Is it better to buy my trip from Bangkok to a nearing beach island before I land in Bangkok (i.e. while I'm still in New York), OR is it better to just buy it on a whim when I'm over there (as I'm assuming buying it while in Bangkok will be cheaper, right?) ?

You say "a nearing beach island". Do you have a specific destination in mind?

Buy your flights online is cheapest. Check out Air Asia and Nok Air.

Unless you plan to fly directly to Samui in which case flights will be three to four times the price of flying elsewhere. Fly to Surat Thani and take a ferry if you want to go to there or Koh Phangan.

Booking on the spot is not cheaper, but will in most cases be more expensive.

Booking on the spot is not cheaper, but will in most cases be more expensive.

I agree with you but i i wanted to book flights for Dec from the Uk LONDON TO PHUKET/PHUKET TO PERTH/PHUKET TO LONDON All return flights and it was expensive compared to what i have paid before so on a whim i got my Thai wife to check return flight from PHUKET TO PERTH buying flight in Phuket and it worked out cheaper flying with Virgin Australia i saved about £300 i must admit i am surprised but there you go and they are all good flights timing wise

Booking on the spot is not cheaper, but will in most cases be more expensive.

I agree with you but i i wanted to book flights for Dec from the Uk LONDON TO PHUKET/PHUKET TO PERTH/PHUKET TO LONDON All return flights and it was expensive compared to what i have paid before so on a whim i got my Thai wife to check return flight from PHUKET TO PERTH buying flight in Phuket and it worked out cheaper flying with Virgin Australia i saved about £300 i must admit i am surprised but there you go and they are all good flights timing wise

And were those flights leaving within the next few hours, or maybe even next few days?

Booking on the spot is not cheaper, but will in most cases be more expensive.

I agree with you but i i wanted to book flights for Dec from the Uk LONDON TO PHUKET/PHUKET TO PERTH/PHUKET TO LONDON All return flights and it was expensive compared to what i have paid before so on a whim i got my Thai wife to check return flight from PHUKET TO PERTH buying flight in Phuket and it worked out cheaper flying with Virgin Australia i saved about £300 i must admit i am surprised but there you go and they are all good flights timing wise

And were those flights leaving within the next few hours, or maybe even next few days?

i looked at both option's when trying to book from the UK and there did'nt seem much different so i am going to stop over in Thailand for 5 days then go on to OZ .

We know that multi trips with one airline is always expensive and i dont like to spend many hrs in airport's waiting for flights and as i said i was surprised i managed to get a cheaper trip booking the flight to OZ from Thailand i would have never thought it would be cheaper as we know Thailand is not know for cheap international flights.

I posted this just as a matter interest

I use to originate from the US on my flights here. Now, I originate in Thailand. I've found the prices to be more expensive doing this. But what can you do. And whether you book it in person or on the internet, the prices are the same.

December is getting to be high season. The longer you wait, the more expensive they'll get. Just had a friend go from Phuket to Oz. He was on a package trip where that particular segment wasn't included. The tour guide told them to wait until just before they were suppose to leave. Prices were double by the time they booked as they had zero flexibility in the dates. When a plane starts to sell out, the remaining seats get more and more expensive. Usually. But you can sometimes find deals last minute. Especially if you are very flexible.

always cheaper to buy flights in the states.

checked eva air last summer. Phuket-SF-phuket ( same price as flying out of Bangkok) 42,000 baht

eva air sf-phuket-sf $1,050

look online at Kayak.com and the individual airline sites.

Booking for internal flights for Thailand always book as far in advance as u can ( especailly with air asia) they sometimes run specials and u can get great deals

the others as we get closer to high saeson for popular sectors ( bkk-phuket or chaing Mai) prices go up.

Thank You very much for the recommendations guys.

BTW, any recommendations on where to go for 3-5 days with my longtime girlfriend (we'd be leaving from BKK)?

BTW, any recommendations on where to go for 3-5 days with my longtime girlfriend (we'd be leaving from BKK)?

Anywhere within easy reach from Bangkok.So could be Pattaya (would not be my first recommendation), Samet, Samui, Krabi, Phuket, Khao Lak.

I'd probably be taking a flight, so it shouldn't really matter how close it is to BKK, right?

If you can book months ahead, you can get some good rates from Air Asia's "Promo Fare". Go to their website Air Asia. It's a "low-cost" airline, so the rate is just for you and carry-on luggage. Everything else is extra; checked baggage, if you want a specific seat, in-flight meal, etc. Just check no for the extras as you step through the booking process and you get the cheap rate. I've flown Air Asia round-trip Chiang Mai <--> Phuket, and Chiang Mai <--> Bangkok with no problems. You can even print out your boarding pass through the web before your trip! Worked great for me.