Unacceptably Long Lines At Immigration!

[mrtoad]

I was at the airport last Wednesday morning. No waiting at Jetstar, processed in 2 minutes. Wander over to immigration at 7.50am to see a mass of people not far off overflowing into the main hall. As a rough guess I'd say there would have been 18 immigration staff working, each line had 25-30 people waiting. Even the diplomatic line was just as long which is the one many Thai Visa members use... Took about 35 minutes for me to get attended to.

Surprisingly in Singapore it took about 15 minutes to get stamped in, longest I've ever waited. Seems everything is at a crawl in Singapore due to the escape of a terrorist. Truck drivers at the land border are being finger printed and the newspaper was reporting waits of 15 hours for them to cross.

Returning on Saturday night immigration was deserted but it was still taking a minimum of 3 minutes per person to be processed.

Taxi touts are still out in force. I must be getting old as they were all offering to take me to Pattaya and I wasn't even wearing a football shirt!

If anyone wants to see how good Suvarnabhumi could have been then you need only go to the new Terminal 3 in Singapore. Now that's how you set up a world class airport.

Yep, just got abck into Swampy this evening, immigration in was pretty quick for there, about 10 minute wait although fairly quiet, I'd hate to have arriced at a busier time. Singapore, as always was a pleasure to transit in and out of. It really isn't rocket science to provide what Changi does, and Swamp being a new airport should certainly be better than it is.

As for the Taxi touts, totallyout in force this evenng, one chased me nearly all the way to the public taxi stand waivihng a badge in front of me telling me he was an authorised taxi. I politley told him to get lost, which he clearly understood, but it really isn't a good image that the airport is portraying.

Edited March 9, 2008 by mrtoad

[wanderer9020]

suvanabhumi doesnt have the same level with changi, so theres no need to compare

[mrtoad]

suvanabhumi doesnt have the same level with changi, so theres no need to compare

Well, there is no comparison, but it interesting that KL, Hong Kong and Changi are all realtively new airports or have new terminals like T3 at Changi, but seem to have far less problems than Swammpy. If they want to be classified as a hub, then they have a long, long way to go.

[jeffer]

suvanabhumi doesnt have the same level with changi, so theres no need to compare

Can't agree. I think there is every reason to compare when it's obvious one place has got it right first go and one certainly has not. Wasn't Suvanabhumi supposed to be another Thai hub? Can you imagine what things would be like if traffic were ever to raise to the same level as in Singapore.

I'll be glad when they finally get the train service running and I can maybe be done with the taxi touts although they are probably formulating some plan to monopolize all the taxi stands at the train stations. I will say that when you do make it to the taxi desk that lately I haven't had any problem getting a taxi to use the meter which is one good thing. Forgot to mention that when I went outside there was hardly anyone around to harass me this time. Chatted briefly to what seemed to be a senior security person who said he was there to help stop people being set upon and yes, there was no one within 100 metres of him compared to other times when there were a bunch of touts just waiting to pounce.

[Howard]

If Thailand wishes to become a hub and wants to further increase tourism it needs to work hard to improve the immigration system at the airport. Many departing from BKK have their memories of Thailand soured by the experience of passport control.

A week or so back I left via Jetstar. After a 15 hour delay it took an hour to check in. Then an hour in Passport Control. You can imagine how much fun that was with a two year old in my care!

If anything it was worse than Don Muang and quite frankly at the time I swore and declared I will never come back unless this is fixed. It is all very fine to carry on about how wonderful it is with Royal Silk, etc but that does not represent the experience of most travellers.

Howard

[Captain Chaos]

In my opinion you would be cutting it to fine. If I were you I would show up around 5:30am. But then again, I do not like to be in a rush....

Anyway, what I really fail to understand as a Frequent flier is how I can clear the immigration (inbound or outbound) in Singapore in 2 minutes max (never had more then 2 people in front of me at any time of the day), but at our great new Aviation Hub I takes most of the times at least 20 minutes ("best" was 90 minutes!)?? Ah, wait.....they admit they do not have enough immigration staff now, after more then one year of operation. But then again, if they say that we should keep "45-60 minutes for immigration procedures" I might have been lucky until now

Wow! OK, thanks for that - looks like an 05.00 start which means getting up at 04.30 on Monday ... wibble ...

