By safe I mean safe enough to leave a $5000 Alienware laptop and luggage in the room. Please suggest.

..safe enough to leave a $5000 Alienware laptop..

wow . . . that's some laptop! (was considering one for myself a few months ago)

anyway, here's my 50 cents worth from long past experience of that area (been ages since i stayed in that vicinity though)

cheap to medium - Honey Hotel.

medium to high - Tai Pan Hotel.

both are 'safe' i found.

Taipan is medium to high, that's a scarey thought!

I might go with The Rembrandt (5 star) on Soi 22, just across the road from Asok really.

Emporium Suites at the Emporium would be another, also 5 star.

Well, assuming you want a hotel near Soi Cowboy because you'll be bringing something back from Soi Cowboy at night, there is absolutely no hotel that's safe from a casual acquaintance who wants to get her hands on your assets. I'd say it's foolish to bring a $5,000 laptop to Bangkok anyway. Even in a 5-star hotel, no in-room safe is safe. The employees have keys to the safe (in case you forget your password), and there are also known ways to open an in-room safe without keys or a password. Not only that, I think those Alienware laptops are pretty large and probably won't fit inside an in-room safe. Even in good hotels in Bangkok, most safes are on the small side. If you can imagine a 15-inch Macbook Pro (which is quite thin), it barely fits inside the average in-room safe by tilting it at an angle. Anything bigger than that won't go inside the typical safe.

So my recommendation is... Sell your laptop and come to Bangkok with an extra $5,000. That extra $5,000 will give you a few more days of fun at Soi Cowboy.

Taipan is medium to high, that's a scarey thought!

it was 10yrs ago when i first stayed there . . .

regardless . . . still a very 'safe' (not cheap) bet today, and excellent value for the non-millionaire that wants easy Cowboy access on his doorstep.

So my recommendation is... Sell your laptop and come to Bangkok with an extra $5,000. That extra $5,000 will give you a few more days of fun at Soi Cowboy.

The problem is, it was 5000 when I bought it 2 years ago. Now it may be worth 3500-4000 new and I'd be lucky to get $1200 if I sell it on ebay or anywhere else as used.

Besides, I really do use it for running virtual machines etc.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I won't bring anyone back from Soi Cowboy. I have business the next day and hopefully a flight to catch to Phuket so I'll just have a few beers and maybe shoot pool with the girls, and repeat at Patpong and Nana before finishing at a soapie and coming back to the hotel. Been a while since I went to a real strip club (my country doesn't have any lol).

Westin Grande Sukhumvit

As been mentioned previosuly, Tai Pan - it was ok 10 -14 years ago, used to stay there when travelling into Bangkok, but really it's got pretty tired. Honey Hotel, cheap.

I like Furama Xclusive as the rooms are a nice size and it is relatively new. Prices around 2k for a standard room on Agoda, 4k for a suite.

However the issue is, who are you going to be having back in your room? If you're using the services of friends from SC, then that's more of a risk.

TW and I stay regularly at the Taipan and have done for some 13 years, for it's central location. I don't even bother to lock up my notebook, never had a problem.

Honey Hotel on Soi 19. Easy walk to Soi Cowboy and very safe.

Citadines soi 23

If you are prepared to pay for it (฿5,000, but 3 nights for 2 offers) then The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit - opposite Robinsons at BTS Asoke and 4 minutes walk from SC. I used to stay there on business and it's frequented by business conference people and has good front door security. I'm sure they would put your kit safely away for you if you did not trust the in-room safes.

Try to get two key cards (tell them your wife is coming along later; might not work as they probably think you expect to have an ahem {clears throat} staying and they do have an eye to protecting guests against themselves, but give it a try). You can then leave the TV on and the do not disturb card on the door when you go out.

At the more affordable level (1,100 baht) Darjelling Boutique Hotel (3mins walk), which I used post retirement before buying a condo, seems pretty safe to me, but the room safes are maybe too small for a large laptop + accessories so ask first if they have an office safe. The place is small enough to have good front door guest recognition.

Both would nonetheless be 'guest-friendly' btw

Sofitel by Soi 15 for me every time.

Jasmine City is the nicest that I know of in that area. right on the corner of Suk. 23

http://www.jasminecity.com/index.html

Taipan. I've stayed there dozens of times going back about 8 years. Never had a theft problem and it has good staff. You should be able to get a room w/breakfast and free WiFi for about 1500-2000 baht/night.

Thanks all. I booked Taipan.

