Jasmine Suites - Review

[BrownFox77]

This past trip tried out Jasmine for the 1st time, stayed for over a month. Overall have to say it was Excellent!

 

I stayed in a 1 bdrm suite which on a monthly rate is comparable in cost to a Royal Suite at the GP, only I think Jasmine is far better. Every girl I brought up without fail said it was a 'beautiful room', has hardwood floors, stylish rug under the modern looking sofa, marble in the bath and carpeting in the bedroom. Has a separate kitchen, small but fully loaded - even had 2 large, VERY sharp knives that I made sure NONE of the girls saw (no need to be feeding the ducks...). ALL the windows are double glazed and the place was absolutely silent - even when there was LOUD thunder outside, I could barely hear it in my suite. They also have black out curtains so was able to sleep in late in darkness. Had 2 flat screen TVs with a nice Stereo CD/VCD player also -it didn't play DVDs so I bought a nifty portable DVD player at Pantip for 3K baht that I could plug into any TV. Had a HUGE bath tub and the hand held shower could be placed in a neat adjustable holder - to adjust to your height. Plenty of closet and drawer space, more than I could use. Includes a large size electronic safe. They even include a full size umbrella for your use as well as 2 different sized Robes - I loved the Robes so much I bought one for 900 Baht. I had brought my laptop and they do offer broad band high speed internet - I think I paid 2K baht for a monthly rate, was pretty good, there were about 4 days where it would be slow or intermittent but this seemed to be an ISP / DNS server problem vice the hotel's. They have a nice free gym with all new quality equipment - only negative was they only had 2 treadmills and when they get busy I can see that won't be enough. The Lobby is actually on the 10th floor and that is where the stylish pool is. There's also an outside Jacuzzi which when your soaking in it, you can look over the edge and see who's going into Lolita's... The pool lounge chairs are pretty neat and include small built-in little tables that slide out from under the chair (you can easily miss it if you didn't know it was there). Being a sun worshipper the only negative on the pool was that it's between the 2 towers and depending the time of year and day, you only get direct sunlight at certain times. The maids kept the place SPOTLESS and did a thorough job each day they came thru. One thing I noticed when I 1st checked in was there were NO "Do Not Disturb" signs! Well I made an "accidental discovery" after being there for many days. One day the maids called to ask permission to clean my room - very late in the day. They said I had turned on the "Do Not Disturb" LIGHT outside the door! I had no idea how I did that and after playing with all the switches and buttons in the place I found that in the bedroom on the right as you face the wall are 4 buttons / rocker switches - turns out the TOP RIGHT rocker switch is the DO NOT DISTURB button! There's no identification and no instructions on this ANYWHERE so this post is most likely the only place you will learn this. I asked for a high floor and had a beautiful view of the city - nearby was some apparent wealthy Thai homes with much land, was interesting to see it from above - very pretty green oasis', whereas when on the street level in those winding little Soi's all you would see is tall fenced walls as you went by. The location was PERFECT, I just literally WALKED across the street to Soi Cowboy. To get a cab, I just stood in front of the hotel on Soi 23 for only a few moments before a cab came by - no matter what time of day, and then went to Patpong, Nana, Rachada, etc - NO taxi mafia here. There are very guest friendly and don't check the girls IDs - the guards only smile and say hello no matter how many girls I brought back each night. Because there was no ID check, I stayed away from all freelancers while there. The staff was excellent, very friendly, professional, and competent! Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE somehow all knew my name and all would say good afternoon Kuhn Brownfox! The elevators were new and fast - you need your key card to go up and each card is coded specifically to your floor. The elevators also "talk", with a nice female voice. I always got a little excited each time I heard the elevator's female voice say "Going Down".

 

Overall a great place that I would highly recommend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BrownFox77]

I knew I'd forget something! They finally have their Web site up and I forgot to post the URL in the above review, so am adding it here: Jasmine Suites

[WarHammer]

Great review BrownFox77 !!

 

I have been waiting for it all weekend.