Got up at 04.00 Monday to catch the 07.45 SQ flight to Singapore ... got to the airport about 05.20 ... had to wait 10 mins for the check in staff to arrive but obviously no problem checking in as only 3 or 4 other people there with me. Headed for immigration, took a deep breath and steeled myself for a massive queue and ... there wasn't one, just 6 or 7 people in each line (I noted more people in the Thai lines than the foreigner ones). So I was in the lounge by 05.50 and had a nice brekkie and surfed the sports pages before making a leisurely walk to the gate...

Actually, the queues at Changi immigration were longer than Swampy as a flight had just got in from the Phillippines and those folks never get processed quickly - luckily as I have an Employment Pass I get to use the resident's line

So did I just get Swampy on a good morning or have they drafted additional immigration officers in? I hope it's the latter as this early Monday morning routine might become a regular drill for me...

CC

[mrtoad]

In my opinion you would be cutting it to fine. If I were you I would show up around 5:30am. But then again, I do not like to be in a rush....

Anyway, what I really fail to understand as a Frequent flier is how I can clear the immigration (inbound or outbound) in Singapore in 2 minutes max (never had more then 2 people in front of me at any time of the day), but at our great new Aviation Hub I takes most of the times at least 20 minutes ("best" was 90 minutes!)?? Ah, wait.....they admit they do not have enough immigration staff now, after more then one year of operation. But then again, if they say that we should keep "45-60 minutes for immigration procedures" I might have been lucky until now

Wow! OK, thanks for that - looks like an 05.00 start which means getting up at 04.30 on Monday ... wibble ...

Got up at 04.00 Monday to catch the 07.45 SQ flight to Singapore ... got to the airport about 05.20 ... had to wait 10 mins for the check in staff to arrive but obviously no problem checking in as only 3 or 4 other people there with me. Headed for immigration, took a deep breath and steeled myself for a massive queue and ... there wasn't one, just 6 or 7 people in each line (I noted more people in the Thai lines than the foreigner ones). So I was in the lounge by 05.50 and had a nice brekkie and surfed the sports pages before making a leisurely walk to the gate...

Actually, the queues at Changi immigration were longer than Swampy as a flight had just got in from the Phillippines and those folks never get processed quickly - luckily as I have an Employment Pass I get to use the resident's line

So did I just get Swampy on a good morning or have they drafted additional immigration officers in? I hope it's the latter as this early Monday morning routine might become a regular drill for me...

CC

Think you may have hit it lucky CC, the last 3 times I have flown to S'pore in the last 5 months I have taken the 07.45 flight and immigration has been a nightmare. Once on a Monday and twice on a Wednesday. Last Wednesday was bloody awful. I am sure that I will find out again come April, when I head back down.

[legag]

Think you may have hit it lucky CC, the last 3 times I have flown to S'pore in the last 5 months I have taken the 07.45 flight and immigration has been a nightmare. Once on a Monday and twice on a Wednesday. Last Wednesday was bloody awful. I am sure that I will find out again come April, when I head back down.

And in April is going to get worse as it is a high season, Thai New Year and all. Welcome to Thailand

[mrtoad]

Think you may have hit it lucky CC, the last 3 times I have flown to S'pore in the last 5 months I have taken the 07.45 flight and immigration has been a nightmare. Once on a Monday and twice on a Wednesday. Last Wednesday was bloody awful. I am sure that I will find out again come April, when I head back down.

And in April is going to get worse as it is a high season, Thai New Year and all. Welcome to Thailand

Yeah, but I've even done it in low season and it still isn't very good. A pretty poor effort considering the airport is only a couple of years old.

[PadThaiGuy]

That AOT probably has budgeted for staff to man the counters but most likely, a bunch of those employees are "ghosts.".

Someone collects the paychecks for all these "no shows."

[david96]

I think you will find that 90% of incoming passengers on a flight are processed through immigration within 30 minutes on an average. (From when the first passenger arrives at the immigration desk)

Departing passengers should clear immigration as soon as practicable after check-in at the airline counter.

It does help if you can read English or Thai. Cards in other languages would help.

Edited March 18, 2008 by david96

[mrtoad]

I think you will find that 90% of incoming passengers on a flight are processed through immigration within 30 minutes on an average. (From when the first passenger arrives at the immigration desk)

Departing passengers should clear immigration as soon as practicable after check-in at the airline counter.

It does help if you can read English or Thai. Cards in other languages would help.

