Bangkok -- Sukhumvit boutique hotel -- MAC BOUTIQUE SUITES

Location, location, location. No, that's not a typo ... it's the old real estate mantra underlining the importance of position. And Mac Boutique Suites is slap-bang in the middle of so much that you want to be in the middle of.

Try a two minute walk to Nana BTS station. Which itself implies all the nocturnal delights of renowned Soi Nana (soi 4). But in fact, the hotel fronts onto Soi 7 which itself resembles a tropical Oktoberfest it has so many cavernous 'biergartens'. So you won't die of thirst here. Then walk out the back entrance to Soi 11, and you have Indian restaurants, 24-hour cafes, an Aussie pub/cafe, Bed Supper Club, Q Bar. The joint is jumping. You'll find yourself asking for extra hours in the day.

Surprising then that this 62-suite hotel -- which feels deceptively large -- seems so quiet. Oh, apart from the wallpaper in the corridors ... that, dear readers, is so loud you can actually measure it in decibels.

I'm not sure I can describe it in words, and my camera doesn't have a setting that will enable it to capture the verdant vividry of that particular shade of lime green. Suffice to say that epileptic sufferers should exercise extreme caution. But that's just the designer's way of softening you up for what's to follow in the room ... I thought an animal smuggler had forgotten to take their herd of zebras home with them. Turns out to be the living room sofa and chairs in animal print velvet. Benghal tiger skin print, according to the hotel's website. I never realised benghal tigers had flecks of gold thread in them.

The obvious segue here is that the rooms are large enough to swing any member of the cat family in. (Just as there are mantras in real estate, there are mantras in travel writing, and that is to always go for the obvious segue.) I am treated to a royal suite -- they have a larger presidential suite which, at 91 square metres, is big enough to swing several giraffes in, while a herd of bison re-enact the stampeding across the plains). Royal suites have a huge living room with TV/DVD and a guest bathroom. Lots of dark wood and gold fittings. The bedroom itself is nothing fancy -- although two folded towel elephants (see photo) is impressive -- but has everything you'd need and expect including another TV/DVD player and a writing desk, and the bathroom is quite tight but does include a bath tub as the name implies.

Mac also has junior suites and smart suites. Think of them in terms of MacDonalds: junior burger and chicken McNuggets respectively.

On the subject of food, the hotel has just opened its very own Indian Restaurant with 100% halal food. (There are quite a lot of Arab customers given the Kuwaiti origins of the owner, who is called Mac.) So you can dial 1601 and get room service of MacFishTikkas, MacRoganJosh, MacMasala, etc. But no fries with that.

In the room, you'll also enjoy free wi-fi internet. But why stay in the room when there's so much of Bangkok on your doorstep to enjoy. Yeah, good point ... why am I still in the room? I'm off to Nana Plaza, er, I mean stroll the market stalls along Sukhumvit Road. Jing jing!