Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka

Rooms and decor

Picture Dhaka in 1981: the new capital of a recently independent Bangladesh, with no skyscrapers and no 5-star hotels yet — and then someone builds the city's first grand hotel on Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, with a big garden, an Olympic-size pool, and tennis courts. That was the start of Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka. The name Sonargaon comes from the old capital of ancient Bengal and means "golden village." Walk into the lobby and you feel right away this isn't a cookie-cutter franchise — high open ceilings, polished brass lamps from the 80s, thick carpets, and staff in traditional uniforms lined up to greet you, with the faint scent of fresh flowers arranged each morning. The whole place reads like a grande dame: an elderly grand lady, dressed with care and well-spoken. The 268 rooms and suites sit in a U-shaped tower, many facing the central garden or the pool for an easy green view. The rooms redone between 2013 and 2018 feel contemporary and clean — soft browns and cream, big beds, soft linens, and wide windows that pull in the morning light. A few have balconies where you can sip coffee over the garden, a detail you rarely find in central Dhaka, where most windows are sealed shut.

Food and amenities

If this hotel has a heart, it's the central garden — big and green enough that you forget you're in a city famous for heavy traffic and little green space. Walk down from the lobby and you'll find mature trees roughly as old as the hotel, stone paths with benches, and the standout: a 50-metre Olympic-size pool you'd struggle to find at any other central-city hotel in South Asia. Mornings bring a serious crowd of lap swimmers, and there are cabanas and sun loungers around the edge. Beyond that sit outdoor tennis courts, a 24-hour gym, a spa, and a sauna — enough to keep you on site all day without braving the traffic. Back in the main building, Café Bazar is a name every generation in Dhaka knows: an international buffet running since the 80s, with real Bangladeshi dishes like biryani, kacchi, and hilsa fish curry, Bengali sweets like roshogolla, and North Indian, Chinese, Thai, and Western food alongside. Weekend meals need booking days ahead. There's also a Chinese restaurant, Chinoiserie, that reviewers rate as more authentic than most in the city, and The Atrium lobby lounge for afternoon tea, known for masala tea and old-style Bengali sweets.

Location and getting there

What makes Pan Pacific Sonargaon work for travelers is a spot midway between two sides of Dhaka. One side is Old Dhaka, full of narrow lanes, the old Ahsan Manzil (the Pink Palace), the 17th-century Lalbagh Fort, and the spice markets and riverside food at Sadarghat on the Buriganga. The other is the newer Gulshan and Banani, with restaurants, cafés, malls, and embassies. From Karwan Bazar, you can drive to either zone in about 20-30 minutes, traffic depending. The best recent change is the MRT-6 metro, Bangladesh's first line, in full service over 2024-2025, with a Karwan Bazar station about a 5-minute walk away — hop on and you'll reach the Motijheel business district or Uttara to the north in 10-20 minutes, skipping Dhaka's renowned traffic. From Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (DAC) it's a 30-45 minute drive, and the hotel offers a limousine transfer you can pre-book.

Things to know before booking

To help you decide, the most common gripe is the age of the building. The hotel opened in 1981, and while the larger suites were renovated between 2013 and 2018, the work didn't reach every room. Some reviewers report furniture that looks tired and bathroom tiling and taps older than a 5-star price suggests — so when you book, state clearly that you want a renovated room or a higher floor to cut that risk. The second issue is Wi-Fi and in-room tech, which lag behind the times; a few reviews mention slow internet during busy periods, and the TVs and remotes are older with no smart-TV setup for casting Netflix, so serious online workers may need a local SIM as backup. Third, the hotel is a popular wedding and corporate venue in Dhaka, so when functions are on the lobby and restaurants can get busy and loud — if you want quiet, check the events schedule or ask for a room away from the ballroom. Finally, food and drink prices inside run higher than the usual local rate, though they're reasonable against other 5-star hotels.

Our take

After reading through real reviews and hearing from locals who've attended parties here for generations, Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka is a hotel that sells grande-dame charm: a big green garden in the middle of the city, a rare Olympic-size pool, and the Café Bazar buffet that's an institution in Dhaka — all at the best value in the city's 5-star group. It suits business travelers and families who want space, full facilities, and a central location near the new metro to beat the traffic, plus travelers who want both Old Dhaka and Gulshan without picking a side. If you expect a brand-new design hotel with the latest tech, this may not be your pick. But if you value original character, space, legendary food, and a fair price, we give it 8.0/10 — the most balanced choice in Dhaka's 5-star bracket for anyone after value without giving up the things that matter.