Thailand Air Travel
Savarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok
Thailand AirportsThis Thailand air travel guide section shall provide you with information on all the major airports in Thailand as well as some of the many domestic and international carriers operating in and out of the country.Suvarnabhumi Airport is Bangkok's newest international airport which opened on 21st September 2006. Might I add that this has got to be one of the very best airports that I have encountered in all my travels, and oh! so user friendly as well. Granted that this is a new airport, but I was so impressed with the neatness and the easy access that you have in entering and leaving the airport. I wish more airports could be like this one. It takes around 40 minutes to reach central Bangkok from the airport and visa verse. I am pleased to tell you that there is no longer a 500 baht departure tax when leaving. I never found out why this was so, but who cares, it just means that you can have three more beers when you come back next year. Leave it any later and you might only get two beers.
Thailand Air TravelDon Muang Airport is Bangkok's domestic airport. Up until 20th September 2006, this was Thailand's international airport. I remember arriving in Thailand at this airport in early September and leaving two months later at the new Suvarnabhumi Airport.Chiang Mai International Airport is your gateway to the north and only a 10 minute drive from the city center. 10 airlines operate from this airport and approximately 2 million passengers pass through here every year. Apparently there is a 700 baht "airport improvement fee" payable per passenger on all international flights and 100 baht for domestic flights, included in the price of your air ticket. As I have only driven up to Chiang Mai, I have not experienced travel from this airport as yet. Phuket International Airport is located in the north of Phuket Island and is also your gateway to the south. This is Thailand's second busiest airport in terms of passanger numbers. It will take you approximately 45 minutes to reach Phuket Town and approximately 30 minutes to reach Patong Beach from the airport. The rental companies Hertz and Avis both have counters for your convenience at the airport should you require a car.
Koh Samui AirportThailand Air TravelKoh Samui Airport is located approximately 2 kilometers from the northern part of the island near Bo Phut Beach. It is a privately owned airport and operated mainly by Bangkok Airways. The beauty of this fairly new airport is in it's design and superb natural surroundings. Apart from the airports wooden construction, this location is so very unusual in all manner of speaking affording you a true tropical destination. Also from the airport you will have a magnificent view of a 15 meter high Big Buddha.Sukhothai Airport is situated 27 kilometers or 18 miles out of town and although quite small in size, it sure makes up in sheer beauty. This has to be one of the prettiest airports you may ever see as a more relaxed atmosphere prevails with fewer traffic than most other airports. Bangkok Airways flies here several times a day from Suvarnabhumi airport. Trat Airport is another small airport that opened it's doors recently in 2003. Due to it's location on the east coast, this airport is fairly close to the southern Thai-Cambodian border area allowing easy access to the popular resort island of Koh Chang. Again Bangkok Airways flies here daily from Suvarnabhumi airport with a flight time of approximately 45 minutes. Krabi International Airport first opened it'd doors in 2006 allowing easy access to the beach resorts of Koh Lanta, Ao Nang, Had Yao and Rai Leh. The airport is conveniently situated 10 kilometers or 6 miles from Krabi town and 25 kilometers or 14 miles from the mainland beach areas on Highway 4. There are direct daily flights from Bangkok with Thai Airways as well as direct flights from both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. I do believe you can also fly direct with Asia-Pacific's Tiger Airways to and from Darwin in Australia.
Thai AirwaysInternational Thailand Air TravelFrom my Thailand air travel guide you will be able to find some of the many airlines in Thailand that service both the international and domestic sectors from all the airports around the country.Thai Airways International or Thai Airways is Thailand's international carrier and operates daily flights to 11 destinations around the country as well as numerous international flights around the world. Bangkok Airways main location is at Suvarnabhumi Airport.This carrier services around 20 destinations around Thailand as well as some local international fights to Cambodia, Vietnam, China and a few others. Bangkok Airways is a privately owned company who have also built three airports in Thailand. The first airport that the company built is on the island of Koh Samui. The second one built is at Sukhothai, servicing central Thailand and the third one is at Trat, servicing the growing tourist destination on the island of Ko Chang. One-Two-GO Airlines operates from Don Mueang International airport and flies to local destinations including a few international ones. I used this airline once when I flew from Bangkok to Phnom Phen airport in Cambodia last year. Reasonably prices seats make this airline popular.
Nok Air vs Bangkok AirDomestic Thailand Air TravelNok Air is a fairly newcomer to the country and first opened it's doors in February 2004. The airline derives it's name from the Thai language meaning "Bird" which represents the freedom to travel. Nok Air operates out of Don Mueang airport in Bangkok to local destinations Chiang Mai, Udon Thani, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Hat Yai and Trang.SGA Airlines first started it's operations in 2002 out of Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok for flights to the seaside resort at Hua Hin and opened a second route in 2007 from Chiang Mai International Airport for flights to Chiang Rai, Pai and Phrae. This is the perfect airline to use should you want to explore the smaller regions of rural Thailand as the carrier currently operates 12 seat airplanes and flight times range from as little as 20 minutes to less than one hour.
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