Ready To Book My Flight

traveller57 · August 3, 2005

hi all,ive been a member for a while but its my first post.

ive been planning a trip for a while now but didnt have the cojones to do it on my own.ive got a friend to come now so ive got a flight price from manchester-bangkok with flight centre uk ltd for £561.the dates are 17 jan 06-15 feb 06.how does that sound price wise i mean?,ok?

my rough plan is an overnight stay in bangkok, then a week in pattaya then have a look at the islands.were gonna book on saturday.ill repost when ive booked.any advice (exept dont buy passports from uk algerians ) cheers all

valentinoxxx · August 4, 2005

£561 is not the cheapest....

http://www.ebookers.com have lower fares. Swiss is recommended.

Steve2UK · August 4, 2005

Compare with these as well:

http://www.expedia.co.uk/

http://www.opodo.co.uk/

http://www.cheapflights.co.uk/

Rinrada · August 4, 2005

Reasonably High time of year and all depends on airline and timetable but prob about right.

Flight Centre incid.keep telling me that if any other outfit can beat any of their quotes they will undercut but you will need a print out of estimate ..ie from Ebookers in order that they can double check and confirm.Its worth a go but has to be exactly the same route,company time etc....

I regular chat to our local (F.C) branch but I have got a habit of leaving it a bit late to book so no time for them to as said double check....maybe have a go before my next jolly around October...

Re dodgy passports.....yes avoid ....even dodgier poms trying to flog you anything else ....eh mate wanna buy a timeshare.....condos...beer bar...passport....%^&...nice little earner......

apdare · August 4, 2005

Flying from Manchester I would recommend Emirates as the best, and not too expensive.

If you are after the lowest price then have a look for Quatar or Turkish.

best of luck

Andrew

traveller57 · August 4, 2005

hi guys, thanks for the replies.i didnt have the e mail notifications turned on but ive sorted it now.ive just done a quick search on cheap flights.co.uk and ive got the price down to £464.(sounds better!)ill have a meet with my mate and search all the other suggestions made.thanks for the advice,will keep you informed. thanks again,dave

Thaipwriter · August 4, 2005

if its not too late to look try www.ebookers.com they have Emirates flights at ace rates.

Avoid Thai Airways because the scumbags have just announced intentions to charge foreigners more money than Thai's.

Advice: bone plenty of girls,dont fall in love, wear a strong jimmy cap enjoy

STEALTH K3 · August 4, 2005

How much dont do it........ Try travelbag.co.uk or West East Travel on 08702201001 WEST EAST do good rates with EVA & THAIAIRWAYS I am gonig in November they are quoting £440 ish I cant see there being much differance when you want to go. You wont save big money flying indirectly also.

tso310 · August 4, 2005

Check if fuel surcharges have been included.

traveller57 · August 4, 2005

tso310

>Check if fuel surcharges have been included<

im in the process of doing that now, by the time you put the taxes on they all end up around the £520 plus mark.the sticking point at the mo is that the guy coming with me is having one month in thailand,making his own way to manilla for 2 months then flying from manilla to manchester on his original return ticket.hes working overtime tinight (ha ha,ive already saved)so well meet tomorrow.keep you informed,thanks,dave

traveller57 · August 5, 2005

right,done loads of searches,got a headache but heres the results.

expedia.co.uk£497

opodo.co.uk£524

turkish airlines £510

cheap flights.co.uk give you 5 different search results.these are

online travel.com£484

last minute.com£509

BA £694!

e bookers £520

airline network £510

phew!

lol.it seems you pay around £115 average tax.the prices i quoted are inc. of tax

the plan is now,were going into manchester on saturday to the flight center so ill have a word with the guy there.the reason were sticking at that is because my mate whos coming with me has to make his own way to manilla where hes staying for 2 more months ,then he flys back to manchester from manilla.his ticket is £620.he only has to pay from bkk to manilla (how much is that?)if i can talk him into staying in manilla for 1 month, i may do that with him.were definately doing it, he went to the phillipines twice last year.thailand has always been a dream of mine so id rather go there than the phillipines.

