Subject: [Venue-selection] Bangkok

From: "Peter Yee" <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2016 15:02:37 -0700

Bangkok makes a pretty good meeting location outside of the warm weather
that can be found there at times.  IEEE 802 held an interim wireless meeting
there in September 2015 and the venue selected worked very well for us.

1) IEEE 802 held its meeting at the Centara Grand and Bangkok Convention
Centre.  The Centara is connected to the Convention Centre and the
CentralWorld mall internally.  The Centara only has 505 rooms itself, but
the Grand Hyatt is located catty corner from the CentralWorld mall and there
are other hotels in the vicinity.
2) There are abundant food offerings in the CentralWorld mall at low and
middle price levels, with a large variety of cuisines that should probably
meet most attendees desires or dietary restrictions.  Western chains as well
as local offerings are available.
3) Transportation to Bangkok is via two airports, one international, the
other more regional.  Both require taxi or shuttle access to get to downtown
Bangkok, but the rates are not usurious.  In-town transportation is via
inexpensive taxis, buses, and canal boats (there's a station very near the
Centara Grand that's good for getting to the tourist sites near the royal
palace).
4) There's abundant shopping for durable goods as well as groceries in the
nearby shopping malls.
5) More than enough tourist sites in the area: the royal palace, Buddhist
temples galore, water tours, weekend market, etc.; Bangkok is a large,
cosmopolitan city with much to offer.
6) Western style coffee chains are available.
7) SIM cards are available, although they may involve some amount of hassle
to obtain - I had the help of a local in getting mine last year.
8) I'm not aware of any crime problems in Bangkok and I don't believe anyone
reported having such problems during the meeting last year.  The city felt
safe and while civil unrest has occurred there in the past, it was not at
all apparent in the many parts of the city I visited.
9) Money is fairly easy to get from ATMs as well as money changers.

As always, if you have any questions about meeting in Bangkok, feel free to
let me know.  I'll do my best to get you an answer.

		-Peter