Low prices, doting service and a glut of hotels make Bangkok one of the world’s best places for accommodation. Venerable and old (if a touch haughty and dated), The Oriental (48 Oriental Avenue, +6626599000, $300-$440) is still worth an afternoon tea or a tipple at its Bamboo Bar. But it has been out-done in every way by its rival across the water: The Peninsula (333 Thanon Charoen Nakorn, +6628612888, $260-$400), a mere 5 years old, has taken Old World service and given it an easy-going Thai makeover with fetching views of the city, a tiered 60-metre pool and the best riverside seating area of any hostelry.

Those seeking style can do no better than The Sukhothai (13/3 Thanon Sathorn Tai, +6622870222, $280-$310) where Ed Tuttle’s design combines Siam past and New Asia present in a way that is understated, sensuous and timelessly chic; amazingly, the management and service are such that it is as popular with CEOs as with the jet-set.

Boutique has come to Bangkok in the form of minimalist Triple-Two Silom (222 Thanon Silom, +6626272222, B4,900-B5,2000) and, most prominently, a contemporary Asian incarnation of London’s ground-breaking Metropolitan (27 Thanon Sathorn Tai, +6626253333, $240-$300) which houses the members-only Met Bar, Shambala Spa and a yoga mat in each room. It’s already the de facto playground for the fashionable youth set ranging from Hong Kong to Paris.

Sukhumvit (especially Sois 3-11) is peppered with mid-range options, among which is the Atlanta (78 Sukhumvit Soi 2, +6622521650/+6622526069, B350-B670), a 1950s time-capsule of unique charm and vegetarian delights. Near the nightlife, Tarntawan Place Hotel (119/5-10 Thanon Suriwong, +6622382620, B2,150) is very gay-friendly. Even Banglamphu’s notoriously stingy backpackers are going upmarket, with colonial-style Buddy Lodge (265 Thanon Khao San, +6626294477, B1,500-B2,500) emerging from a morass of partitioned flophouses and occasional gems like the homely wooden Barn Thai Guesthouse (27 Trok Mayom, Thanon Chakkraphong, +6622819041, B200). Pick of the digs downtown is the timbered Suk 11 Guesthouse (1/33 Sukhumvit Soi 11, +6622535927/8 B450-B600, www.suk11.com).

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