International Flights Into Chiang Mai

[HansBlinkers]

What Airlines fly into Chiang Mai from Europe if any? Also who would be the cheapest Airline to fly with from Europe to BKK. I've been looking around and they all seem very expensive these days ;-(

[kalbo123]

Hans, no airlines fly direct from CNX to Europe.

If you want to fly to Holland cheap because I think that's where you come from, try China airlines or EVA air.. but I guess you knew that already..

But you will have to go to Bangkok first.

Goodluck.

Edited November 7, 2010 by kalbo123

[gotlost]

Zero.

[garyh]

Thai airways had a special deal a little while ago that included free domestic leg, you may find something like that, also Singapore fly direct to Chiang Mai from Singapore so may be worth checking there deals also.

[OldeBellPedr]

Increasing numbers of our customers are using Jet Airways from Bangkok via Mumbai to London Heathrow. Apparantly the planes are newish, the food fine as long as you like curry and the only drawback is the time spent in Mumbai airport which most people found dirty, smelly, crowded and, well, Indian. Not sure how much your add on to Schipol would be, but the deal to London is a bout the cheapest available.

[uptheos]

Increasing numbers of our customers are using Jet Airways from Bangkok via Mumbai to London Heathrow. Apparantly the planes are newish, the food fine as long as you like curry and the only drawback is the time spent in Mumbai airport which most people found dirty, smelly, crowded and, well, Indian. Not sure how much your add on to Schipol would be, but the deal to London is a bout the cheapest available.

Both Jet and Kingfisher are about the same price and both go via either Mumbai or New Delhi in the same time frame.

Jet have an extensive menu, not just curry and I don't think it's necessary to refer to Mumbai airport as dirty, smelly, crowded and, well, Indian.

[uptheos]

PS. Kingfisher is a 5 star airline according to Skytrax and they are about the same price as Jet (3 star) to London HR via Mumbai.

[sarahsbloke]

I found Jet very good

Good food, proper cutlery, cloth napkin, good selection of movies

Eva .... dire

Very narrow seats, awful food .... but no stopover.

[uptheos]

I found Jet very good

Good food, proper cutlery, cloth napkin, good selection of movies

Eva .... dire

Very narrow seats, awful food .... but no stopover.

Thank you SB.....heaven forbid people should stereotype eh?

It would be much better if they commented on things they actually know something about.

Edited November 8, 2010 by uptheos

[RichT]

I've flown both Jet and Kingfisher between Heathrow and Bangkok this year. Both are around the cheapest prices I could find but in contrast both have a very modern fleet that knock the spots off the old European and US airlines (e.g. KLM, British Airways, Continental from personal experience), as well as good food, good service, your own personal entertainment centre and a good record of hitting their schedules.

They both change planes in Mumbai which unfortunately *is* a horrible airport but you're not there for long so it shouldn't cause that many problems.

Of the two of them my experience is that Jet is better but YMMV.

[uptheos]

I've flown both Jet and Kingfisher between Heathrow and Bangkok this year. Both are around the cheapest prices I could find but in contrast both have a very modern fleet that knock the spots off the old European and US airlines (e.g. KLM, British Airways, Continental from personal experience), as well as good food, good service, your own personal entertainment centre and a good record of hitting their schedules.

They both change planes in Mumbai which unfortunately *is* a horrible airport but you're not there for long so it shouldn't cause that many problems.

Of the two of them my experience is that Jet is better but YMMV.

I've flown Jet and thought it was pretty good too. I wonder why Skytrax rates it as three star, but gives Kingfisher five?

Jet and Kingfisher seem to be the lowest fares to LHR followed by EVA and as you say the stopover in Mumbai is very short.

[anonymouse]

I've flown both Jet and Kingfisher between Heathrow and Bangkok this year. Both are around the cheapest prices I could find but in contrast both have a very modern fleet that knock the spots off the old European and US airlines (e.g. KLM, British Airways, Continental from personal experience), as well as good food, good service, your own personal entertainment centre and a good record of hitting their schedules.

They both change planes in Mumbai which unfortunately *is* a horrible airport but you're not there for long so it shouldn't cause that many problems.

Of the two of them my experience is that Jet is better but YMMV.

I might give it a go next time. I've been taking the CNX-KL-Stanstead route with Air Asia a pretty basic flight but I've got some amazing cheap deals on it.

