The Monkey Hotel and Residence — A New Budget Stay in Central Lopburi with Cute Monkey-Mural Rooms from ฿600
Lopburi is famous for its monkeys, but a clean, cheap place to actually sleep is harder to find than you'd expect. The Monkey Hotel and Residence opened in June 2025 and runs with the city's monkey theme — some rooms carry a large monkey-face mural on the wall, with warm wood tones, green plants, and plenty of photo corners. What early guests mention again and again is soft beds, soft pillows, and spotless brand-new rooms, all starting at just ฿600/night. One thing to flag up front: this sits in the newer part of town near Big C, not the Old Town where Phra Prang Sam Yot (the monkey temple) is — you'll need to drive a little to get there.
The Monkey Hotel and Residence opened on 4 June 2025, a three-storey building in central Lopburi on the newer side of town near Big C. There are 31 rooms in three layouts — King (split into Monkey 1 on floor 1 and Monkey 2 on floor 2, each styled a little differently), Double with twin beds, and Triple for three guests. The concept is literally 'stay comfortable, pay less' — rates start at ฿600/night, but the rooms look bright and well put together, with the city's monkey motif painted on some walls and warm wood set against white for a clean, tidy feel.
The in-room kit is complete for the price — a Smart TV that runs Netflix and YouTube, free Wi-Fi, air-con, a water heater, hair dryer, kettle, and a small set of cups and plates, plus bedding the hotel orders directly from the manufacturer. Several guests single out the soft, comfortable beds and pillows as the part that genuinely exceeds expectations for a room in the few-hundred-baht range. The bathroom is an en-suite with a wooden vanity and green-and-white tiling, and it reads as spotless because everything is so new.
One early guest described it as "a spotless, brand-new room with soft beds and pillows that made sleeping easy, and plenty of photo spots — better value than the price suggests." That one line captures what most of the early feedback here keeps coming back to, so it's worth unpacking why a budget hotel that opened in June 2025 is already earning that kind of reaction. · Every room at The Monkey Hotel and Residence is genuinely new — the bedding, the towels, the bathroom tiles, the in-room equipment. When everything is this fresh, cleanliness almost goes without saying, because there's simply been no time for wear or neglect to set in. But beyond the obvious advantage of being brand new, the hotel made a deliberate call on its bedding: the owner orders the mattresses and pillows direct from the manufacturer rather than buying the cheapest available option. The result is a sleep quality that a number of guests describe as noticeably better than expected for rooms priced in the few-hundred-baht range — some say better than sleeping at home. · The design is the other thing people keep mentioning. The King Monkey rooms carry a large monkey-face graphic on the wall — warm wood slat panelling, a hanging pendant light, potted plants in the corner — and the overall feel is warm and characterful in a way that's quite different from the plain, utilitarian rooms most budget hotels deliver at this price. The monkey motif is Lopburi's own identity; building it into the decor is a small touch that actually works. · The common lounge reads more like a café than a hotel lobby: a branded wall sign, mismatched yellow, amber and green chairs on pale terrazzo flooring, wall-mounted planter rails with greenery. It's the spot most guests stop to photograph before heading upstairs, and it sets a tone for the whole property that punches well above the nightly rate. · What also sets this place apart from most small budget hotels is the practical common-area kit — a coin-operated washer and dryer, a microwave, a water dispenser, and on-site parking. That combination makes longer stays genuinely liveable without needing to go out for every small task. · At ฿600 per night for two people in a King or Double room — with a Smart TV that runs Netflix, free Wi-Fi, a water heater, hair dryer, and soft bedding included — the price-to-quality ratio is hard to argue with in a city at Lopburi's tourism level. The Monkey Hotel and Residence is not selling luxury or a full amenity list; it's selling a better stay than the price implies, and on that measure, the early guests seem to agree it delivers. · One thing that often gets lost when reviewing new properties is context: Lopburi is not a city with an oversupply of good-value, characterful accommodation. Most of what exists in the affordable range is either tired guesthouses near the train station or plain business hotels with nothing memorable about them. A place that invests in quality bedding, a photogenic design, and practical amenities like coin laundry — and still prices it at ฿600 — stands out precisely because the competition at this price point doesn't clear a high bar. That's the real reason early guests sound as positive as they do."
The common lounge is the prettiest spot to photograph — a wall sign reading The Monkey Hotel & Residence, mismatched yellow, clear-amber and green chairs, potted plants mounted on the wall rails, and a pale terrazzo floor that gives the whole space a bright café feel. This is also where you'll find the microwave, water dispenser, and coin-operated washer and dryer, which makes a real difference on longer stays or monthly rentals. There's parking on site, so you won't be hunting for a spot on the street.
On location, let's be straight about it — this is on the newer side of Lopburi near Big C, about a 3-minute drive away, which is handy for food, shops and convenience stores, with a café like Pao Rak close by. But Phra Prang Sam Yot (the monkey temple) and King Narai's Palace are over in the Old Town, roughly 6 km out, which means a 10–15 minute drive or ride — not a walkable distance. If your trip is mainly about the Old Town sights, factor that travel time in before you book.
Because it's a brand-new opening, public reviews are still thin on the ground, but the early guest feedback runs in a consistent direction — praise for cleanliness, newness, comfortable beds, attentive staff, and the cute, photogenic design. The limitations worth knowing before you book: there's no breakfast service and no swimming pool. This is a small hotel built around clean, well-priced rooms, not a resort with a full amenity list.
The rates you'll see most often are ฿600/night for a King or Double sleeping two, and ฿800/night for a Triple sleeping three. For longer stays or a better rate, the property also offers monthly-rental rooms worth asking about, which suit people working in or temporarily based in Lopburi. During the province's big events — such as the King Narai Reign Fair in February — in-town rooms fill quickly, so book ahead.
The bottom line: The Monkey Hotel and Residence works best for travellers who want a new, clean, cutely designed room on a few-hundred-baht budget and don't mind not being able to walk to the Old Town. If you're driving or renting a scooter, the spot near Big C is convenient for daily life. But if you've come to wander the monkey temple and Old Town without a vehicle, weigh up the distance, or pick a place over by the train station instead.
Summary from Booking & Agoda
- ✓ Brand-new and spotless since the June 2025 opening
- ✓ Soft beds and pillows — comfortable sleep
- ✓ Rates from ฿600 are strong value for this standard
- ✓ Cheerful monkey-themed design with plenty of photo spots
- ! No breakfast service
- ! On the newer side of town, about 6 km from the Old Town and monkey temple
- ! Small hotel with no swimming pool
- ✓ Smart TV with Netflix and YouTube in every room
- ✓ Near Big C — easy for food and supplies
- ✓ Coin-operated washer and dryer, good for longer stays
- ✓ Monthly-rental rooms available
- ! Reviews still limited as a new opening
- ! Old Town and train station aren't walkable — you'll need a vehicle
- ! Compact en-suite bathrooms
- 💡If you're here mainly for the Old Town and monkey temple — this is on the newer side of town near Big C, about 6 km from Phra Prang Sam Yot → bring a car or rent a scooter, otherwise you'll lose time on back-and-forth trips
- 💡If you need breakfast at the hotel — there's no breakfast service → but Big C and convenience stores are close, so grabbing a morning bite is easy if you plan for it
- 💡If you're staying long-term or working in Lopburi — monthly rooms, a coin washer-dryer, microwave and water dispenser in the common area → ask the hotel directly about monthly rates, which beat booking nightly