so,online travel.com were cheapest with £484 to BA £694

watch this space guys, cheers, dave

traveller57 · August 7, 2005

well,all booked i ended up getting the £561 KLM on the 17 jan.-15 feb.thanks for your comments,im off to the pattaya forum to find oput more about it.cheers all, dave

chaiyapoon · August 7, 2005

West East offering Thai air at £450 and with a 6 month return period until end of the month.Doubt you will better that for direct flight.Thai air has always had preferential rates for Thais anyway so why make a fuss now?Just heard about it?

If you get involved with Thailand and the Thai people you start to realise there is a lot more of this going on than is seen on the surface.

STEALTH K3 · August 7, 2005

West East also offering with EVA £380 must book by the 12th August

Davey · August 8, 2005

561 seems extremely reasonable, but if you can get cheaper then obviously go for it. My first flight to los last year was 660 with BA so I suppose that would put it into context.

Never knew you could get flights direct to los from uk in and around the 400 margin. You will obviously be sacrificing comfort and quality etc?

Jack Jones · August 8, 2005

I think you'd be sacrificing comfort and quality by flying with BA. I always fly with Thai direct to Bkk for around £400 - £500 depending on the time of the year. Seats are larger than average, entertainment isn't great at the moment but then I spend 90% of the flight asleep.

Never flown with Eva but heard good reports about them. Again, they are way cheaper than BA/Qantas.

chaiyapoon · August 8, 2005

561 seems extremely reasonable, but if you can get cheaper then obviously go for it. My first flight to los last year was 660 with BA so I suppose that would put it into context.

Never knew you could get flights direct to los from uk in and around the 400 margin. You will obviously be sacrificing comfort and quality etc?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

As long as you use a decent carrier Eva,Thai air,BA etc should have no real problems need to watch the offers that come out and when at a level you are happy with buy in.Certainly £400-£500 should get you a direct flight most times of the year(Xmas period can get more expensive)

grahamb · August 9, 2005

Going back to your mate's flight to Manila... I don't know the current price and don't have time to search now but I would definitely recommend getting it here (or at least checking prices here) if he can. I'm planning a work trip to Europe and if I get a European ticket issued by the travel agent here, they will charge me 3 times more than if I get it issued by an agent there. That is probably an extreme example but he may find that Flight Centre are in a similar situation - the airlines don't like agents in country A (UK) issuing tickets for a flight from country B (Thailand) and therefore often only make the expensive fares available.

Of course, if he has already booked it and this is too late, don't tell him!!

apdare · August 9, 2005

What all you guys have to remember is he is flying from Manchester. There are no direct flights, as far as I know EVA air do not fly from Manchester. All you guys who live near London have got its easy, cheap and direct flights.

It's grim up north you know.

Andrew

sabai dee · August 9, 2005

Hi i would never fly ba or klm again,imo thai are so much better with a better seat pitch and better service.

You say you are flying from manchester,thai air want 750 from manchester to bkk via heathrow(imo a terrible airport) with the likes of ebookers but you can fly with swiss air for 520 all in and depending on which flight you book you can fly with a thai plane and crew from zurich to bkk and bkk to zurich and the connection times are good.Here is a qoute from southalltravel.co.uk the thai flight numbers are 4300 and 4301, thai air for 520 from manchester imo is a bargain.

If you have only made a provisional booking i would cancel klm and go with swiss/thai good luck.