Does anyone know if a Kensington lock is available at the airport or nearby? I would hate to lose my laptop on the very first day.

if you can afford a $5000 laptop you can afford a hotel with a decent safe. you should also be able to afford travel insurance to replace it if a girl from cowboy steals it

Jasmine City is the nicest that I know of in that area. right on the corner of Suk. 23

http://www.jasminecity.com/index.html

I agree.

Stayed there about a year ago. Had a 2 bedroom suite, nice balcony, huge spacious rooms.

Could throw a stone into Soi Cowboy.

I see you've already booked but for others who might find this thread, stayed recently at The Continent. Newish hotel (a year or two old) on Sukhumvit between Soi 21 & 23. Cowboy just around the corner in either direction.

Got a great deal on their website and loved the hotel, boutique 4 - 5 star place.

I think the closest hotel to Soi Cowboy entrance from Asoke is the Millenium. I really good and also expensive hotel where you certainly can leave your laptop in the room. It's just 200 meters into Asoke from Soi Cowboy.

How about the Grand Centre Point Hotel in Terminal 21? Only across the road. Plus, I am sure most hotels would be willing to lock your pc in their safe for you.

Ask for a receipt as proof.

Just saw that you have already booked.

If you are prepared to pay for it (฿5,000, but 3 nights for 2 offers) then The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit - opposite Robinsons at BTS Asoke and 4 minutes walk from SC. I used to stay there on business and it's frequented by business conference people and has good front door security. I'm sure they would put your kit safely away for you if you did not trust the in-room safes.

Try to get two key cards (tell them your wife is coming along later; might not work as they probably think you expect to have an ahem {clears throat} staying and they do have an eye to protecting guests against themselves, but give it a try). You can then leave the TV on and the do not disturb card on the door when you go out.

At the more affordable level (1,100 baht) Darjelling Boutique Hotel (3mins walk), which I used post retirement before buying a condo, seems pretty safe to me, but the room safes are maybe too small for a large laptop + accessories so ask first if they have an office safe. The place is small enough to have good front door guest recognition.

Both would nonetheless be 'guest-friendly' btw

I buy cigars at Sukhumvit rande Millennium.....very secure, they very politely escort me to the outdoor patio, which is a totally relaxing place in a frantically busy area. . Out of my budget, but they have a cigar store, and cigar bar......Has a good vibe.

Bringing girls in can change things a lot.....Nothing like good ole Ruamchitt Travelodge...great rooftop pool, total lady friendly...I think they keep ID until you give the go ahead.

What a hassle having baggage like that.

I stayed at Taipan.

It's a stone's throw away from Soi Cowboy.

Safe hotel and friendly staff. Nothing happened to my laptop. Popular with European guests, and this is reflected in their food menu. Very good Spaghetti Bolognese (though you may want to order 2 servings if you're hungry).

But for the price it could be cleaner. The closet was dusty and everything was decidedly mid range.

They charge 800 Baht for a limo to the airport. I paid 400 on the way from the airport including surcharge but I took the limo nevertheless, as I didn't want to walk in the heat with hangover and black eye.

As for Soi Cowboy that's a different story. I had a fantastic time at The Dollhouse and Bacarra but got into a brawl further down the road. Still have a black eye. Oh well.

I also went to Annie's massage (Raja Hotel) which seems to be well recommended online but I found it to be substandard for the price. Very rushed service. For a little more money, could go to Utopia.

I stayed at Taipan.

It's a stone's throw away from Soi Cowboy.

Safe hotel and friendly staff. Nothing happened to my laptop. Popular with European guests, and this is reflected in their food menu. Very good Spaghetti Bolognese (though you may want to order 2 servings if you're hungry).

But for the price it could be cleaner. The closet was dusty and everything was decidedly mid range.

They charge 800 Baht for a limo to the airport. I paid 400 on the way from the airport including surcharge but I took the limo nevertheless, as I didn't want to walk in the heat with hangover and black eye.

As for Soi Cowboy that's a different story. I had a fantastic time at The Dollhouse and Bacarra but got into a brawl further down the road. Still have a black eye. Oh well.

I also went to Annie's massage (Raja Hotel) which seems to be well recommended online but I found it to be substandard for the price. Very rushed service. For a little more money, could go to Utopia.

If you had walked outside the hotel and got a taxi and said not to take the tollway it would have cost you 190 Baht to get to Suvarnbhumi.....done it from there plenty of times...in fact one of the bonuses of Soi 23.....usually takes half an hour.

I suggest not only finding a good secure hotel but also consider the security of your data.

You may need to encyrpt your harddisk data and password enabled for boot up. Don't forget to do the regular backup just in case the notebook has been captured by UFO.

Honey Hotel on Soi 19. Easy walk to Soi Cowboy and very safe.

Yes, but no free wi-fi.