Suvarnabhumi Airport

[xyborg]

Am I the only one who finds the inside of the airport a confusing mess? On returning home to the UK last time I tried to find the Emirates Business lounge, it took ages signs said up then when up they said down, staff hadn't a clue etc, found it by chance in the end. When I arrive now i have to walk down miles of corridors too just to get to immigration.

[markr]

Sounds like most other airports

[londonthai]

yes, the first time the signs were confusing - now I just remember where to go

[chicowoodduck]

yes, the first time the signs were confusing - now I just remember where to go

I'm in the same boat, just follow my bread crumbs from my previous trips......... Forget trying to figure out the sign mess at the majority of world-wide airports.

[howtoescape]

Ive arrived here 4 times now and it is the fastest airport to get through immigration i have ever been to, dont know what all the complaining is about.

[britmaveric]

Shopping mall design, not an airport.

[meemiathai]

Am I the only one who finds the inside of the airport a confusing mess? On returning home to the UK last time I tried to find the Emirates Business lounge, it took ages signs said up then when up they said down, staff hadn't a clue etc, found it by chance in the end. When I arrive now i have to walk down miles of corridors too just to get to immigration.

I must agree that not much effort had been put to accomodate blind people.

BTW, your post has improved. Where are all those strange symbols?

(just joking!)

[TheDon]

I dont know about you guys, but i love it, never had a problem there and i love the design.

But people will have different experiences with it and different opinions

[Rinrada]

Like it also ..and...... the Thai First Class Lounge is very nice as well.....

[Crash999]

Ive arrived here 4 times now and it is the fastest airport to get through immigration i have ever been to, dont know what all the complaining is about.

Hrm... I arrived on Sunday and spent over an hour in line at immigration. Massive queue at the 'foreigner' counters with no line at the crew counter and very short lines at the Thai counters- amazingly enough for the first hour neither the officers at the crew or Thai desks were waving any foreigners over. I asked the officer when I reached the front what was going on- she told me the computers had been going up and down all day.

Contrast this with HK- the thumbprint scanners usually have me through in less than a minute.

[Flash500]

On returning home to the UK last time I tried to find the Emirates Business lounge,

I wish I had the problem of finding nice lounges ......all I do is head for the nearest smokin room and wait...

[Crash999]

I dont know about you guys, but i love it, never had a problem there and i love the design.

But people will have different experiences with it and different opinions

I really want to like the new airport but it just doesn't measure up to other regional hubs. It's about 90% of the way there but the 10% that's missing to me is very disappointing. Some examples:

- Lack of clear signage (missing or paper signs taped up)

- Dark, long, barren corridors

- Relatively poor lighting (fixtures but only half or 1/3 of lights turned on)

- Fit and finish issues (exposed wires and piping, lighting fixtures with large part number stickers still attached, non-functional sinks and toilets, exposed piping, etc)

- Awful arrival/greeting area (crowded, directions confusing, taxi issues)

[cooL_guY_corY]

Ive never had a bad experience there, but its just a let down..

Get off a 10 hour flight or something and the bathroom has 1 urinal.. just craziness.

I think its nice and its modern.. but it could have been so much more... there was so much potential. I love Incheon or HK.. just seems like they had a great chance and they dropped the ball..

[tw25rw]

I dont know about you guys, but i love it, never had a problem there and i love the design.

But people will have different experiences with it and different opinions

I really want to like the new airport but it just doesn't measure up to other regional hubs. It's about 90% of the way there but the 10% that's missing to me is very disappointing. Some examples:

- Lack of clear signage (missing or paper signs taped up)

- Dark, long, barren corridors

- Relatively poor lighting (fixtures but only half or 1/3 of lights turned on)

- Fit and finish issues (exposed wires and piping, lighting fixtures with large part number stickers still attached, non-functional sinks and toilets, exposed piping, etc)

- Awful arrival/greeting area (crowded, directions confusing, taxi issues)

And the walkway message in "English" -"End of Wok".

I don't find it bad at all. It's a nice modern building , much nicer than Heathrow (terminals 1-4 anyway). Only real issues for me are the taxi touts and some long waits for baggage.. I put that down to it being Thailand.

[denboy]

Must admitt that I am not impressed with the new airport, I think everyone expected something better than the end product.

However this is Thailand, you only have to look around at all the various projects which leave a lot to be desired at their completion.

Before my first visit to the airport I spend a few minutes on the airport website and located the gates,lounges etc,. It still took a while to find my way around but if you arrive early have a wander and get your bearings.

On the other side of the coin I think Heathrow a more confusing and ball breaking airport even for a Britisher to navigate. Imagine the confusion the average Thai must face if not accompanied. At least at Survanarbhumi you can find some English speaking airport staff. What of Heathrow. ( my golly gosh)

[Crossy]

At least at Survanarbhumi you can find some English speaking airport staff. What of Heathrow. ( my golly gosh)

Hindi works very nicely at Heathrow

Want a BAD airport, try Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Manila, all are dire compared to Swampypoom.