 

I have booked at Jasmine for my next trip and am looking forward to my stay. I booked the 58sqm 1 bedroom suite which I think is comparable to the Royal Suite at the GP. Is this the same room you got? Do you recommend a higher floor for any reason other than the view?

 

Couple more questions if you don't mind. Is the in-room safe of the key code variety like ones at the Grand President, or do you need to have some sort of actual key to open it?

 

"The Lobby is actually on the 10th floor and that is where the stylish pool is."

 

Interesting. Does that mean there is no "walk of shame" past all the front desk staff? I like to be on good terms with the front desk girls as I find it always helps get better service, but by doing so I sometimes feel a bit odd bringing BG after BG by them night after night. I don't care what the security gaurds think so long as they don't hassle my guests.

 

How about the restaurant in the building? Is it any good? Would be nice to know if the room service food is tolerable.

 

Any problem with the Jasmine on check out? I have negotiated a deal with them that includes internet and a special rate - I don't wanna be hassled for service and credit card charges like the Grand President has done lately. Infact, I booked at the Jasmine precisely because the GP pissed me off last time with that nonsense even though I had everything in writing.

 

Thanks for the report and any feedback your willing to provide.

[khwaimaisabai]

Says BrownFox77:

---

I asked for a high floor and had a beautiful view of the city - nearby was some apparent wealthy Thai homes with much land, was interesting to see it from above - very pretty green oasis', whereas when on the street level in those winding little Soi's all you would see is tall fenced walls as you went by.

---

Hi brownfox,

Interesting report - I get the same view from a different angle from my apartment balcony. I have watched Jasmine being built over the last couple of years so it's good to know that it's a quality place.

Khwai

 

[BrownFox77]

Warhammer,

 

Very glad to liked my report, it was only less than a week that I was there, it really felt like home and sure do miss it.

 

Yes the 58 SQM is the same one I got, I read a report somewhere from someone who said they liked the smaller 1 bdrm's better than the larger ones. I suggested a higher floor only for the view, however even at the lower floors (actually, even at the lobby pool) there's still a view. The electronic safe is similar to the one the GP had and yes you just enter a chosen code to lock/open it.

 

There is a small 2 desk 'office' at the ground floor entrance which is manned during the daytime but empty at night, so when you bring the babes back the only one who see's you (and them) is the guards who man the gated entrance at the street - no walk of shame.

 

The room service food was OK, never tried their in-house restaurant, I often just dialed "1112" or "1150" to get delivery within 30 minutes. There's a neat little Thai restaurant on the same side of Soi 23 that Jasmine's on only a few yards towards Soi Cowboy. One of my regulars from NEP actually took me there but don't recall the name.

 

Also, there's a 7-11 right across the street and a magazine/newspaper shop right at the foot of Jasmine (on the right).

 

At Jasmine they do want you to pay in advance, actually when I arrived that 1st night they asked me to pay 61,000 baht right then (1st month) - and I hadn't even seen the room yet. I was a bit nervous about it but really wanted to get me a beer to celebrate I FINALLY arrived after 20+ hours of traveling with only 2 hours sleep the night before so paid with a credit card (no fees added) and thankfully was DELIGHTED with the suite once I got upstairs. I didn't even bother to unpack, just took a shower, shaved, grabbed some clean clothes out of my luggage and RAN across the street to Cowboy!

 

During my stay if I incurred some charges, e.g. room service, laundry, etc once a week they'd slip a bill under the door and if the amount was "large" (several thousand baht) then they would slip another polite note the following day explaining their "pay in advance policy" as a reminder and then I'd just go down to the lobby and pay what I incurred. When my 'weekly' bills were small, they'd only slip the amount that it was and didn't ask for any payment, in fact, I paid for the last 2 weeks all at once when I checked out.

 

The laundry service comes in 3 levels: 1, 2, or 3 day service with the 1 day costing the most. I learned to have only a few items sent on 1-day sevice, then all else on 3-days and that made it quite reasonable.

 

I too got fed up with GP. Really felt like you just got knickel and Dimed to death. It wasn't so much the dollar amount but rather the principle of the thing. They also screwed me over on the credit card fee's despite having a hard-copy email saying I wouldn't be charged, etc - this despite having been a long time loyal customer, so much so that the Taxi Mafia guys would all hug me like I was a long lost relative when they saw me come back each trip.