OPTION:1 P

AirlineCarrier From To FlightNo FlightClass Depart Arrive

SWISS AIRLINES Ringway International Airport,Manchester Zurich-Kloten,Zurich 391 ECONOMY Jan 17 2006 08:45:00 AM Jan 17 2006 11:50:00 AM

SWISS AIRLINES Zurich-Kloten,Zurich Don Muang International Airport,Bangkok 4300 ECONOMY Jan 17 2006 01:30:00 PM Jan 18 2006 05:55:00 AM

SWISS AIRLINES Don Muang International Airport,Bangkok Zurich-Kloten,Zurich 4301 ECONOMY Feb 15 2006 01:00:00 AM Feb 15 2006 07:00:00 AM

SWISS AIRLINES Zurich-Kloten,Zurich Ringway International Airport,Manchester 394 ECONOMY Feb 15 2006 11:55:00 AM Feb 15 2006 01:05:00 PM

Price per Passenger excluding taxes : Adult - £468.00

Price for all passengers including taxes is £ 523.60

valentinoxxx · August 9, 2005

Hmmm, I'm not sure why KLM was chosen, especially after opinions were asked for.

Though, given the choice between flying on Swiss or Thai, it would be SWISS any day. Newer 'planes, Seat back TVs...

britmaveric · August 9, 2005

Depends newer Thai planes do have seatbacks - 777 for sure. Swiss is great.

traveller57 · August 9, 2005

valentinoxxx

hi,KLM was chosen because it was my mates original choice,he's travelled long haul before, i havent.i suppose with him returning from manilla, he got a good price.yes,i know i asked for opinions and im grateful for the replies.however,as ive said, its my first time and i did what i thought right at the time.the only regret ive got now is that i wish id have chosen to carry on to manilla with my mate.when i went to book,the guy in the flight center did another check and said it was the best deal going AT THE TIME.i suppose its easy to think differently after booking but when you see quotes like the one from BA,im quite happy with the price i got.in terms of planes, on the outward leg im on a boeing 737 stopping in amsterdam for 2 hrs 20 mns and returning on a 747.thanks again for all your replies, dave

valentinoxxx · August 9, 2005

Not a problem...

Hope you have a good flight whatever you have chosen.

Though I don't believe that KLM was the best available at the time. They just have a lot of 'availability'.

BA will almost always be the most expensive, as rivals always seek to undercut the national airline.

britmaveric · August 9, 2005

Actually surprised Branson hasnt made his way into the Asia market. Never had a bad flight on his transatlantic flights and the cabin crew were all young ladies in their 20s. (stunnas actually)

Edited August 9, 2005 by britmaveric

grahamb · August 9, 2005

He has - Virgin fly from London to Hong Kong and I think they also fly London to Singapore

Edit to add: just remembered they fly to Japan and do Hong Kong to Sydney as well so it looks like Bangkok is the only major hub they don't fly to in Asia!

Edited August 9, 2005 by grahamb

mrbojangles · August 9, 2005

Correctomundo, i went to Hong Kong earlier this year with Virgin. Absolutely class. I hope he does start to do Bangkok soon.

As for the op's question, i fly to LOS from Manchester 6 or 7 times a year and the majority of the time it's with KLM, they're pretty good but not the best. However, i never book a flight until at least a month before as the prices are always changing. At that time of year i usually pay £400-£450. July - September is extortionate considering it's low season.

MrBoJ

britmaveric · August 9, 2005

Hmmm only saw codeshares that are operated by other airlines. Good to know if this is the case.

wilko · August 10, 2005

You've probably made a good decision not to go for bottom dollar. It's at least a 12 hour flight to Bkk and you need good service on a flight that long. Does it have any stop-overs?

How long is your ticket valid for and can you change your return dates without any charge? Many people decide they want to stay a bit longer once they've visited PattayA.

Once you arrive in Bkk I would recomend you go straight on to Pattaya rather than into Bkk. (a mini-bus is about 300baht, taxi 1200 to 1800) and do Bangkok before you fly back.

There are also direct flights to Koh Samui and Phuket from Utapao Airport near Pattaya, as well as from Bkk airport.

traveller57 · August 10, 2005

hi all, well,at least this thread will come in handy for any more newbies wanting to book a flight!

wilko

on both legs,i have a stopover at schipol.we didnt get tickets as such,just a printout of the flight times,ill have a look later to see how long the tickets are valid for and if i can change mine if i want to.ill get back to you later on that one.i havent even looked on the KLM website yet but i will. cheers,dave

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