[Travel2003]

Ahh, the good old Suvarnabhumi. Already starts to look old.

Thnx to this airport we never run out of subjects to discuss.

The never ending story.

True, many airports around the world, which is already mentioned here indeed are far worse then Suvarnabhumi.

But then again, they are also normally old, worn out airports.

After all the hype about Suvarnabhumi before and during the building period, they really deserve all the critic.

This was supposed to be the new hub in the region. Made to process 48 million Pax per year. Correct me please if the number is not correct.

The point is that they bragged so much about the airport, before it was even opened.

No wonder one of the very first issues brought up by the Junta was the airport.

[1Lucky]

Ive arrived here 4 times now and it is the fastest airport to get through immigration i have ever been to, dont know what all the complaining is about.

Hrm... I arrived on Sunday and spent over an hour in line at immigration. Massive queue at the 'foreigner' counters with no line at the crew counter and very short lines at the Thai counters- amazingly enough for the first hour neither the officers at the crew or Thai desks were waving any foreigners over. I asked the officer when I reached the front what was going on- she told me the computers had been going up and down all day.

Contrast this with HK- the thumbprint scanners usually have me through in less than a minute.

I was leaving the other day and had to wait for an hour immigration just to get stamped out of the country. It got to the point where I was very worried I was going to miss my plane so I politely asked the guy at the empty diplomatic queue what I could do and if he could help me - he came across as aloof and ignorant of gate closing times, etc. I was flying to India and the immigration officials at the India end on entering India couldn't have been more helpful. Returning to Thailand like everyone else I had to ignore the riff-raff of touts as I exited and the signs recommending the rip-off AOT limo's 'for my safety' and the comparative lack of signs directing me to the standard city taxis. I don't accept the 'This is thailand' approach as their are so many fantastic things about Thailand which is why I love it so much - more like this is the Airport Authority of Thailand...

Lucky

[yorkman]

I dunno, I have been in and out 4 times since it opened. The first time in was 1 day after it opened, remember the luggage fiasco??

After 40 minutes at at the carousel, I was, along with my fellow passengers, starting to get a bit p*****d off!

Then , by itself, up popped a battered old suitcase. I was intreagued as smiles erupted as it went past people. Then I saw the note attached. In Thai and Tinglish it said "Very sorry, your bags will be there soon"

10 minutes later a few girls turned up with sandwiches and cans of soft drinks. Seen this before in an airport? Of course it was the "soft soap" as said in the UK, the managers don't want a bad word said, but I just relaxed, sat down and carried on reading a book. It's Thailand, it made me laugh.

Never since have I had any problem, although I do believe people who say it happens. It's not exactly a top league airport but I have seen much much worse. Heathrow anybody? But hey, who adds tales about smooth journeys??

I have probably jinxed myself now and next time will be a nightmare

[tartempion]

Who needs a business lounge at an aiprort?

They don't want you to miss the useless/expensive shops though

Oh well, next Savanaboum vist early Jan I will try to find the expensive foodcourt located at Domestic towards gates A

Yeah, I know where the Magic foodcourt is and where to find two Family marts, but I'll be hungry AFTER check inn.

Hate waiting at the gate

[Beardog]

And don't forget about the taxi scam, suppose to have a free service to the terminal to go back to Pattaya. After getting roped after a 14hr. journey the taxi dude told me we go to Bangkok & it is only 2 more hours from there <deleted>, Gave him 20 baht for the circle jerkin & caught the real bus.

At least they built the cracks in the runway big enough to store those special pipes full of baht! Repairs soon on the way. maybe a real surface opposed to tons of sand. I guess the sand truckloads were a better way for the brass to skim funds!

The actual design is nice-albeit the lack of skilled workers that did the wiring.Thank god they didn't build the Jets also or it would be 2 please for the sucked out & ingested in the turbine section!

[Beardog]

Am I the only one who finds the inside of the airport a confusing mess? On returning home to the UK last time I tried to find the Emirates Business lounge, it took ages signs said up then when up they said down, staff hadn't a clue etc, found it by chance in the end. When I arrive now i have to walk down miles of corridors too just to get to immigration.

I must agree that not much effort had been put to accomodate blind people.

BTW, your post has improved. Where are all those strange symbols?

(just joking!)

At least the blind people can't see the cracks in the runway!

[xyborg]

<br />Who needs a business lounge at an aiprort?<br /><br />They don't want you to miss the useless/expensive shops though <img src="style_emoticons/default/huh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="huh.gif" /> <br /><br />Oh well, next Savanaboum vist early Jan I will try to find the expensive foodcourt located at Domestic towards gates A <img src="style_emoticons/default/dry.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="<_<" border="0" alt="dry.gif" /> <br /><br />Yeah, I know where the Magic foodcourt is and where to find two Family marts, but I'll be hungry AFTER check inn.<br />Hate waiting at the gate <img src="style_emoticons/default/rolleyes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="rolleyes.gif" /><br />

<br /><br /><br />

Me! 7 hours from the Uk to Dubai straight into the business lounge free wifi, fantastic food/drink eat all u can free, have a kip no riff raff then jump on connecting flight for the next 6 hours anything from 2 to 8 hours later mmmmmm lovely. Alternative is to slump on the floor in the building with all the Indians.

