KhaoYai

I doubt I'll book with Saudia at the moment and you're right, would be too long for me. I would take it up if I had lounge access though. Some people may be prepared to do that though - some are on a very tight budget. I was years ago and there was no way I could have travelled so often if I hadn't gone down to London and taken advantage of the cheaper prices out of Heathrow.

Provided his biometrics haven't been taken................name change and new passport???

Yes I've taken advantage of Singapore Airline's stopover at the same price offer a couple of times and had a night out in SG. They are probably the best airline I've ever flown with but they have not been anywhere near competitive for a long time. I actually enjoy 3 or 4 hour stopovers when I have lounge access, I make it part of my trip. Etihad's business class lounge at Abu Dhabi takes some beating - shower, massage, smoking room within the area etc. etc. However, I'm not going to cut my nose off to spite my face but unless they have a major price advantage, I won't be using them again. I've had a few issues with them over the years and apart from the damaged suitcase, none were resolved. I always found that, in terms of ground staff and the flight itself, on the whole, they were an excellent company but their customer service is a different matter. The only thing that kept me with them was my gold card. It sounds pretentious but as I'm sure you'll know, once you've got used to the benefits it gives you, you don't want to lose them. The CBD oil thing annoyed me and as the airline is state owned......................... Now, despite flying mainly with them since they began in 2003 and holding a gold card since 2008, they are revoking that card as of June this year because I haven't flown enough - the fact that Covid regulations prevented me from flying doesn't seem to matter to them. I've written to them but they won't change their mind so....adios. If I no longer have that benefit, I am now free to vote with my feet. Anyway, it seems that anyone who really wants a cheap flight should give Saudia a close look.

I can't remember the price but I do remember the Thai Airways one was cheap. Great for those that can do 12 hours - I can't.

I've been trying to avoid the whole region since a UK national got locked up for 25 years (now reduced to 9) for having a very small amount of CBD Oil. However, they always come out on top in searches.

Nothing new there - Etihad denied responsibility when my suitcase appeared on the carousel smashed to bits with the contents in a plastic bag. They changed their stance and paid up when I quoted the Montreal Convention to them.

Many questions are asked time after time. I don't use the search option here because it rarely finds what I'm looking for. Using Google - maybe but your wording is probably not the same as I or others would use. Also, rules and regulations change - nothing wrong with keeping up to date. In my opinion, my question is completely legitimate - if you have nothing to add, you're not forced to reply.

Does anyone have any experience of Saudia Airlines? Years ago there were no discount flights to Bangkok out of Manchester so I used to travel down to Heathrow. However for quite some time now, discount flights have been available ex Manchester - Heathrow still cheaper but not worth the additinal travel and hassle. I'm looking to book for June/July and as prices seem to be rising this year I checked out flights from Heathrow, I was amazed to find a return flight to Bangkok - 18/06 to 04/07 @ £388 with 23kg hold luggage on Travel Supermarket. The times are a bit longer than the usual stopover flights but its been a long time since I've seen flights with a 3 at the front. I've been right through to the end of the booking process and providing you pay via Visa Debit there don't appear to be any hidden extras. There are mixed reviews on Trustpilot - the airline coming out on top. Does anyone have any experience with this airline?

@DrJack54 Why the confused Icon? You don't feel its a legitimate question or do you think nobody ever gets ill?

Thanks Joe.

Just looking at possibilities for the future. What happens if you are too ill to renew an extension of stay or do a 90 day report? What if the problem is mental health rather than physical? Would attempts be made to deport you or can you nominate someone, possibly your wife to do these things for you? I can imagine problems proving income etc. None of us are going to live forever and many linger for months once they become ill. In the event of the problem being a mental one such as Alzheimer's disease you may be incapacitated for years. I remember my mother's last few years - no way could she have applied for an extension of stay for example. So what happens? Do Immigration show some understanding in such cases?

I had a problem using my Kasikorn card with booking.com in February 2018. Never got to the bottom of it - booking,com blaming the bank, bank blaming booking.com. Switched to their sister company Agoda and booked the same hotel without a problem.

Are you serious? Never? I've had the opposite experience and rarely found a better price on an airline's website - I always check them and if the airline are within £30 of the agent, I go direct. The agents are often £100 - £150 cheaper and I always set the search to include luggage. Its something that annoys me - I don't understand why an airline cannot give, say its regular customers,the same prices as they give agents. I belive it used to be that agents gave some form of guarantee about buying a certain amount of flights but following a discusson with an agent a couple of years ago, I understand that's no longer true. For example, if you use a site like travelsupermarket.com - they come up with the fare and also list a few other comparisons including the airline. From their website right now: MAN-BKK-BKK-MAN 19/06 to 05/07 on Qatar: World Air Fares £571 20 others at upwards of that with Qatar direct coming in at £677 - exactly the same flight. I can't speak for others but Qatar offer free changes whether the flight is booked with them or an agent.

Lost for words

A lawyer changed the mind of the manager at Pak Chong office with a threat of court action.

Those that were caught breaking the rules were fined. Some of those organising parties were fine £10,000!!! Were they hounded? Why would they be hounded? They pay their fine and the matter is over - MP's are the ones that run the country and the Prime Minister is the one responsible for making the rules. How much credence can any rule have if the people who make the rules don't abide by them? However, the point here is not really that Johnson broke the rules. Research his history - the man lives his life through lying, he has no notion of the truth. This is far from the first time he's lied or acted improperly whilst he has been Prime Minister but it goes back much further than that. When he was a journalist he made stories up all the time and twisted other. Do you think its OK for the UK Prime Minister to be a person who has a very odd relationship with the truth? This is just one article that you may find interesting: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jul/15/laughter-lies-boris-johnson-journey-journalist-mp

Don't be too sure on that. I provided them with clear photos and videos from my IP Camera following a break in. I'd bet a pound to a penny that the burglar was a 'professional' with his details on the police database - not a peep out of them.

