Suvarnabhumi Airport

Post by **thalenoi** » June 1, 2007, 5:04 pm

I flew Udon-Don Muang 5th May, landed 14.55, at 15.05 saw bus 555 waiting next to taxi stand, employee helped my luggage inside bus, went off to Savanaboom at 15.30, were dropped of at main terminal (luckily not at Transportation Center) at 16.15. No heavy traffic on the way.

My flight to Paris left at 20.00, had plenty of time, not buying any expensive crap at their fake "duty free* shops. Saw Family Mart level 3 amids coffe shops and one after immigration, bought many beer cans at 25 baht to empty in Europe.

Will be back Udon next week. Don't know where to find bus 555 at Savanaboom, but not needed, stay one night in Bangkok. Hear the song from Murray Head....

Post by **beer monkey** » June 1, 2007, 5:12 pm

JimboPSM wrote:
beer monkey wrote:i remember when it was under 10 baht.
I think this is heading in the direction of the Four Yorkshiremen (from Monty Python):

http://www.davidpbrown.co.uk/jokes/mont ... remen.html

brilliant stuff !!! thanks for reminding me, the phrase "cracked Cup" is used by me now and again , always give's me and some friends a chuckle.

Post by **BKKSTAN** » June 1, 2007, 5:18 pm

Thalenoi,Happy to hear you had a good transition!When will you be coming back?

Post by **lee** » June 1, 2007, 8:24 pm

beer monkey wrote:i remember when it was under 10 baht.

Ahhh... They were the good ol' days.

And thanks for the link Jim, it's a classic sketch

Post by **Miruku** » June 6, 2007, 7:14 am

We're arriving at Suvarnabhumi by Thai from Melbourne at 10.40pm on Saturday. We haven't yet booked out onward transportation and I am wondering if an expert can suggest how best/fastest way to travel to Udon. The options seem to be wait and catch a flight from Don Muang on Sunday morning or take a train or a bus. I will appreciate your kind suggestions. Trevor

Post by **Doc** » June 6, 2007, 12:52 pm

Personally - I would catch a flight the next day from Don Muang.

By the time that you clear customs and get someplace else on Saturday - you will have probably missed bus connections and most certainly the train connection.

Flying beats bus or train in my experience. Believe that there are flights leaving out early in the morning - something like 6:30 or so. Need to check flight schedules before you leave Melbourne for Thai, Air Asia and Nok Air to make plans for flying.

Post by **dill** » June 6, 2007, 3:20 pm

Doc wrote:Personally - I would catch a flight the next day from Don Muang.

By the time that you clear customs and get someplace else on Saturday - you will have probably missed bus connections and most certainly the train connection.

Flying beats bus or train in my experience. Believe that there are flights leaving out early in the morning - something like 6:30 or so. Need to check flight schedules before you leave Melbourne for Thai, Air Asia and Nok Air to make plans for flying.

yep verry early flights and they are cheapest flights in the day

Post by **Miruku** » June 8, 2007, 1:15 pm

Thanks for that and will follow your suggestion. Trevor

Post by **jingjai** » June 8, 2007, 1:55 pm

In the past I have stayed at: Don Muang Mansion, 600 baht per day, across the highway from Don Muang Airport (10-15 minute ride). Decent, clean, secure rooms. Van transport to Don Muang Airport. 02-566-4041-4 or 02-566-3023-30.
Beats having to hassle with inner city, if only for overnight.

Post by **beer monkey** » June 21, 2007, 7:09 pm

The Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT) says the CTX bomb detectors at Suvarnabhumi Airport have malfunctioned due to a computer virus.

Mrs. Kalaya Phakakrong, the acting President of the AOT, says the CTX machines have malfunctioned since last night (Jun 20). She says the technicians are quickly fixing the machines at the moment while the army officials are transporting the baggage to facilitate the passengers for the time being.

16 out of 26 machines are now operational at the East and West Passenger Terminals.

Post by **beer monkey** » June 28, 2007, 4:10 pm

Repairs begin on new cracks on Suvarnibhumi taxiway

BANGKOK, June 28 - Workers are now repairing new cracks just found on a taxiway at Suvarnabhumi international airport, forcing commercial aircraft to not pass beyond the damaged area, so that passengers must walk a further distance to the passenger terminal.

Deputy Transport Minister Sansern Wongcha-um said new cracks about four metres in length on taxiways between runways on the eastern and western flank of the international airport, located in Bangkok's neighbouring province of Samut Prakan.

It is suspected that the cracks resulted from excessive groundwater which erupted due to the large number of planes passing through the area.

Stressing that the cracks posed no danger to either aircraft or passengers, Mr. Sansern said repairs on the cracks began Wednesday for an hour and the area was to be entirely closed for full-scale repairs starting from 9 am until 5 pm Thursday as not many planes would use services at the airport during the period.

He said repairs would be jointly conducted by original constructors including Italian-Thai Development Pcl. and Japan's Obayashi Corp. and the Takenaka Corp. because construction is guaranteed until 2008.

So far there have been no reports on delays of flights arriving or departing from Suvarnabhumi. (TNA)

Post by **macduff** » June 29, 2007, 4:31 am

Might be because it was built on swampland

Post by **tawan3** » June 29, 2007, 5:11 pm

Quote from today's Bangkok Post

She conceded rampant corruption resulted chiefly from building Suvarnabhumi Airport since it was a mega-project with much procurement from the private sector.

