Suggestions about business class to Europe?

[oldhippy]

Next year I will be 10 years in Thailand & 10 years married.

That calls for a celebration.

 

Every year we fly to Europe once or twice, but always second class (or is that 3rd class?).

Maybe to celebrate 10 years this time business class?

 

Do you advise to fly "real" business class - which airline?

Or would "imitation" business class on Ukraine air, Eurowings or other low cost airline be reasonable?

 

I am thinking of Turkish - had good experiences with them in 2nd class.

They are rather cheap too, but this may not be the right time to save 200 euro....

 

Flying to Brussels or nearby.

Any advice is very welcome.

[jacko45k]

The Qatar A380 is pretty good.

I personally am quite a fan of Emirates, again use the A380.

 

Singapore Airlines have a good reputation.

[nobodysfriend]

Swiss Air business class is very nice , comfortable and perfect service ... congrats for ur 10yrs ...!

[thinkingman]

I have flown business twice per year to Thailand from USA.  I was a Star Alliance proponent, but now I suggest going to Google flights between 60 and 30 days of your departure date and getting prices, then decide on the airline. You can also sort of simulate prices by doing dummy bookings 30-60 days out from the search date.

 

If you book too far in advance you will get screwed.  About all the airlines flying to BKK from Europe are quite good. My last trip was on Austrian with a Sky Chef for business class meal service, complete with white jacket, chef hat and instant read thermometer.

[murraynz]

i have very similar question  for "one off" business class flight  bkk-auckland  and return bkk, early july.

for me, the best price is important, plus maximum baggage allowance--stopover no problem.

i am very wary of skyscanner etc---prices usd and lots of unknown addons?? 

any ideas or tips,as above, appreciated..

any excellent travel shops in pattaya/jomtien???

[shaurene]

I used to fly a lot buss class NZ-BBK and back on Thai but over the last 4 yrs or so they have gotten so expensive.

Qantas are cheaper but their lounges are crap. If I do fly Qantas I pick the flights they share with Emerat on the 380 they are good for the best service.

[johnnybangkok]

Most business class is the same - nice, fold down beds, good meals, great service etc but at half the price of most business class airlines I think EVA Airlines offer great value and great service. Whenever I can I use them and have never been disappointed.

[Dustdevil]

The best business class airliners for those 11 to 15-hour flights are always the ones with the lie-flat seats in a cocoon-like setting. Go to seatguru.com to make sure. I always have a sandwich before boarding and then pop some Xanax (in your case, whatever helps you sleep) and tell them not to wake me for dinner, only for the final meal before landing. Believe me, you're not missing any superb meal just because it's in business class; I would say that the sleep is more important. I sleep for 7 to 9 hours and have an onboard breakfast and never get jet lag. The 21-inch TV screens are redundant to me because airlines censor everything to appease the grandmothers and Muslims; nowadays everybody has their own devices anyway. I just love that lie-flat seat with the blanket and extra pillow. I'm 5'11" (180cm), by the way, and I don't run out of legroom, but you might if you're over 6' (182 cm).

Edited January 5, 2018 by Dustdevil

[Dustdevil]

9 minutes ago, johnnybangkok said:

Most business class is the same - nice, fold down beds, good meals, great service etc but at half the price of most business class airlines I think EVA Airlines offer great value and great service. Whenever I can I use them and have never been disappointed.

Agreed. I've flown them trans-Pacific. But even United is just fine in terms of lie-flat cocoon seats; it's just that their flights are overpriced.

[steve187]

I flew Cathay business class lhr/hkg for the 1st time last trip over and i found it to be excellent, food , full lie down beds, screen headphone, well just great all in. the first time i have arrived feeling refreshed without an ache in the backside.

 

i suppose if you count 1st class, business and premium econ, then econ is 4th class

[cracker1]

Just now, murraynz said:

i have very similar question  for "one off" business class flight  bkk-auckland  and return bkk, early july.

for me, the best price is important, plus maximum baggage allowance--stopover no problem.

i am very wary of skyscanner etc---prices usd and lots of unknown addons?? 

any ideas or tips,as above, appreciated..

any excellent travel shops in pattaya/jomtien???

There is only one airline flying this route direct and that is Thai Air. I travel this two or tree times each year (business class) now for about fifteen years with no complaints. This year they are flying new Dreamliner's and my first one is in about ten days. Any other airline is going to make a much longer journey of it.

[steve187]

3 minutes ago, cracker1 said:

There is only one airline flying this route direct and that is Thai Air. I travel this two or tree times each year (business class) now for about fifteen years with no complaints. This year they are flying new Dreamliner's and my first one is in about ten days. Any other airline is going to make a much longer journey of it.

what about BA and Eva, same journey time

[Dustdevil]

The worst business class is Turkish airlines although they do have lie-flat seats etc. Just tell them NOT to wake you for dinner. Their dinner is about 6 courses and takes them at least 40 minutes between each course; you're stuck with that damned table in front of you for more than three hours (Dubai to Houston, I think). I told them not to wake me the second time I flew Turkish and they woke me anyway. Thanks to Xanax it's no problem getting right back to sleep. By the way, to each his/her own, but they only serve Turkish food and I found it awful. To sit there for 3+ hours for hog food is torture.