My experience of Swampy has been problems at Immigration going out, it must be one of the slowest outgoing immigrations in the world. In most countries they're normally glad to see the back of you.

[thaigene2]

Well again - I just don't see why people are complaining about this.

BELIEVE me, I'd moan if there was a reason - but the only queues I've ever encountered are upon LEAVING the country (as I said before a bit weird) but rarely arriving. It's never been more than 20 minutes for me. I traveled often to Britain, Canada, US and all the SE Asian countries as well as China, Japan and Korea. So I simply don't get it..

What's the prob? Don't like Thai Immigration? Try US/Canada! Plan on a one-hour (minimum) queue - jet lagged!

[jeffer]

Well again - I just don't see why people are complaining about this.

What's not to get. Luck of the draw, time of the day, short staffed, whatever, many people, including myself, have encountered lengthy delays at immigration which for a new airport isn't good enough. If you haven't experienced this then lucky for you. Returning to Thailand I've found it 50-50. Either I'm through within 15 minutes or it's been an hour or longer waiting with hundreds of others in lines that barely move. At Don Muang I can't recall waiting more than 20 minutes when entering the country, ever.

[Kerryd]

Well, when departing it's quite often "luck of the draw" whether or not there are long lines or not. The last time I encountered an overflowing (outgoing) Immigration line, I went to grab a bite to eat instead. 45 minutes later I came back to fully empty lines.

On arriving, one has to remember (and plan for) the fact that just your plane alone probably has 300+ passengers. If you let someone else do your travel arrangements for you, and end up sitting economy class, window seat, row 55, well, it's probably going to take you 20-30 minutes just to get off the plane. Then you've got almost the entire plane load of people already ahead of you. Little wonder theres a line-up at the Immigration counters.

Even when I do have to fly cattle class (not too often thankfully), I try to make sure I get an aisle seat as far forward as I can. My Arrival card is filled out by the time we reach the Thai border, and as soon as the plane starts it's descent into Bkk, my carry-on is tucked under the seat in front of me.

Just as the plane is about to stop at the gate, off goes the seatbelt, out comes the carry-on and (usually) the moment the attendants start to unbuckle, I'm up and heading for the door. I'm always amazed at how many people step into the aisle, grab their carry-on from the overhead, and then start packing all their crap into it, while the rest of the passengers are forced to wait.

Once into the causeways, it's every passenger for themselves as I power march down the "walkalators". Speed is of the essence. By the time I get to the Immigration counter, my passport and Arrival Card are already in hand. Badda bing, badda boom I'm through and heading for the door. I've gone from aircraft stopping to outside the terminal in 22 minutes (from economy class seats, including waiting for a checked bag).

Now I generally travel Business Class when possible, and try not to take more than a carry-on bag. Luck was on my side last trip, as my plane ended up at a gate barely a 100 meters or so from the Immigration counter. I didn't even have time to start sweating or run out of breath before I got to the counter.

I'll time it again when I arrive in a couple of weeks, just for giggles.

[Captain Chaos]

I can't figure out the pattern in the 'queue / no queue' syndrome at Swampy - came in on Thursday, arrived 22.20 on my regular flight up from SG. There's usually a fairly long queue (say 10 pax at each booth) - this week, only 3 people in front of me (and only a short wait for the taxi too so I was home by 23.45 having a beer). Thumbs up so far...

... today going through immigration at around 14.00 the lines were nearly back to the entrance from the departures hall. Guess the wait wasn't all that bad - say 20 mins or so - but still a bit amateurish having half the booths unmanned at what appeared such a busy period... Thumbs down for today I'm afraid ...

Mixed results again - not the worst airport in the world by any stretch but still not anywhere as good as it should be given how new it is and how much it cost (and yes, compared to some of the local competitors, it sucks)

CC

Edit: noted warning on my boarding pass to 'allow time to clear immigration due to congestion' or words to that effect...

Edited March 23, 2008 by Captain Chaos

[cheshiremusicman]

Personally I have only experienced one long delay at Immigration. Most of the time I have whizzed through with minimal fuss.

However threads like this only serve to lessen the real problems and bad experiences people have with Immigration services at the new airport and childishly mock those with real grievances.