[uptheos]

I've flown both Jet and Kingfisher between Heathrow and Bangkok this year. Both are around the cheapest prices I could find but in contrast both have a very modern fleet that knock the spots off the old European and US airlines (e.g. KLM, British Airways, Continental from personal experience), as well as good food, good service, your own personal entertainment centre and a good record of hitting their schedules.

They both change planes in Mumbai which unfortunately *is* a horrible airport but you're not there for long so it shouldn't cause that many problems.

Of the two of them my experience is that Jet is better but YMMV.

I might give it a go next time. I've been taking the CNX-KL-Stanstead route with Air Asia a pretty basic flight but I've got some amazing cheap deals on it.

I'm doing that route in May, I booked 10 months ago and got an amazing price, but I have to stay a night in the Tune box both ways. However, I paid extra and got great seats with lots of legroom.

That route is getting much more expensive now for some reason, which is a pity because Stanstead is so convenient for my daughter's place in Cambridge.

Edited November 8, 2010 by uptheos

[uptheos]

Maybe Hans can clarify where exactly in Europe he wants to fly to?

If indeed it is Schipol then Egyptair do a return for 28,000 Baht from BKK and as others have mentioned China are reasonable.

To fly to London and then pay British prices on to Schipol is an absolutely ridiculous idea.

I'm sure someone will be along shortly telling us Egyptair planes are made of papyrus and they only serve ful mudammas with pita bread.

[Paagai]

I fly regularly with Jet to both Mumbai and Delhi (business class). They've forced some major changes on BKK-BOM route which a couple of years back was always fully booked, and operators used old equipment with miserable crews Try Indian Airlines if you really want to experience "planes made of papyrus" and "ful mudammas with pita bread" for the catering .

Downside of Jet BKK-BOM/DEL is they use narrow bodied 737-800s albeit new ones. Business class is great and service is above average because there's only a few seats and cheaper than the competition (e.g. compared with Thai or Cathay on a wide bodied Airbus). BUT, I would hate to be stuck in the back of the plane for four hours with what are mainly Indian tourists crammed in and pressing the cabin call button every few minutes........

I've not flown up to Europe with Jet but colleagues tell me the long haul business class in Jet is excellent. In my opinion flights to Europe are for sleeping on! i.e. fly Direct without getting off the plane half way to wander around another airport for a few hours.

As for Mumbai airport which most people found dirty, smelly, crowded and, well, Indian. well you should have seen the OLD Mumbai airport before the recent re-model

P.S Another downside of Jet is, if flying from CNX you can't go CIQ (at least not when I've tried connecting with Thai). That's a total pain!

Edited November 9, 2010 by Paagai

[uptheos]

I fly regularly with Jet to both Mumbai and Delhi (business class). They've forced some major changes on BKK-BOM route which a couple of years back was always fully booked, and operators used old equipment with miserable crews Try Indian Airlines if you really want to experience "planes made of papyrus" and "ful mudammas with pita bread" for the catering .

Downside of Jet BKK-BOM/DEL is they use narrow bodied 737-800s albeit new ones. Business class is great and service is above average because there's only a few seats and cheaper than the competition (e.g. compared with Thai or Cathay on a wide bodied Airbus). BUT, I would hate to be stuck in the back of the plane for four hours with what are mainly Indian tourists crammed in and pressing the cabin call button every few minutes........

I've not flown up to Europe with Jet but colleagues tell me the long haul business class in Jet is excellent. In my opinion flights to Europe are for sleeping on! i.e. fly Direct without getting off the plane half way to wander around another airport for a few hours.

As for Mumbai airport which most people found dirty, smelly, crowded and, well, Indian. well you should have seen the OLD Mumbai airport before the recent re-model

P.S Another downside of Jet is, if flying from CNX you can't go CIQ (at least not when I've tried connecting with Thai). That's a total pain!

Good information, but the OP asks - "who would be the cheapest Airline to fly with from Europe to BKK".A direct flight or business class wouldn't be the cheapest.

[Paagai]

Good information, but the OP asks - "who would be the cheapest Airline to fly with from Europe to BKK".A direct flight or business class wouldn't be the cheapest.

Actually, the OP asked about flights from CNX Jet maybe cheap in Economy, but my point was, from CNX, you can't use CIQ and have to endure four hours plus in a 737! Aside from Mumbai airport....

