Udox Posted January 22, 2013 Share Posted January 22, 2013 I have relatives visiting in April. they paid 547 UK pounds for return tickets on Etihad. I checked the price on the Etihad website) for the reverse journey (Bkk-UK_Bkk) same flights/times/airline and got 42,750 baht - which at 48/pound = 890.00 UK pounds If they came here in July - they would have to pay 703.00 UK pounds because its high season in UK - but still much cheaper than the same 890.00 (42,750 baht) I am quoted here in Bangkok for the same period (on the official website) How is it possible to have such massive price differences for the same airline/destination/dates/times etc - just booked in a different country? Is there any 'rule' against booking and paying for a ticket in the UK but starting the journey from Thailand, ie. do you have to commence the outward sector from your country of residence ? Indeed will travel companies issue a ticket for a journey commencing in another country ?? just asking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waza Posted January 22, 2013 Share Posted January 22, 2013 Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigbamboo Posted January 22, 2013 Share Posted January 22, 2013 Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. Waza, are you sure about that? Although for once on TV I'd like to be proved wrong! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Udox Posted January 22, 2013 Author Share Posted January 22, 2013 Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. I wondered about the taxes difference (if any) - but then as i would be using exactly the same airports at both departure and arrival airports as my relatives - why are they paying hundreds of pounds less, surely airport taxes are taken into account when airlines post fares on their websites - so it still doesn't explain why the same airline/flights/airports have such huge price differences depending upon country of commencement. I could ask someone in UK to book for me (at a shop if necessary) but even if I booked online with a credit card - its not a problem as I am the traveler so can show the credit card (if asked). The problem is that everytime I state that my country of commencement is Thailand - the price jumps up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waza Posted January 22, 2013 Share Posted January 22, 2013 (edited) Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. Waza, are you sure about that? Although for once on TV I'd like to be proved wrong! I have done it many time but not from the UK, from Australia. There is always a difference in price but usually the ticket purchased in Thailand is cheaper. The tax difference is that Thailand charges a 7% Vat while Aussie charge a 10% GST. Edited January 22, 2013 by waza Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dundas Posted January 22, 2013 Share Posted January 22, 2013 Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. Waza, are you sure about that? Although for once on TV I'd like to be proved wrong! I have done it many time but not from the UK, from Australia. There is always a difference in price but usually the ticket purchased in Thailand is cheaper. The tax difference is that Thailand charges a 7% Vat while Aussie charge a 10% GST. My understanding is that GST is not charged on international tickets purchased in Australia, with the only exception being that it is charged on Australian domestic sectors - (eg, on the Mel-Syd sector of a Mel-Syd-Bkk ticket). I agree though that for Australia-Thailand flights normally the ticket bought in Thailand is cheaper (which shows how much Australians are being ripped off my most airlines - the difference between a SYD-LON return ticket and a LON-SYD return ticket is spectacular). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaPhom Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 XE go back to 73 Baht pound then the cost is the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Upnotover Posted January 23, 2013 Popular Post Share Posted January 23, 2013 Supply and demand I think, most people traveling from here back and forth to the UK do so because they have to, whereas most coming from the UK are doing so because they want to. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatguyagain Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Had 2 family members check prices from within the UK for the same flights I have been searching from here in Thailand and the prices come out 10 quid cheaper !!!! Had my hopes up for a while ... Must just be the difference in VAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jor Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 I once queried this with a sales girl at a THAI airways office and was told it is because they have more competition at the UK end. I also think that Upnotover is correct in saying that most people fly from UK by choice, not necessity. