and the bar mixes Thai-inspired cocktails.
- Shangri-La Horizon Cruise is the hotel's own dinner boat, leaving from the NEXT2 pier with a buffet as it passes the Grand Palace, Wat Arun and Wat Pho. It saves the transfer to a shared cruise pier, though it only sails four nights a week.
For a night out beyond the hotel, lebua's open-air Sirocco is in the same Bang Rak riverside district, and our Bangkok restaurant guide covers the wider city.
Pools, spa and fitness
Facilities are where the hotel's size pays off. There is a main riverside pool and a second pool by the Krungthep Wing, both open from morning to early evening. The fitness complex covers about 8,500 square feet with more than 40 activities, classes and personal training, and the tennis courts include a free hour a day for guests during daytime hours. Few city hotels offer tennis at all, which is useful on a longer stay.
Chi, The Spa is beside the Krungthep Wing's relaxation pool, and the hotel describes its private suites as some of the largest in Bangkok. Treatments draw on healing traditions from across Asia. The spa asks for bookings ahead of every treatment and charges in full for late cancellations, so reserve rather than walk in.
Families and accessibility
Families are well served without a formal kids' club: connecting rooms in the main wing, babysitting on request, a children's counter at NEXT2 Café on weekends, and half-price buffets for children aged 6 to 12. The two pools and tennis courts give children room to burn off energy between sightseeing trips. The hotel's pages read for this review do not set out a pet policy or detailed accessible-room information, so ask the hotel directly if either matters.
Who it suits, and the alternatives
Shangri-La Bangkok suits families, groups and conference travelers, returning visitors who value the Skytrain link, and anyone who wants a resort-style pool on the river in the middle of the city. It is less suited to travelers who want a small, personal hotel or a MICHELIN-starred dinner downstairs; the scale that gives you two pools also means a busy lobby.
- For heritage and serious dining: Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok, a little upriver in Bang Rak, is the city's historic river hotel; read our Mandarin Oriental review.
- For a calmer riverside resort: Four Seasons Hotel Bangkok, downriver in Sathon, has riverfront pools and a daily kids' club; see our Four Seasons review.
- For a view back across the water: The Peninsula Bangkok faces this stretch of river from the Khlong San bank.
Our best riverside hotels in Bangkok guide compares the whole riverfront, and the Bangkok hotels directory lists every hotel we cover. To compare dates, check availability for Shangri-La Bangkok on Expedia.
Sources: Shangri-La Bangkok, map and directions, Shangri-La Wing, Krungthep Wing, NEXT2 Café, Horizon Cruise, health club, Chi, The Spa, awards. Checked September 26, 2026.
Yes. It stands on the east bank of the Chao Phraya at 89 Soi Wat Suan Plu, off New Road (Charoen Krung), in Bang Rak. All Krungthep Wing rooms face the river; in the Shangri-La Wing, choose a River View or Balcony room for a full river outlook.
The hotel says it has direct access to the BTS Skytrain and to the public ferry terminal. It does not name the station on its pages, so ask the concierge for the walking route when you arrive.
Check-in is from 3 p.m. and check-out is by noon.
Breakfast is THB 1,300 nett per adult. Dinner is THB 1,900 nett from Sunday to Thursday, and the Friday and Saturday surf-and-turf dinner is THB 2,400 nett. Children aged 6 to 12 pay half price.
Thursday to Sunday, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., leaving from the hotel's NEXT2 pier. Dress is smart casual.
Both pools are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the fitness center and tennis courts from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Hotel guests get one free hour of tennis a day between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.; evening court time is THB 300 an hour.
About 40 minutes by road from both Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang, according to the hotel. Book the hotel limousine at least one day ahead with your flight details, or take the Airport Rail Link and change to the BTS.
