Baan Luang Rajamaitri — Sleeping Inside a 150-Year-Old House on the Chanthaboon Riverside
If you want a Chanthaburi stay that is a story rather than just a room, Baan Luang Rajamaitri Historic Inn is the name that comes up first among people who visit the Chanthaboon riverside community. This is the former residence of Luang Rajamaitri — a 150-year-old wooden house that local residents restored together until it won the 2015 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award of Merit. Around 10 rooms are each themed differently, and a few have balconies hanging directly over the Chanthaboon River — atmosphere a new-build hotel simply cannot replicate.
Baan Luang Rajamaitri is a 150-year-old wooden house that was once the home of Luang Rajamaitri (Poom Punnasri), often called the father of eastern Thailand's rubber industry — he was among the first to bring rubber seeds to the region, a crop that remains a main source of income for Chanthaburi families today. The house sits on Sukhaphiban Road, the town's first street, in the middle of the Chanthaboon riverside community. What makes it remarkable is that it was not restored with developer money: the funding came from roughly 500 community stakeholders who wanted to keep the house standing for the next generation.
The detail that sets this place apart is that its roughly 10 rooms are each themed differently — no two alike. Each one tells a chapter of Luang Rajamaitri's life through antiques, decor and old photographs, from the Rubber Tree and Rubber Seed rooms that trace the rubber story to Mother's Kitchen and the East Asiatique guestroom. Many guests describe the feeling as sleeping inside a museum rather than a hotel. Some rooms have four-poster beds draped in sheer netting; others use futon mattresses laid on old teak floors that creak softly underfoot in step with the age of the house.
"Having breakfast on the terrace in the morning, watching the Chanthaboon River drift past in the cool air — it felt like stepping back a hundred years."
Breakfast is served on the wooden terrace over the Chanthaboon River, which many reviews single out as the best part of the stay. You sip coffee while small boats pass and the bridge sits in the distance, and the same terrace becomes a favourite spot to linger in the evening. The inn keeps bicycles for guests to borrow, and because the community lanes are narrow and hard for cars to enter, cycling or walking is genuinely the easiest way to explore this neighbourhood.
The location is a real advantage for old-town visitors — step out the door and you are already inside the Chanthaboon riverside community. A few minutes' walk along the water brings you to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, the largest and oldest Catholic church in Thailand. Cafes, traditional dessert shops and Chino-Portuguese shophouses surround the inn. For trips further out, such as Phlio Waterfall or the Nern Nang Phaya viewpoint, driving or renting a car from town is the more practical option.
The review score sits at 8.8/10 on Trip.com, and on Tripadvisor it ranks #1 among Chanthaburi inns and B&Bs (4.7 out of 5). That said, an honest heads-up — a century-old house comes with its limits. Guests most often mention steep, narrow stairs, low ceilings in places, fairly compact rooms, and futon mattresses in some rooms that run on the firm side. Anyone with a bad back or trouble with stairs should request a ground-floor room at the time of booking.
On price, rooms start around ฿1,700/night for a Studio and rise with room type and view. The rooms with a riverside balcony cost a little more but are well worth it for a short atmospheric stay. During long weekends and festivals the inn books out fast because there are only around 10 rooms, so reserve at least 3-4 weeks ahead.
The bottom line: Baan Luang Rajamaitri suits travellers who want an experience over a room — who want to sleep in the old town and understand the story of Chanthaburi. It is not the choice for anyone who needs new-hotel convenience, a lift, large rooms or parking at the door. But if you are fine trading steep stairs for a night inside a UNESCO-awarded wooden house on the Chanthaboon River, this is the stay that stays with you long after the trip.
Summary from Booking & Agoda
- ✓ Old wooden house with wonderful atmosphere — like stepping back in time
- ✓ Friendly staff who speak English and look after guests well
- ✓ Central location in the Chanthaboon riverside community, walkable all around
- ✓ Riverside terrace and breakfast with lovely river views
- ! Stairs are steep and narrow, awkward for some guests
- ! Rooms are fairly compact, ceilings low in places
- ! Futon mattresses in some rooms run firm
- ✓ Individually themed rooms, each one different from the next
- ✓ The history of the house makes the stay genuinely meaningful
- ✓ The lane out front is quiet and car-free, pleasant to wander
- ✓ Bicycles to borrow for exploring the old-town quarter
- ! Rooms with a riverside balcony are limited — book ahead
- ! No lift · an old house means climbing stairs
- ! Parking is limited because it sits on a narrow lane
- 💡If you have a bad back or struggle with stairs — request a ground-floor room when booking → the old house has no lift and the stairs are steep and narrow, with every upper room reached on foot
- 💡If you want a river-view room — specify a room with a riverside balcony at booking → these are limited and fill fast, costing a little more than interior rooms but worth it for the setting
- 💡If a soft bed matters — check whether your room has a standard bed or a futon → some rooms use futons on wooden floors that are fairly firm, so pick a standard-bed room if you sleep soft