Edited January 5, 2018 by Dustdevil

[Old Croc]

http://www.worldairlineawards.com/Awards/best_business_class_airlines.html

[lumply]

The terminology 'second class' went out with the arc. It's called Economy. Moving on don't knock low cost, one of the best biz flights I ever had was on FlyDubai now part of Emirates based at Dubai. So Business Class on FD BKK DXB good value, then onward on Emirates in one of their fantastic A380's, a very rewarding experience. Go on treat yourselves. Safe journey.

[DFPhuket]

Just be certain the flight is a true lie-flat seat. Some carriers and some older planes still have the angled but flat seats which are not nearly as comfortable. Also be aware that it is sometimes difficult to communicate with your partner based upon the layout of some business classes. Should that be a concern, take a look at the actual seat layout.

[Mikeheart]

For me a direct flight is better than saving a relatively small amount. Depending on where in europe you are flying to I recommend EVA AIR. New aircraft, good service and on time performance.

[misterphil]

Its called Economy not 2nd class. Are you sure you fly twice a year, its printed all over the boarding pass. 

 

Use skyscanner.net and choose an airline that suits your budget. This is my top 5, number 1 starting with Thai airways. If your wife is Thai you'll get kudos from her taking her business class on the Kingdoms finest airline. 

 

1. Thai airways (outstanding service)

2. Singapore airlines (outstanding service)

3. Qatar (good service)

4. Emirates (can be good, can be bad experience)

5. British Airways (might have fat lazy British women working on-board and you can remind yourself why you have a Thai wife ) Your wife will ask telak jaaa, why lady England mai suay and pom pui mak mak ???

 

https://www.skyscanner.net/transport/flights/bkk/brus/180607/180621?adults=2&children=0&adultsv2=2&childrenv2=&infants=0&cabinclass=business&rtn=1&preferdirects=false&outboundaltsenabled=false&inboundaltsenabled=false&ref=home#results

[Andrew Dwyer]

I flew BKK to Istanbul - Istanbul to São Paulo in business on Turkish and have to admit they weren’t the best I’ve ever been on . The plane seemed old and food was not great.

In fact the only saving grace was I left my iPad on board at Istanbul and they were helpful in recovering it for me, otherwise I wouldn’t choose to fly Turkish again.

I did fly EVA on a similar long haul in business and found them a lot better.

 

Sorry, I don’t know the price for either flight as was on business.

[QPRFC]

If you have points / air miles then it is always best to use them to upgrade rather than buy a ticket with them btw.
I have been on Cathay, Etihad and Malaysian business class, all fantastic experiences but Etihad did not have the lie flat seats, they were angled downwards but still comfortable.
I don't sleep when I fly business in case I miss out on something!
Enjoy your experience and have a safe journey.

Sent from my [device_name] using http://Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[manfred ihms]

Been flying Bangkok to Amsterdam quite often. Like Eva air(Taiwan). Fair price and great service. Capsul 

[rak sa_ngop]

I think business class on Emirates is fantastic. You get to use the first class lounge in Bangkok, UK and other destinations except for transit in Dubai where the business class lounge is less impressive.

 

Plus if you pick the right flights you get the A-380 where you can be a bar-fly at 30,000 feet and snack on tasty morsels if you do not want a full meal.

 

And of course you get a free limo pick-up and drop off at both start and finish airports.

 

There were times when the Emirates business class price was even cheaper than Qatar or Turkish, but not sure if that is still the case.

[dpdp]

I fly business only for direct flights to Europe.

Which destinations in Europe do you know that have direct flights ?

[dpdp]

1 hour ago, manfred ihms said:

Been flying Bangkok to Amsterdam quite often. Like Eva air(Taiwan). Fair price and great service. Capsul 

 

Their business class is good ?

 

How much ?

 

[dpdp]

2 hours ago, Mikeheart said:

For me a direct flight is better than saving a relatively small amount. Depending on where in europe you are flying to I recommend EVA AIR. New aircraft, good service and on time performance.

 

Nice business class ? How much ?

 

 

[dpdp]

4 hours ago, johnnybangkok said:

Most business class is the same - nice, fold down beds, good meals, great service etc but at half the price of most business class airlines I think EVA Airlines offer great value and great service. Whenever I can I use them and have never been disappointed.

 

How much do you pay ? And to which destination ? Thank you.

 

[natway09]

We call it "cattle class" & used to be acceptable , Now with a lot more people from different countries  flying the name takes a whole new meaning

[mikecha]

go to British  airways   they have good business deals at the moment was 1400 euro return that was from amsterdam london bkk bkk london amsterdam sure cam from Brussels to have a look  or go to ticket spy .nl

[bubba45]

Hard to beat Qatar for service, food, and comfort.  And prices are usually among the lowest.  Routing would be one stop in Doha, where they have an incredible lounge, then on to Brussels.  Some flights to/from BKK/Doha are on the A380, book that if you can.  

That's how I'd do it if you want to do it right.

Edited January 5, 2018 by bubba45

[Mikeheart]

3 hours ago, dpdp said:

 

Nice business class ? How much ?

 

 

London to BKK non stop from £1895 pounds with date change free