The AoT acting president said new cracks on the airport's taxiway were not entirely unexpected because AoT believed it would happen when it found the cracks earlier.

Can anyone translate these two sentences in the context of "problem + since, because = reason or conclusion?

Or have location of the Thai article? Brain Teaser

Post by **tawan3** » June 29, 2007, 5:27 pm

Full Story

Airports of Thailand Plc acting president Kulya Pakakrong on Friday conceded that AoT's performance had been inefficient, and that corruption is still rampant in the organisation.

She said the inefficient performance and rampant corruptions was partly attributed to the rush to open the Suvarnabhumi Airport for commercial services last September in compliance with the government's policy.

However, she said, AoT had now stepped up efforts to improve its performance by focusing on transparent management and good governance.

The public will be given more channels to have access to AoT services.

A committee would be set up to amend rules and regulations to ensure AoT's efficient performance and to prevent corruption so that the organisation could grow steadily and enjoy international recognition.

She conceded rampant corruption resulted chiefly from building Suvarnabhumi Airport since it was a mega-project with much procurement from the private sector.

The AoT acting president said new cracks on the airport's taxiway were not entirely unexpected because AoT believed it would happen when it found the cracks earlier.

She added that workers were speeding up repair work on the new cracks. (TNA

Post by **JimboPSM** » July 23, 2007, 6:35 am

It seems that the airlines are not too happy with the new airport. Swiss and Lufthansa have reduced their flights - I suspect that may be as much to do with load factors as airport charges, airlines rarely reduce flights with high load factors, so perhaps tourism is actually suffering from the higher baht

From The Nation:

Airlines mull move of Thai base

The tight capacity at Suvarnabhumi Airport and its high user charges have forced several international airlines to consider China, India or Vietnam as their future operating base instead of Bangkok, the Board of Airline Representatives (BAR) said yesterday.
Published on July 20, 2007

Some carriers have pulled flights. Swiss International Airline has cut its flights between Bangkok and Switzerland from seven per week to six. Lufthansa of Germany has reduced service between Thailand and Germany and increased flights to Shanghai in China instead, said BAR president Brian Sinclair Thomson.

Many airlines are not happy with things at Suvarnabhumi.

Airports of Thailand (AOT) has not yet started construction of a planned midfield terminal to increase passenger-handling capacity. The operator has also shelved other expansion plans at the airport.

AOT has, however, hiked its airport parking, airport landing and ground service fees by 35 per cent within 20 months.

Moreover, the time for connecting flights using Suvarnabhumi and Don Meuang Airport is said to be longer than in the past, which does not facilitate travellers who need to transfer between the airports.

"I believe that many airlines will revise their five-year business plans due to the limitation of services at Suvarnabhumi Airport," Thomson said.

More airlines are expected to withdraw or downsize their operations in Thailand and head to other countries.

"China, India and Vietnam are the places airlines want to go to due to greater capacity," he said.

Airports in Vietnam are being developed that can accommodate up to 100 million passengers, while a large number of airports in China are scheduled to open over the next 15 years.

India is also expanding its New Delhi Airport in preparation for the explosion in aviation traffic expected in the next decade.

Kuala Lumpur International Airport has been waiving charges in order to attract carriers.

Thailand stands to lose aviation competitiveness because of these internal factors.

"If the country wants to become an aviation hub, authorities must look for further steps by preparing more capacity," Thomson said. "Airlines can't wait for the government to do so as they need to grow."

BAR plans to discuss the issue with AOT and the Transport Ministry soon.

Phornsiri Manoharn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said her agency was still optimistic that the economy will recover over the rest of the year and that its target of 14.8 million international arrivals and Bt547 billion in revenue is achievable.

The domestic tourism target is 82 million trips and revenues of Bt377 billion.

TAT projects 15.7 international tourists next year, up 6 per cent, with tourism revenues of Bt600 billion. The domestic tourism target for 2008 is 83 million trips, up 1.2 per cent, and revenues of Bt385 billion.

TAT has had to reintroduce the Amazing Thailand campaign - so successful in 1989-1999 - as the main theme for next year.

The authority prefers to attract more quality tourists from around the world - such as wedding couples, families and business travellers - instead of focusing on the volume of visitors, by offering better products and services such as boutique hotels and healthcare packages.

Suchat Sritama - The Nation

Post by **BKKSTAN** » July 23, 2007, 8:00 am

Just think,if they clamped down on prostitution,smoking and alcohol,there will only be tourists for Phuket,Koh Chang,Samui ,Samet and a few temple and rock worshippers!''Amazing Thailand'' indeed

Post by **jingjai** » July 24, 2007, 5:40 pm

I think somewhere in this thread or the forum, information was given on inexpensive hotels (1000baht or less) close to Suvarnabhumi Airport? But, I can't find it.
I've got a 6am departure flight coming up, which means I've got to hit Suvarnabhumi Airport around 4am.

Post by **BKKSTAN** » July 24, 2007, 6:13 pm

Heres one:There's a small family-run hotel in Bangpli not too far from the airport, the Sananwan Palace (http://bangpli.com/sananwan.htm). Air-conditioned rooms only cost 300 to 500 Baht!

Post by **wokkawombat** » July 24, 2007, 7:02 pm

The Avana is only about 220 baht on meter taxi. Not the flashest but comfortable. I think they have a web site.

John

Post by **jingjai** » July 24, 2007, 8:36 pm

Thanks guys. What would I do without the udonmap forum. =D>