Thailand: City & Mountains

My two daughters are well into their teens, and in the blink of an eye they'll be heading off on holidays with groups of raucous friends rather than with their annoying parents.

- SHAMUS SILLAR

I also know exactly where they'll go on those holidays: to the beach. Whether it's somewhere in their homeland Australia or a tropical spot in Southeast Asia, their destination will involve sea and sand. It's in their DNA.

With this in mind, my wife Gill and I decided our recent family holiday to Thailand would be beachfree. Instead, we would dive into the glorious grimy chaos of Bangkok, then head up to the highland, to Chiang Mai.

It was a risk, but with the help of two fabulous hotels by the Spanish-owned Meliá group, I think we got away with it!

# BANGKOK

Opened just 18 months ago, INNSIDE by Meliá Bangkok Sukhumvit is located in the up-and-coming neighbourhood of On Nut, smack-bang on the BTS Skytrain for easy getting around. It's a 34-storey tower with some eye-catching features, including a rooftop bar that opens up to an infinity pool with endless views of the Thai capital. For a different view, peer through the pool's see-through bottom to LUZ, the hotel's Spanish tapas bar, one floor below.

We were in a room category called The Townhouse, which included a living room between the bedrooms. It was ideal, and fitted-out with some modern, quirky touches. I liked the Marshall bluetooth speaker, which reminded me of my (distant) guitar-playing days; Gill loved the very generous couch in the living room that she could banish me to if required; and we all loved the free minibar, replenished daily.

All the eats

Aside from an absolute ripper of a breakfast each morning at The Kites restaurant - whose soaring windows take in more of those Bangkok views - we enjoyed two special dining experiences during our stay.