Written by Murray Ashton on Mar 25, 2013. Posted in General Interest

Location Advisor: The Marriott Mayfair Hotel in Bangkok

A highly experienced line producer from a respected production service company recently said to me: “You know when the shoot is going well when the only complaint from the visiting foreign producer is some minor issue about the hotel, catering or craft services!”

It is not the first time I have heard this. Production service companies and line producers the world over know that to keep a foreign crew and cast happy you need to keep their tummies full with outstanding on-location catering and provide them with the best available accommodation within budget.

Here at The Location Guide we are always being asked for suggestions on good-value film-friendly hotels, serviced apartments and other types of accommodation for productions all over the world. We are in the early stages of compiling a global list of film-friendly hotels and recommendations are welcome from our readers.

Here at The Location Guide we are always being asked for suggestions on good-value film-friendly hotels, serviced apartments and other types of accommodation for productions all over the world.

On a recent visit to Thailand Goong Pongphan Jormsak, the highly efficient Living Films production co-ordinator very kindly booked me a room at the Marriott Mayfair Executive Apartments in Bangkok. The hotel has 162 first class serviced apartments in central Bangkok located just a couple of hundred metres from Lumpini Park. Last time I stayed there I had just checked in when I bumped into Robert Herman, Executive Producer of London’s Stink Films, in the lift, who was shooting a lottery commercial for the UK market. This time another crew were staying at the Marriott Mayfair although they were up and out at the crack of dawn; too early for me to get to know who they were and what they were filming. The Marriott Mayfair has hosted numerous film productions over the years and has clearly earned its reputation for being a film-friendly hotel.

In my view, the Marriott Mayfair represents excellent value, particularly if you are working with a local production service company with a pre-negotiated corporate discount. The rooms, suites or apartments with kitchen are impeccably clean, tastefully designed and well furnished with good WiFi throughout. Breakfast is a top-class international buffet and the hotel staff are all delightful, going out of their way to help you with anything.

The Marriott Mayfair Bangkok fast facts:

• One-bedroom suite (54/64/84 square metres): 82 Rooms
• Two-bedroom suite (94/100 square metres): 60 Rooms
• Three-bedroom suite (131 square metres): 20 Rooms

• A breakfast-only restaurant, but lots of restaurants nearby and supermarket next door;
• 24-hour room service menu;
• A good-length rooftop pool in the shade;
• Air-conditioned gym;
• A spa for that pre- or post-shoot deep tissue massage;
• Fully-equipped business centre;
• Meeting room availability;
• Complementary on-site parking;
• Good security;
• 21 miles from Suvarnabhumi Bangkok Airport (BKK)

Mayfair, Bangkok – Marriott Executive Apartments
60 Soi Langsuan, Lumpini, Pathumwan • Bangkok, 10330 Thailand

Like the producer for whom the shoot is going perfectly according to plan, but nevertheless has the little complaint about the hotel or catering, my only tiny issue with the Marriott Mayfair is that there is too much chlorine in the pool. If you know a hotel anywhere that you consider film-friendly and that we should add to The Location Guide’s growing list of film-friendly hotels of the world, please contact me here