Loy La Long Hotel in Bangkok – a former teak rice warehouse located within the grounds of the active Wat Pathum Khongkha temple, accessible only on foot through the temple courtyard.

To reach this hotel, you need to pass through the gates of a functioning Buddhist temple, descend to the water, and take a boat—no car, no taxi, and no familiar hotel entrance from the street. Loy La Long Hotel occupies a renovated teak rice warehouse on the grounds of Wat Pathum Khongkha in the Talat Noi district, accessible only through the temple courtyard and the Chao Phraya River.

Briefly. Loy La Long occupies a teak building that was formerly a rice warehouse over a century old, built into the grounds of Wat Pathum Khongkha temple on the Chao Phraya River in the Talat Noi district. You can only reach the hotel on foot through the temple courtyard—there’s no vehicle access or familiar parking at the entrance. The building was featured in the Thai film “Bangkok Traffic Love Story” (2009), one of the highest-grossing Thai films of its time. Guests describe the format more as a guesthouse than a hotel—with a very homey atmosphere and river views directly from the window.

A Rice Warehouse Transformed into a Hotel

The building where Loy La Long operates today was built over a century ago for practical purposes—as a teak warehouse for storing rice on the Chao Phraya River, one of the main trading arteries of old Bangkok. The Talat Noi district, where the warehouse is located, has historically been a commercial area at the intersection of Chinese and Thai merchant communities, and the river itself served as the primary transportation route for goods long before modern roads existed.

Renovation transformed the utilitarian warehouse building into a boutique hotel, preserving the teak structure and exposed beams—a rare case where the hotel doesn’t superficially imitate antiquity but literally stands within the original walls of a building that was never conceived as a place to stay overnight.

A Hotel Inside a Functioning Temple

The main architectural and logistical feature of Loy La Long is its location within the grounds of Wat Pathum Khongkha, a functioning Buddhist temple. To reach the hotel, guests have to walk through the temple courtyard – it’s impossible to drive directly up to the building by car or taxi, and there’s no typical hotel sign from the street either; you really have to search for the entrance among the temple buildings. For some guests this is part of the charm—the feeling that you need to “find” the hotel rather than simply check in—while for others it’s a practical inconvenience when arriving with luggage.

The Backdrop of a Thai Film Hit

In 2009, Loy La Long appeared in the film “Bangkok Traffic Love Story”—a romantic comedy that became one of Thailand’s highest-grossing films of its year and gained cult status among local audiences. For a hotel located away from tourist routes, this appearance in a popular national film has become a noticeable source of recognition among Thais themselves, not just foreign travelers seeking an unusual type of accommodation.

Life on the River, Not in the City

The location directly on the Chao Phraya defines the entire stay: from the windows you can see boats and ferries passing by, with bustling Chinatown Bangkok nearby, and sunsets over the river are what guests consistently name as one of the highlights of their visit. The format is more akin to a small guesthouse with a homey atmosphere than a typical hotel—with a limited number of rooms, each individually decorated.

What Guests Say

  • “This was SOMETHING! Amazing service. Each room is uniquely decorated. The view of the Chao Phraya River is simply stunning. Sunsets are guaranteed. […] Eight hours after checking out and a long journey around the city, I was offered a free shower. Just super!”
  • “Loy La Long is a unique and unusual find! We loved everything about this quirky “boutique hotel” in a hard-to-reach location. It’s worth searching for! It’s on the river, and watching life on the boats will provide you with hours of entertainment! Lively Chinatown is nearby.”
  • “It’s more like a guesthouse than a hotel, but this place is definitely worth visiting! The sound of water and boats isn’t disturbing at all, breakfast is plentiful, and the owners are truly charming and helpful!”
  • The feeling of staying in a hotel on the riverbank. This hotel had a warm atmosphere, more like a private house than a typical hotel. The Chao Phraya River flowed right in front of me, and I could watch the passenger boats go by. At night, you could also see fireworks.
  • I stayed for two nights, but it was quite crowded, and I couldn’t relax. Next time I come, I’d like to spend an entire day at the hotel.

What’s next

Two more small historical hotels of old Bangkok from our section are Riva Arun, a trading house from the 1880s opposite Wat Arun, and SALA Rattanakosin with views of the same temple from the other bank of the river.

Prices, room availability, and how to get to the hotel may change – check the latest information before your trip.