📅 2022-07-22 | ⏱️ 23:17 | 👁️ 38.7K views | 👍 4K likes | 💬 988 comments
Pea tours three affordable luxury hotels across Thailand — in Bangkok, Pattaya, and Chiang Mai — showing rooms, amenities, and price points in detail. She also reflects on how uniformly excellent Thai hospitality staff treated her at every property she visited, even when they didn't know she was filming for YouTube.
Hotel 1: Grand Centre Point at Terminal 21, Bangkok — $81/night
- Lobby and common areas are open, spacious, and immaculately clean
- Six elevators, all working, so no waiting
- Unexpected terraces and sky balconies on multiple levels with views of Bangkok skyscrapers — "perfect place for your morning coffee"
- Sitting areas with high-quality furnishings in almost every corner
- Outdoor space includes a perfectly manicured lawn with immaculate landscaping, large enough to play soccer
- Walkways with unusual architecture leading to terraces around an infinity pond with lounge chairs — Pea jokes "even Mr. Miyagi would be happy here"
- Bubbling spa right against the pond in a quiet, tranquil setting
- Magnificent pool with a view of the skyline, lounge chairs built into the water, and "a skyscraper sticking out of the deep end"
- Full fitness facility: not just a gym but includes a massage area, kids' play zone, and a circular living room in the middle
- Gym floor fully carpeted with every piece of equipment you'd want
- Locker rooms are spotless with individual shower rooms leading to a jacuzzi
- Extravagant breakfast buffet: cereals, eggs, French toast, pancakes, salad bar, breads, jams, muffins, pastries, fried food, plus a health section with yogurt and fresh fruit
- Room tour (Deluxe Premium):
- Mini kitchen with cooktop, deep sink, cups, cutlery, and plates — you can buy and cook your own food
- Huge microwave for reheating frozen goods
- Full-size washer and dryer in-room — Pea says she's never seen this in most hotels
- Full-size fridge with chiller and freezer
- Spacious bathroom with big deep sink, wide mirrors, bathtub, separate shower with good water pressure
- Automated toilet with sensors, remote panel, heated seat, bidet (with enema, feminine wash, and dryer functions), and auto-flush — Pea: "It's like a car wash for your tushy... the only thing missing is waxing your bum"
- Phone in the bathroom "for your pooping emergencies"
- At least 55-inch TV, but Pea says you won't need it because of the magnificent Bangkok skyline view
- King-sized bed with very soft pillows
- Safe, real cupboards, extra closet space for bags and shoes
- Automatic curtains with a button, plus blackout curtains — Pea's first time seeing automated curtains
- Located in Bangkok city center, close to BTS station and subway, connected to a shopping mall
- Available on Agoda and Booking.com
Hotel 2: Hotel Barracuda, Pattaya — $70/night
- Quirkier, more eclectic design than the Bangkok hotel — curved walls and glass everywhere
- Long pool behind the lobby with unique shaded seating areas under palm trees — feels family-friendly
- Pool-adjacent bar and seafood restaurant steps from the water
- Two-level gym that's bigger than it looks, with free weights (which give Pea a "nagging reminder" she needs to get back to working out)
- Glass wall between pool/gym area and kids' play zone so parents can watch their children
- Room tour (King Bed Deluxe):
- Oddly shaped everything — Pea says "it seems like Dr. Seuss designed the place"
- Separate bathroom and shower; shower has a chair "if you're still hungover from last night's party"
- Wide desk area with outlets
- King-sized bed that Pea bounces on and tests — mattress is comfortable, pillows are very soft; she jokes about falling asleep mid-tour
- Unusual chair with a TV tray desk — Pea jokes she feels "like a patient in the hospital"
- Balcony with fresh air, "not much of a view but plenty good enough"
- 40-inch TV, extra outlets
- One block from the beach, easy access, close to Pattaya's famous Walking Street
Hotel 3: Shangri-La, Chiang Mai — $110/night (Pea's favorite, "saved the best for last")
- "Pure class from the moment you arrive" — staff immediately assist with everything
- Lobby features restaurants, interesting displays, unique furniture, a piano, and an elephant display (Pea jokes: "Modi, is that you?")
- Grand staircase winding to the lower level — reminds Pea of the Titanic staircase with carved woodwork and cushy carpet
- Lower level is a maze of restaurants, services, shops, and even a men's apparel store
- Pool is the largest of the three hotels — "big enough to host an Olympic event" with a two-story water slide
- Dedicated kids' area next to a spa
- Other outdoor activities: ping pong, giant chess set, more kids' play areas
- Gym has every possible piece of equipment — rivals paid gyms
- Room tour (Deluxe Room):
- Massive wardrobe upon entry with safe, huge hanging space for clothes/bags/shoes
- Mini bar with coffee and tea setup, mini fridge, cups and glasses
- Luggage space with enormous extra drawers — "you'll never run out of space"
- 40-inch TV, three additional drawers, executive desk with swivel chair
- King-sized bed wide enough for "at least three people" or "a slumber party" — pillows are "like sleeping in clouds"
- Pea's favorite spot: a plum-colored chair area with classic furnishings — "it exudes luxury"
- Spacious bathroom with two large mirrors, separate shower, deep sink
- Bathtub with a viewing window between bathroom and bedroom — Pea: "You can see your wife or your husband taking a bath, so you don't need a telly"
- Strategically located near activities with the Chiang Mai night bazaar within walking distance
Overarching observation about Thai hospitality
Across every hotel Pea visited (including ones that didn't make the video), she never once had a negative experience with staff
Everyone was helpful, professional, and smiling — they returned phone calls, offered tours, didn't create red tape, and "didn't look down on me like I'm just a silly YouTube girl"
Most properties didn't even know Pea was a YouTuber — she didn't mention it unless she decided to film, so the excellent treatment wasn't motivated by free advertising
Pea closes with: "Way to go, Thailand"
Pea previews her next video: a full Philippines vs. Thailand comparison covering dating dynamics, cost of living, safety, why expats choose each country, and information she gathered when the camera was off — says "this trip was more work than vacation"