The chic sleep: The Peninsula Bangkok

At dawn, the skyscraper-etched skyline, backlit by the rising sun, is already casting shadows on the carpet of my magnificent river-facing bedroom. The view is enough to make one feel like royalty, but in actuality, all of the The Peninsula Bangkok’s 300-plus rooms and suites face the scenic Chao Phraya waterway. It’s yet another great string to the bow of this brilliantly run hotel, with its relaxing spa, five restaurants, tennis court and triple-tiered pool. Everything here runs like clockwork: filtered fine mist cools diners down on the river terraces at breakfast; laundry is returned within hours in pristine tissue-lined boxes; fruit is offered beside iced towels by the pool. Best of all, the waiting staff have been through The Peninsula school of charm and know, like the in-house masseurs from the Wat Po Thai massage school, how to impart a rare sense of contented serenity.

Outside of these peaceful walls, its central location means that it has its finger on the pulse of city life, with access to the variety of cultural events and shopping opportunities that make Bangkok so globally appealing. Even at dawn, during The Peninsula’s weekly complimentary yoga classes, you realize that this is a city that genuinely never sleeps. It is hard not to be distracted by the theater of the ever-changing and always teeming river, or by the smell of simmering noodles wafting over from the breakfast lawn, which has an incredible offering of different food stations catering from Asian and Western tastes to gluten-free and juice-only diets. It’s yet more proof that this is a hotel that truly has it all.

After your sunrise yoga session, enjoy a stroll around the tree-filled Princess Mother Memorial Park and the nearby Gong Wu shrine.

Take a short stroll to the Jam Factory, a contemporary art complex with cafés and boutiques. The Candide bookstore is a particular highlight.