 

Oh, one last nice thing about Jasmine, in the bedroom they have 2 adjustable lighting knobs such that you can adjust the light so its the perfect romantic setting. I really had my routine down pat: I always pre-set the bedroom lighting just right, set both TVs to MTV (if on movies the girls might get "stuck" watching a movie), I had the bedroom door closed halfway - after I shower I sneak out the back bathroom door and slip my clothes (and wallet) in one of the cabinets hidden from the girls' view by the half-closed door, made sure I had ice cubes ready and my stock of Baccardi Breezers was refreshed (they sure seem to like them) - only had 2 girls try my Jack Daniels or Thai Wiskey during my stay.

 

 

[thai3]

 

 

Did you find the aircon noisy? I did in the studio, also the bath was small and the shower not very good-shot water all over the floor no matter how positioned. Never got one good nights sleep there (22nd floor) i think due to the aircon. Did you notice the sign by the swinmming pool saying no lepers to use it? I did not like the cheap laminate 'wooden floors' Best thing was sitting on the toilet with a view all over bangkok, and as you say the staff were very nice. I would not stay again as too expensive for me-peter

[rovineye]

Great info! I have always wanted to stay in that area. Thank you.

 

[color:"red"] There's also an outside Jacuzzi which when your soaking in it, you can look over the edge and see who's going into Lolita's... [/color]

Did I wave?

[WarHammer]

BrownFox77 -

 

This is some great information. Thanks for posting it.

 

I'm not crazy about this pre-pay stuff. When I decided to give up on the GP, I found a few alternatives but wrote them off when I discovered I'd have to prepay as soon as I arrived. It's not that I mind paying up front so much if I am familiar with a place, but if it is a new property I'd like to take a few days to determine if I like it first.

 

Based on your good review, and the quick and informative responses I've gotten from Aphichate Iengphasuk at Jasmine for all of my questions, I will probably go ahead keep the booking - prepay and all.

 

I think I read on another forum that you also stayed at the Sandy Spring in Pattaya. As coincidence would have it, I was looking to try this place as well - so your review of that property was also helpful.

 

As far as the GP goes - I still like the place. I love the location and have generally liked the staff. My bitch with them is mostly the nickel and dime stuff of which you speak - such as trying to tack on credit card surcharges (which I refused to pay). Also on my most recent stays I've always encountered annoying little problems with my room that they never fully address - water leaks, some big cockroaches crawling about, CD player skips, "high-speed" internet doesn't work, etc, etc.

 

So it is time for me to find greener pastures. Hopefully the Jasmine fits the bill. Appreciate your review.

[BrownFox77]

thai3,

 

Thanks for your response as now I'll know not to book a Studio there - its almost as though we stayed in different hotels. The aircon, both in the living room and the bedroom was very quiet when on. The bath in my 1 bdrm was so large many of the girls laughed that it was larger than their whole apt, and I had the opposite experience with the shower.

Turns out you were just upstairs as I was on the 21st floor. I didn't see the sign about the Lepers (!), but then I didn't really look (I only checked the sign at the gym stating its hours).

 

[BrownFox77]

WarHammer,

 

Glad to help with the review. I think you'll like Sandy Spring too although its nowhere near as nice as Jasmine, but for Pattaya, I guess its OK. However, about that advance payment, well, Sandy Spring has you pay in advance too! But, if you read my report you'll see they even gave me a cash refund when I checked out early so like Jasmine, I would trust them with an advance payment.

I don't really like these "pay in advance" policies either, for LOS I'm more used to places like Pattaya Centre and Nana when I 1st stayed at each, they didn't even bother to run a credit card slip through (they do now at Pattaya Centre though). SunBeam Hotel (on Soi 8, Pattaya) was another one that wanted payment up front. I didn't like SunBeam - the aircon wasn't cold enough (I went and bought a Fan), and they charged a joiner fee if you brought more than 1 girl back.