[uptheos]

Good information, but the OP asks - "who would be the cheapest Airline to fly with from Europe to BKK".A direct flight or business class wouldn't be the cheapest.

Actually, the OP asked about flights from CNX Jet maybe cheap in Economy, but my point was, from CNX, you can't use CIQ and have to endure four hours plus in a 737! Aside from Mumbai airport....

Point taken sometimes xanax is your friend.

- better to fly safely in comfort, in a Qantas super jumbo.

[uptheos]

I've always found that Mox Travel seem to come up with good prices and the thing I like about them is that you don't need a credit card, you can arrange to pay at certain banks after you have made your booking.

Has anyone flown Kingfisher to UK - they are usually about 1,000 Bah more expensive than Jet, but rated 5* by Skytrax.

[No1]

I found airberlin o.k.

Return ticket starting from 28400 Baht and in business for 70000 Baht. They offer nonstop flights from/to Berlin, Munich and Dusseldorf which have an excellent connection to other European cities.

KLM should be the same, their business class being a bit more expensive.

[Asmerom]

Jet maybe cheap in Economy, but my point was, from CNX, you can't use CIQ and have to endure four hours plus in a 737! Aside from Mumbai airport....

Point taken sometimes xanax is your friend.

- better to fly safely in comfort, in a Qantas super jumbo.

Is it easy to get xanax?

[uptheos]

Jet maybe cheap in Economy, but my point was, from CNX, you can't use CIQ and have to endure four hours plus in a 737! Aside from Mumbai airport....

Point taken sometimes xanax is your friend.

- better to fly safely in comfort, in a Qantas super jumbo.

Is it easy to get xanax?

Been in Thailand long?

Sure, just ask your doctor.

[Asmerom]

QUOTE ASMEROM : "Is it easy to get xanax?"

Been in Thailand long?

Sure, just ask your doctor.

Yes, I did. At Ram I asked Dr. Taratorn and he reluctantly prescibed a maximum of 20 (0.5mg). The bill being B652 or 32 baht each. I just wondered if you had a cheaper option. It annoys me having to pay the doctor 300 baht just for writing the prescription.

[orang37]

Re the "Xanax" discussion on this thread ... with the clear understanding that occasional use of hypnotics to make travel easier, or adjust jet-lag is not the same as long-term use ... yet we still hope the information presented may be useful ... even if a little OT ... by the way our favorite way to prepare for long-haul travel is to work out to exhaustion two days before, do no exercise the day before other than stretching, and then travel on a completely empty stomach (no solid food for twelve hours), and no coffee or tea or chocolate before or during travel ...

Sawasdee Khrup, TV CM Friends,

Individual reactions to hypnotics like Xanax and Valium can vary widely. A good reason to use them under medical supervision.

Dr. Tawatchai at his clinic:

Loi Kroh Clinic

622 Loi Khoh Road

053-271-571

m-fri 8am-1pm, 4:30-8:30pm

sat 8am-1pm

sun 4:30-8:30pm

has both Xanax (Alprazolam) and Valium (Diazepam) [both members of the Benzodiazepine chemical group] available. Believe the price for Xanax there is less than the price quoted at CM Ram, but not 100% sure on that; certainly the normal 'consultation' price is cheaper.

For a good comparison of the active period in which these drugs ... including comparison with a few not-quite benzo's, like Ambien [Zolpidem]) ... stay active in the body ("half-life"), and longer term duration of presence of metabolites see: Sleep Drugs Compared

For example: while individual reactions to both Xanax and Valium may vary, .5 mg of Xanax is equivalent to 10mg. of Valium: Valium's half-life can be up to 100 hours, and one of its metabolites can last up to 200 hours, etc. Repeated dosage can result in accretion of the drug or its metabolites in fatty tissue: the implications of that are not known to us.

Zolpidem (most often known as Ambien) has a short half-life (2-5 hours), and while it clearly seems to be a sleep inducer, there is some debate about the extent to which it is a "sleep maintainer." Look it up on Wikipedia for further details. Halcion (very popular for a time, now withdrawn from the market because of side-effects ... for years ?) also had a short period of "half-life."

Zolpidem is available at Suan Prung Hosptal in Chiang Mai by prescription; we don't know if any other hospital (public or private) in CM has it.

