BKK arrival report

[FalangTingTong]

Hello all!  At the risk of redundancy here is a short recap of my arrival Saturday.

 

I flew EVA from Vienna to Bangkok direct (the flight then continued on to Taipei), Business Class.  Would recommend if that route works for you, much better than Austrian for similar money, and very nice seat layout.  The only preflight check was my vaccination status and digital was fine.  Onward ticket not checked, and I had a one-way VIE BKK.

 

Arrival was uneventful, I was helped to Fast Track immigration (I asked because it was not mentioned on my boarding pass and the BKK staff were happy to see me, maybe they have a “spendy Falang” counting device.).

 

Immigration was efficient and businesslike.  I was asked about my previous O-A retirement and explained it expired while I was out of country, I would like to please enter Visa Exempt.  Agent said “extension” and I said yes, assuming she was reading mind, as they do.  Asked how long I would stay I said 29 days.  No other documents were required and I was stamped in for 30 days including my arrival day.  The immigration lady was friendly enough but not wasting time.

 

Out of an abundance of caution I had an onward ticket for 28 days out and a cheap but plausible hotel for the first night, both paid in full in advance, total under $100.  This time they were completely superfluous but I don’t regret buying them.

 

Taxi home of course had no change for 1000 ฿ but the doorman happened to have, so low-level fleecing avoided.

 

Hope this is useful to anyone traveling soon!  And do come back to Thailand, it’s lovely here, even if the Chao Phraya is probably going to wash away the drunk Aussies from Jack’s tomorrow. ????

 

 

 

 

[The Hammer2021]

Good report but cheapskate on the change.

How much was trip? Somebody mentioned an alternative  was flying to Singapore?

 

 

[Scott]

Off topic posts removed.  Keep it civil and stay on topic.

 

[Robin]

Thanks for this information. Always good to have some personal experience so as to know what is coming.  

if TAT was on the ball and waned tourists to flock back, they would be publicising these experiences and making sure that all potential tourist knew how easy it could be to enter Thailand, like it used to be with a civilian government.

[blazes]

Two points: the OP mentions that the Immigration Officer at the airport uttered the word "extension"....but your report does not clarify this.  Was she offering you an extension there and then on the spot or was she simply making small talk?

 

Also, someone above mentions that Eva Air's Premium Economy is well worth trying (I can confirm that opinion).  However, I have discovered that their Premium Economy is only available on Boeing 777-300ER (not on Dreamliner).

 

Thus, flying from YVR - BKK you are given the choice, only, of flying Economy $1200 plus or Business Class $5795.

 

[ubonjoe]

8 hours ago, Scott said:

Off topic posts removed.  Keep it civil and stay on topic.

 

And now some more.

[buick]

were you on EVA's 777 or dreamliner ?  the new dreamliner business class looks pretty nice (via pictures).  i am flying to USA on the dreamliner for a one month visit in october.  

[WorriedNoodle]

13 hours ago, FalangTingTong said:

a cheap but plausible hotel for the first night, both paid in full in advance.... I don’t regret buying them.

 

Taxi home of course

If you have a home, why the need to book a hotel you didn't use?

[BusyB]

'Third, people, I’m just trying to add a little info I myself would have found helpful a week ago.  You can be mad about that I guess?'

 

This geezer ain't mad - thanks so much for your report! That's exactly the one-way Eva flight I'll be taking in a few weeks, visa-exempt with a view to Non-O extension, so this report is timely and worth gold to me.

 

I get my 4th jab in a week or so and I've got digital and the WHO yellow booklet.

 

I'll also be buying an onward ticket just in case. It strikes me that a full fare short haul should be refundable. And I always carry €600 in my pocket nowadays, since they did a few spot-checks for that a couple of years ago. 

 

I guess if they really want to I can show them my Airbnb booking.

 

Looks like a piece o' cake. Thanks again!

 

Edited August 15, 2022 by BusyB

[BusyB]

4 hours ago, buick said:

were you on EVA's 777 or dreamliner ?  the new dreamliner business class looks pretty nice (via pictures).  i am flying to USA on the dreamliner for a one month visit in october.  

The 787-10 is scheduled on this route. 

 

One can but hope ????

[Upnotover]

18 hours ago, FalangTingTong said:

Would recommend if that route works for you, much better than Austrian for similar money, and very nice seat layout.

Pity the poor sod (me) who's flying that route in December on OS.  My only solace is in the fact that I managed to snag a pretty low fare for a return from London.

[Robin]

Thailand became a popular tourist destination just because entry was as easy as O/P states, ignoring that he flew J class.

At the time when Thailand tourism was on the rise, anyone could get a cheap ticket to Bangkok and enter on a 30 day, no visa entry, and the have a good time during that 30 days, spending money as they wanted.  Maybe, these people were not the "high quality" tourists that TAT is now dreaming of attracting, but many spent sizeable sums of hard cash in the major destinations.

If TAT and the Junta really wanted to revive Tourism, this is where they should be looking, not dreaming up new entry requirements and confusing restrictions.

Some of this who first came as back-packers clutching LP guides, are now well off in their home countries and might be looking to revisit LOS and revive memories of their youth, and would probably spend more than the Chinese/Indians that TAT is now hoping to attract.

Thailand needs to make entry easy, and o publicise that it is easy.

I am coming back to LOS next week, mainly because I am reassured by what i read here, that entry will be easy, and that as I am fully Vacced, I will be allowed in with no hassle.  

If I had relied on what is on RTE web-site and info on applying for a 'tourist Visa', I would not be travelling.

It is very difficult to think that TAT actually wants tourism to go back to as it was 10yrs ago.