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hansnl Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 (edited) This is a long going wonder for me. Last week checked several airlines for a ticket from Bangkok to Schiphol or Dusseldorf. Same date, same days. Tickets from Europe, in February, around the € 750, from Bangkok at least € 1040. Other times of the year, any date, low season, high season, same result. Checked EVA, China, Air Berlin, KLM. Guess this is a rip-off. Seeing the construction of the payable price, ther is hardly any difference between the addtional things, the base ticketprice is the culprit. Also, there is a very confusing (?) similarity between prices. Even Mahan Air, being the only airline with "normal" prices, charges around € 200 more for a ticket BKK-DUS. Shameful!!!!!! Edited January 23, 2013 by hansnl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 The currency exchange rate is one factor, as they don't want to change the price of a ticket every week. (Before the euro crises it was often cheaper to buy a ticket in BKK than in Europe). But also different high- and low seasons, which is determined by the place where you first board the plane, can play a role. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thatguyagain Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 If a Brit flies from Manchester to Bangkok return / if a Thai flies to Manchester from Bangkok return there's a huge difference in prices ..... 2 tier pricing even exists for Thais 555 not just a Farang thing here then !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overherebc Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Friend of mine has to go back to UK twice a year. he always gets his ticket in UK and at the beginning just forgot about the return he bought in Thailand, over a few flights he now saves quite a bit on the cost. Obviously you have to be a regular traveller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inapeartree Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Friend of mine has to go back to UK twice a year. he always gets his ticket in UK and at the beginning just forgot about the return he bought in Thailand, over a few flights he now saves quite a bit on the cost. Obviously you have to be a regular traveller. A number of years ago I had to visit Frankfurt every wednesday for 3months and was in London at the time, depart early morning and back again in the evening. So our agent at the time bought return weekly tickets instead of day returns as they were so much cheaper. A day return was about 400 pounds while a return ticket from one wednesday to the next was about 100 pounds but it obviously wasn't flexible at that price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PattayaPhom Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Flights have stayed a similar price for almost 10 years, the only increases being airport taxes...used to pay 30,000 return in 2004, almost same price now for stopover flight in low season...if you live and work in Thailand its not a problem as your currency is Baht, its only people that are using their foreign cards complaining..UK citezens should blame Mervyn King, not the airlines, hes the one thats crucified Sterling. Divide the OPs price of 42,750 Baht by XE 73 gives a very similar price as Lon-BKK Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamMunich Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 This different prices have nopthing to do with airport tax or anything like that. It is simply a matter of where and when the airlines can charge more. I know for example, that the airport fees in Munich/Germany are about 100 Euro/pax, while at Berlin/Germany they are around 20 Euro. But that is not reflected in the ticket price, which is exactly the same for both destinations. It used to be - before Thai became a member of Star Alliance - that tickets in SEA were cheaper than in Europe. Since about 15 or 20 years this has changed. I guess we can assume, that the airlines do talk to each other about where they intend to jack up prices and where the competition is too tough. Flying out of Europe the competition is much stronger than flying out of SEA to Europe. It doesn't matter, where you buy the ticket, it matters, where the round trip starts. Even if you buy the ticket through a European agency, the price would be depending on your starting point. What would be interesting is the aspect of whether tickets from K.L. or Singapore are also so much more expensive as from BKK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RabC Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 (edited) To me it's very simple, they are more expensive because the Airlines can charge that and still fill seats., Supply and demand.... Edited January 23, 2013 by RabC 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lomatopo Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 Yes, supply and demand, and competition of course. More people fly XXX-BKK-XXX than fly BKK-XXX-BKK, for obvious reasons, hence more competition for ex-XXX. Ages ago there were some pricing anomalies, and currency arbitrage, which resulted in lower priced fares, esp. J and P, ex-BKK ( and ex-JNB, and ex-TIP, and ex-CMB, and ex-CAI, ), but those days are long gone, well almost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiang mai Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 Supply and demand I think, most people traveling from here back and forth to the UK do so because they have to, whereas most coming from the UK are doing so because they want to. ....is the correct answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Udox Posted January 24, 2013 Author Share Posted January 24, 