Our human container went through a dramatic period of insomnia following the worst part of its cancer treatment about 40 months ago; we were prescribed Xanax, and used it for about three months (1 - 1.5 mg. per night): when we (foolishly) stopped "cold turkey:" we had dramatic withdrawal side-effects including very strange "kinesthetic" hallucinations which were really fun to watch during meditation, as well as periods of kind of "half-awake" intense visual imagery, and totally disrupted sleep cycle.

At one point we observed this body reacting as if something heavy from the ceiling had fallen on its head

It took about four months of gradually lowering the dose to "kick Xanax," and we were helped greatly by switching to Zolpidem (Ambien) plus a small amount of valium the last month.

Whether similar side-effects could happen from a few months of using Valium at similar levels of psychopharmacologic potency: unknown to us. Your mileage may vary if you drive those roads.

Sleep well, now. And see a doctor if you can't: better yet: try "exercise to exhausion," and/or not having any stimulants (coffee, tea, chocolate), or body-rhythm disrupters and dehydrants such as alcohol, after 4PM, and/or yogic breathing exercises (pranayama), and/or meditation prior to sleep. Get morning sun, take long walks.

But if you are a lifelong "night owl," as we have been (Thai: "manoot khankhow"), well, enjoy it !

And be sure and watch this daily:

best, ~o:37;

Edited November 12, 2010 by orang37

[siam2007]

I found Jet very good

Good food, proper cutlery, cloth napkin, good selection of movies

Eva .... dire

Very narrow seats, awful food .... but no stopover.

EVA used to have the most generous leg-space (86 cm, on-par with THAI and MAS) of any Airline in the world. I doubt that this has changed completely (as long they did not follow such Thrombose-Carriers such as Emirates or Austrian which now have 10 seats in a row in a rather narrow B777

[siam2007]

HANSBLINKERS,

maybe you should tell as first from WHERE EXACTLY you actually want to take off, and if you want a ONE-WAY-ticket or RETURN.

those facts make a big difference.

For one-way, AirBerlin (though I can not say I love them overly, it still cannot deny its roots as a budget and holiday-charter-Airline) would with no doubt be the cheapest option, as long as you are flexible with ur travel-date. they do have an expansive network throughout Europe nowadays as well, so can easily connect from Berlin or Duesseldorf to your home airport

[Asmerom]

Re the "Xanax" discussion on this thread

Sleep well, now. And see a doctor if you can't: better yet: try "exercise to exhausion," and/or not having any stimulants (coffee, tea, chocolate), or body-rhythm disrupters and dehydrants such as alcohol, after 4PM, and/or yogic breathing exercises (pranayama), and/or meditation prior to sleep. Get morning sun, take long walks.

best, ~o:37;

All very good advice I'm sure and the timely warnings duly heeded. Your prescription is certainly much cheaper than the Good Doctor 's but I'm not too sure I might'nt be happy to pay him 300baht in order to avoid it. Working to exhaustion on a growling stomach with no evening toddy to ease the pain ; no caffeine but lots of pranyama,meditation, long walks and morning sun. Lord preserve us from such a dire prospect and I must thank him (or you) for not proscribing erotic shenanigans ; but I suspect that was just an oversight. Sorry. Enough hijacking. More on International Flights.

[orang37]

... snip ... and I must thank him (or you) for not proscribing erotic shenanigans ; but I suspect that was just an oversight.

Sawasdee Khrup, Khun Asmermom,

Please forgive us for omitting "erotic shenanigans," a most potent stress-relief inductive of sleep for some, mayhem for others, and, possibly, divorce, alimony, etc.: must have been a Freudian slip, there, even though we don't see any banana peels on our teakwood floors. The Irish flavour you mention sounds very exciting: does it involve shebeen into the gullet, or shillelagh to the noggin', colour green, harps, or beds of clover ? We have some experience with the French flavour: espièglerie, which, for lingerie, could not be whipped.

best, ~o:37;

[naboo]

The below quote is from the Chiang Mai Mail Facebook page:

Chiang Mai Mail

AirAsia will launch direct daily flights to Singapore and Hat Yai on Jan. 24, 2011.

Interesting options.

[gotlost]

The below quote is from the Chiang Mai Mail Facebook page:

Chiang Mai Mail

AirAsia will launch direct daily flights to Singapore and Hat Yai on Jan. 24, 2011.

Interesting options.

Chiang Mai Mail has never been known for its speed. Reported hear 9 days ago.

http://www.thaivisa....ights-from-cnx/

Edited November 18, 2010 by gotlost