Flying Bangkok To Khon Kaen

[peter991]

I am making a quick visit back to Thailand from Australia in early August this year. I am flying Royal Brunei from Perth to BKK but I wanted to fly BKK to KKC (Khon Kaen) with Air Asia but I have just been told that Air Asia have pulled out of the BKK to KKC route.

The only other airline I can find flying to KKC is Thai Airways. Air Asia was 399 baht (plus taxes) compared to Thai Airways 3000 baht (plus taxes). That's per person, one-way.

Two questions:

Is Thai Airways the only carrier from BKK to KKC ?

Is it possible to get a cheaper airfare from BKK to KKC if the ticket is paid personally in Thailand, than by booking it online?

Peter

[bdenner]

Go online and check Nok Air or Bangkok Air

IMO Air Asia will pull out of provincial Thailand in the not too distant future. They have reduced services to Udon Thani from 3 to 1 a day and it is near on impossible to get one of their cheap seats,. After taxes, fuel levies and the like there is not much difference in airfares compared to Thai International and reliability is a factor, the last time I flew with Air Asia they were 2 hours late thus making my international connection a little hurried.

I've been told Nok will cancel flights that do not make minimum passenger quotas.

Paying online is almost always cheaper with all airlines. Cuts out the middle man.

[peter991]

Thanks for the tip, bdenner. Unfortunately neither Nok Air nor Bangkok Airways fly to Khon Kaen. Nok Air does fly to Udon Thani. My partner's village is about half way between Udon Thani and Khon Kaen - but Nok doesn't arrive in Udon Thani until the evening - so it means a wasted day in BKK.

[AsiaWolfie]

399 Bt. airasia and 3000 Bt. ThaiAirways ? Nah, sorry to say, but thats not correct ..... the cheapest seat you can get from airasia is around 800 BT, if the "announced fare" is 399....because they add all "hidden fees" like VAT, fuel surcharge and all that.....so mostly the fees are higher then the announced fare....

ThaiAirways charges 1425 plus 205 (REAL TAXES only !), so the total is 1630 for a one-way, not 3000. then the difference is about 800+ Baht..... certainly, more expensive than airasia used to be before (if you were lucky enough to book early and get a cheapo-fare), but maybe worth the money.... and you have 20 KG baggage check-in (even 30 if u r a ROP-silver-member), not just 15 Kg as with airasia.....

but you said your partner's home is between KKC and UTH ? then why u dont fly to UTH ? at the moment there are still PLENTY of cheapo-fares available in August at 299 Bt., and even if you have to add the notorious fees, it will cost u just about 700 Baht one-way if you book NOW....... have a safe flight.....hmmm....maybe the right time for me to fly to UTH in August too....to see Nongkhai and Laos..... its a bargain really.....

[Krub]

Local regional airports have been build with great expenses looking forward to the cheap carriers (Air Asia, Nok, etc)

What happens is ; where TG was flying 3 times a day out comes a cheap one steals all the customers for the novelty and cheap seats.

TG cuts its 3 flights to one.

The cheap carrier realizes after a few months that it s not worth it and pulls out of the route by 1 flight

The customer is left with only 2 flights a day instead of three and then not on the same carrier !

This happened in the States with deregulation and local routes have sufferred

It always leaves us the bus !

[Neeranam]

I am flying to Australia in a few weeks too.

I heard that Air Asia has cancelled their flights for only 30 days from July 2.

I used to fly down and back from Khon Kaen every week. I got the 99 baht flights which worked out as around 250 baht, cheaper than the bus(302 baht).

I got a flight a couple of weeks ago for 600 baht including tax, insurance.

Thai are now 1200 one way, if you book online.

I take the bus sometimes if I am leaving Bkk late. 23.30 leaving Mor Chit and arriving KK at 05.30. I can sleep ok on the nakhon Chai Air buses, they have built in back massagers, and a good time to arrive in KK.