You can lead a horse to water.......................................................... I form my opinions based on evidence and the professional opinions of those more informed than I am. If I am making a 'false claim' that the new policy is illegal then surely Johnson's claim that it is legal is also false? Would you care to place a bet on this proposed new policy getting through Parliament as it stands by April/May as planned? Johnson knows very well there isn't a cat in hell's chance of it doing so but that's not why he's brought it forward now. I think its implicit that anyone posting here without concrete evidence of their claims is stating their own opinion. However, opinion has more credence if its is backed up by facts. Note: I have given you facts whereas you have given what is purely your own opinion. I have not however, provided links to the sources of my information - they are readily available as this is a 'hot topic' at the moment. Your opinion is also confused as you have mixed two separate new immigration policies together - one in place for Refugees, the other proposed for Asylum seekers. I futher note that you failed to address that point - selective replying?? In the interests of fairness, I will make an admission - a little research shows that the proposed new laws have actually been travelling through both houses of Parliament for quite some time so I fail to understand why a government minister said he knew nothing of them. However, this fact could be said to make it even more questionable why the matter has been made public now.

One of his own ministers has been on TV saying he had no idea that this policy was even being considered. No I cannot but the UN's lawyers have said its illegal, as have several prominent UK immigration lawyers. Johnson doesn't care if its thrown out - as long as it get's him through the next few months. Why do you think Patel has had to force the issue through with a Ministerial Direction? They were not - this is an entirely different issue and has been dealt with by an already introduced emergency policy aimed at Ukranian refugees (that's not doing too well). Refugees already have a different method by which to claim their status. The proposals Johnson has put forward are in relation to Asylum Seekers - the two are not the same. Furthermore - these proposals are only aimed at one section of Asylum seekers - young men seen as potential economic migrants. If Johnson's aim is really to put the people traffickers out of business and stop people dying in sinking small boats, why only target young men? Is it OK for women and children to die then. Its quite clear why the policy is as it is - designed to gain popular support because Johnson knows that much of the British electorate are against economic migration.

Then you are at odds with a great many people - even his own MP's Of course they are two separate issues - its the timing of the announcement that's in question. No consultations, no discussion, just a highly controversial policy, that he hasn't got a hope in hell of getting through the courts, intoduced at a time when the 'Partygate' affair was theatening to cause his downfall. And that's coincidence? Get real. As I've tried to be clear on - its not the parties that are causing the problem, its his lies. Yes he should have complied with his own rules but he is in the ultimate position of trust and lying in Parliament is just too much. Johnson knows very well that he will be expected to resign if its proved he misled Parliament and that's the reason for his attempts at deflection. His lies to Parliament and to the public on TV are quite clear to me but he is clearly receiving advice on what to say now. If you listen to what he said to the BBC after he was fined - he's being very careful. He says he 'respects' the police's decision to fine him and that he's sorry if he misunderstood the rules. That is very different to an admission of breaking the law and lying......why? Because if he was to apologise on both counts, he'd be out of a job. Let me make it clear - just so you know, I'm not a labour supporter. Far from it. I understand that very well and your entitled to your own opinon but if you believe this new immigration policy was announced at this time was simply a coincidence - you are out of line with mainstream thinking. I'm not about to take us off topic but Johnson is famous for deflection - as was his buddy Trump. Prior to this he has been asked many important questions by the media and he usually replies "my vaccine" - no matter what the question is. Maybe even he's realised that he's played that one to death now.

Come on, its clear deflection and many people have noted it as such. He simply wanted the 'Partygate' affair out of the headlines - it hasn't worked though. This is getting like Trump - no matter what he does, people try to defend him. The man is a proven liar, I cannot remember a UK Premier that has been so constantly embroiled in controversy and scandal like this one. The man is also unfit to govern the country due to his lack of knowledge about what is going on in the country. Example - just a few years ago he went on TV and tried to blame the EU for introducing a costly packaging policy for fish as a way of illustrating their 'crazy laws' that were costing UK producers money. That policy it turned out, was introduced by the UK!! That is just one example of the gaffs he's made. He tries to tell he didn't realise he broke the rules on Covid - rules he introduced on TV and you defend him? He doesn't know what day it is, never mind run a country but lying to Parliament and the country is a step too far. "Oh, but don't forget my vaccine policy" - vaccine, vaccine, vaccine - his answer to everything. Anyone would think he personally invented the covid vaccine.

The only things you need to pay for is the Affirmation of Freedom to Marry, the certified copy of your passport and the translations/certification of those items. Less than 5000 baht.

Strange isn't it that Johnson decides to announce what he knows will be a contraversial new immigration policy at this time. A pathetic attempt at deflection that nobody has been fooled by.

Just bought a Bell SRT modular helmet after my HJC was stolen. Very comfortable and came with a spare dark visor + carry bag - quite light for a fibreglass /composite. The visor locks properly in the vent position, unlike some that snap shut when you let rip. The design is very good - you have to look closely to see its modular if you didn't know. Some other attempts look like an open face with a front press studded on. The reason I went for a modular is for the views when touring. Its also great when your overheating in traffic. It may depend on where you are - I paid £200 on Ebay but I've seen the same helmet for sale in Thailand at almost double that. They are usually around £250 in the UK. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334355616177?hash=item4dd925d1b1:g:tXwAAOSwEBJiSxu3