I just received a letter from a friend asking me " Is it best to buy cigarettes & alcohol duty free in England, on the plane (we are flying with Etihad) or at Abu Dhabi where we stop-over or are they just as cheap in Thailand itself. I know that cigarettes at Bangkok airport are about £7 for 200 but I don't know what the prices are actually outside the airport. If you have any ideas I would be grateful for a nod in the right direction"

Hi Ethos,

There are some brands now that are no longer available in Thailand (such as Benson & Hedges).

Although B&H are not sold in Thailand any more they are available at BKK, whereas Marlboro are available in the shops but are not available at the airport.

The pricing is also brand dependant, so if you advise us of the brand that your friend is interested in maybe someone on the forum will be able to advise you of the local price and availibilty of that brand.

The same will apply to spirits, some are easy to get and nearly the same price as in duty free, whereas others are hard to find (if available) and therefore are more expensive in the local (speciality) shops.

Regards,

Tiger.

Edited September 21, 201015 yr by tonytigerbkk

The OP may well have problems, with bought-at-LHR Duty-Free in their hand-baggage, when they go through security in Abu Dhabi to get onto their follow-on flight to Bangkok. The LHR D/F-shop-staff should ask you, for your flight-details, and may then refuse to sell 1-litre of liquid to you.

So buy-in-Abu-Dhabi is my own advice.

Edited September 21, 201015 yr by Ricardo

Abu Dhabi DF is generally cheaper for spirits than Bangkok DF and UK DF so best buy there.

They will certainly be cheaper than bought in country.