[micksterbs]

I dunno, I have been in and out 4 times since it opened. The first time in was 1 day after it opened, remember the luggage fiasco??

After 40 minutes at at the carousel, I was, along with my fellow passengers, starting to get a bit p*****d off!

Then , by itself, up popped a battered old suitcase. I was intreagued as smiles erupted as it went past people. Then I saw the note attached. In Thai and Tinglish it said "Very sorry, your bags will be there soon"

10 minutes later a few girls turned up with sandwiches and cans of soft drinks. Seen this before in an airport? Of course it was the "soft soap" as said in the UK, the managers don't want a bad word said, but I just relaxed, sat down and carried on reading a book. It's Thailand, it made me laugh.

Never since have I had any problem, although I do believe people who say it happens. It's not exactly a top league airport but I have seen much much worse. Heathrow anybody? But hey, who adds tales about smooth journeys??

I have probably jinxed myself now and next time will be a nightmare

Hahaha! That brings back some memories; I was probably standing next to you. This was my first time in Thailand to stay! Scarey. I remember the suitcase very well; still have a photo of it somewhere. Just had to laugh, really. Problem was, my connection to Khon Kaen was getting closer and closer and still no luggage. I needn't have worried; that was late too! Jeez...

[billp]

Last time I went through it took me a total of 15 minutes. I was just about first off the aircraft because I was in the front of the front-most Economy compartment. I picked a short line at Immigration with only two ahead of me, so that took only 5 minutes. The baggage was coming into a belt a couple of rooms over, so it took me 5 minutes to get there. By the time I had arrived my cases were already circling the belt. It took me maybe 5 more minutes to get them onto a cart, push it through Customs and out into the scrum.

"Mai ao, khrap."

"Mai ao, khrap."

"No, thank-you."

"No, thanks."

"Mai ao, khrap."

"Mai ao, khrap."

"Mai AO!"

...and then out to the taxis where there was no line-up. Literally 15 minutes from the moment I set foot on the skybridge to sitting in a taxi on my way into town.

[Rinrada]

Who needs a business lounge at an aiprort?

They don't want you to miss the useless/expensive shops though

Oh well, next Savanaboum vist early Jan I will try to find the expensive foodcourt located at Domestic towards gates A

Yeah, I know where the Magic foodcourt is and where to find two Family marts, but I'll be hungry AFTER check inn.

Hate waiting at the gate

Yes please ...Nothing can beat that first Gin and Tonic....G over a full glass of ice cubes...not crushed...2 slices of lemon on top ..or lime Ok ...and then pour over the Sweeeeeeps Tonic and let it caress the mixture and listen for the crackle of the ice melting.....and all FREE....

Whether its the London L /Singapores at Heathrow T 4,KLM-Odgens in Amsterdam,NZ Kiwi L wotever in Kingsford Smith or just the good old jolly RTAir First or even Buzz in Suwanna/Don M/Chiangers ..........YES please......

Could have a pole on Lounges....

[yorkman]

I dunno, I have been in and out 4 times since it opened. The first time in was 1 day after it opened, remember the luggage fiasco??

After 40 minutes at at the carousel, I was, along with my fellow passengers, starting to get a bit p*****d off!

Then , by itself, up popped a battered old suitcase. I was intreagued as smiles erupted as it went past people. Then I saw the note attached. In Thai and Tinglish it said "Very sorry, your bags will be there soon"

10 minutes later a few girls turned up with sandwiches and cans of soft drinks. Seen this before in an airport? Of course it was the "soft soap" as said in the UK, the managers don't want a bad word said, but I just relaxed, sat down and carried on reading a book. It's Thailand, it made me laugh.

Never since have I had any problem, although I do believe people who say it happens. It's not exactly a top league airport but I have seen much much worse. Heathrow anybody? But hey, who adds tales about smooth journeys??

I have probably jinxed myself now and next time will be a nightmare

Hahaha! That brings back some memories; I was probably standing next to you. This was my first time in Thailand to stay! Scarey. I remember the suitcase very well; still have a photo of it somewhere. Just had to laugh, really. Problem was, my connection to Khon Kaen was getting closer and closer and still no luggage. I needn't have worried; that was late too! Jeez...

Well you should have said hello, sat on my ass as I was with a slightly tasty cheese sandwich, all I wanted to do was get HOME

Put up the photo if you find it really.. was funny though eh? Thailand..love it..expect the unexpected

Edited December 20, 2007 by yorkman