Flew out to Hong Kong last week at midday and it took nearly 60 minutes to get through passport control- absolutely blxxdly rediculous, and the 'Officers' just couldn't have cared less. Some of them only did 10 minutes at their station and then changed over - must be the stress of the job or maybe the weight of all those ribbons they have on their jackets, do you think that they get them for 'exemplary delay tactics'? Arrived HK and it took under 2 minutes to exit passport control and the same on the way back. Not too bad on the way back to BKK as we arrived at 0030 and it took some 10 mins to get through - even that it is too dxmn long.

Most assuredly, FACTOR IN ONE EXTRA HOUR FOR PASSPORT CONTROL WHEN LEAVING BANGKOK AIRPORT.

[Naam]

Most assuredly, FACTOR IN ONE EXTRA HOUR FOR PASSPORT CONTROL WHEN LEAVING BANGKOK AIRPORT.

flew on tuesday 11th from Bangkok to Macau (departure around 14.00). immigration took perhaps 10 minutes. returned tuesday 18th (21.00). Mrs went for a pee, i bought a few items at the duty free shop then went to immigration, nobody waiting, immigration officers seemed to be bored, presented my passport and after 3 minutes i was through. were we just lucky? Mrs flies out every other month but never said something about any delay at immigration.

[Kerryd]

Fastest trip through Swampy so far !

Plane stopped at the gate (around E-6) at 08:28. I was through Immigration and outside the terminal in less than 19 minutes (no checked baggage to wait for though).

While doing my usual speed march from the plane to the first Immigration checkpoint, I noticed that another plane had landed about the same time (our flight was actually about 20 minutes late in arriving, not bad considering we didn't even start loading the plane in Dubai until well after the (original) departure time was long gone).

When I got to the checkpoint, there wasn't many people (50ish), all queued up at the middle 6 counters. A uniformed chap was waving people down to the lines on the left. I looked at the closest line (in the middle) and there were only 4 people ahead of me. Not bad I thought. But I was waved off towards the counters on the far left as well. I got over there and saw that there was 1 person at each counter and no line ups !

Maybe what, 3 minutes total to get through and head for the door.

Some friends of mine that were in cattle class showed up outside the terminal about 40 minutes later, but in all fairness, they apparently had to wait a fair bit for their checked baggage to appear on the belt.

Hopefully things are just as quick on the way out next month !

[pop_corn]

I hate to wait such a long time..

[JAS21]

I hate to wait such a long time..

Arrived back from Sydney about 11pm last night. Luckily we were first off the plane. Long walk to Imm. unfortunately...guess they don't like BA. When we reached the lines I noticed that there were only about 5 or so people in each of 'Non-Thai' line's. I went through the 'Thai Only channel' with my wife..just one person in front of us. Then I noticed that a few people in the 'Non-Thai' lines' were being re-directed to Thai Only line..things are looking up!

Longest wait was for luggage, about 10mins (golf clubs come off at a different place..fortunately we knew that and wife went off to get them).

Just cleared customs and was asked by smart looking guy in Yellow Jacket..want a taxi?...ignored him (there were quite a few 'yellow jackets' about. Anyway went up to Departures. First cab we saw wanted 500Baht flat rate...so we left him to go and queue up with all the other taxis at arrivals..suppose he thought it was worth a try! Next cab grabbed us and off we went on his meter.

Absolutely no complaints.........

As it happened when we arrived at Sydney, had the same experience with taxis..was 'asked' by a suited guy where were we going..told him and he said 60 Dollars..I knew the fair should be about 40 Dollars so looked around and found the metered taxi queue..luckily no queue. Taxi prices a little more there!!!!!!!

[dekka007]

Yesterday morning 9am. First immigration section about 10-20 in each queue. Next immigration section 0 people and 10 immigration officials waiting for arrivals. Yup ZERO in the queue - took 10 seconds to clear.

People just don't move to the next immigration area and if there is a queue pick one with 2 officials per queue not the single immigration officer queues.

Common sense I guess.

[merijn]

It is difficult to say went there are lines or not.

My experience is just the other way around.

I always arrive around 13:00 and until 5 months ago I almost never experienced any problems with the immigration, maybe 3 people in line max.

From the last 5 months until now every time I see “very” long lines before immigration with all type of people ( I mean from all areas ).

Maybe it is season related or the fact that the immigration section is under staffed I don’t know.

For this reason and the fact that hate to wait in lines after an long flight I organized myself an fast track silver card so I can use the diplomat line.