2013 It cannot be a VAT thing as VAT is 7% in Thailand compared to 20% in Uk - so the ticket should be cheaper in Thailand It cannot be an airport tax thing either because you will use the UK airport for 1 departure and 1 arrival + Bkk airport for 1 arrival and 1 departure - no matter which direction you fly Although it could well be a supply and demand scenario, as suggested - you would think that a smart operator would jump in there and undercut the other airlines and almost guarantee 100% occupancy on every flight, however the only people seemingly doing the undercutting are airlines such as China Southern, FinnAir and Turkish. I have asked a relative to try to book for me in the UK - waiting for the outcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RabC Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 It cannot be a VAT thing as VAT is 7% in Thailand compared to 20% in Uk - so the ticket should be cheaper in Thailand It cannot be an airport tax thing either because you will use the UK airport for 1 departure and 1 arrival + Bkk airport for 1 arrival and 1 departure - no matter which direction you fly Although it could well be a supply and demand scenario, as suggested - you would think that a smart operator would jump in there and undercut the other airlines and almost guarantee 100% occupancy on every flight, however the only people seemingly doing the undercutting are airlines such as China Southern, FinnAir and Turkish. I have asked a relative to try to book for me in the UK - waiting for the outcome. Why would a smart operator jump in there when they can screw the BKK-XXX-BKK market for as much as they want...... Free market economics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lomatopo Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 (edited) I have asked a relative to try to book for me in the UK - waiting for the outcome. SITI (Sold Inside, Ticketed Inside), SOTO, et al were eliminated in 2005. The price for a BKK-LHR-BKK ticket purchased (issued) in the U.K. will be the same as if purchased in Thailand, save for any minor currency fluctuations, and it will of course be priced in GBP rather than THB. Obviously you cannot compare a BKK-LHR-BKK and a LHR-BKK-LHR fare on the same dates. If you fly often enough, say ~ 2.5 times per year (so 5 times over two years), it may be worth considering stringing together LHR-BKK (stay for months)-LHR stay in LHR for a few days/weeks, then start a new LHR-BKK-LHR ticket, rinse/repeat. Most BKK-LHR seats are occupied with people finishing their journey, hence the lower supply and higher prices. There is more competition for XXX-BKK, hence the lower prices. Obviously these are just general guidelines as there is seasonality, specific city-pairs, changing capacity and new operators entering the market. Edited January 24, 2013 by lomatopo 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seedy Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 I have received quotes BKK YVR return via EVA which are cheaper than YVR BKK return Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lomatopo Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 I have received quotes BKK YVR return via EVA which are cheaper than YVR BKK return Obviously the travel dates are different, but can you share any details re: exact day/date/routing and prices? There are so many variables in airline ticket pricing that it can be challenging to make comparisons. Sometimes airlines do discount ex-BKK fares owing to seasonality and lower loads, if only to maintain daily service and keep "slots". BR also needs to keep the TPE channel filled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seedy Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 (edited) Obviously the travel dates are different, but can you share any details re: exact day/date/routing and prices? In Pattaya Oct 2012 was buying my DMG CNX ticket Thru Massic travel. Used them for years, great service. Just to see, I told them what I paid for YVR TPE BKK - book Jun 2012 with a 1 Oct departure date and 18 Jan 2013 return via same route. Paid $1940.00 Cdn - aprox 58,200 Baht. Their quote was aprox 10K Baht cheaper - not a lot, but still a savings. Was also told that the rates change all the time, so not scribed in stone. Edited January 25, 2013 by seedy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lomatopo Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Obviously the travel dates are different, but can you share any details re: exact day/date/routing and prices? In Pattaya Oct 2012 was buying my DMG CNX ticket Thru Massic travel. Used them for years, great service. Just to see, I told them what I paid for YVR TPE BKK - book Jun 2012 with a 1 Oct departure date and 18 Jan 2013 return via same route. Paid $1940.00 Cdn - aprox 58,200 Baht. Their quote was aprox 10K Baht cheaper - not a lot, but still a savings. Was also told that the rates change all the time, so not scribed in stone. I'm not certain I understand your comparison. How could you compare a YVR-BKK-YVR for a travel date which had already passed (1 Oct)? (I say this as I assume you were already in Thailand when you asked for the quote.) Comparing prices, even on the same city-pairs, in the same directions on the same carrier(s), but on different dates is of marginal value. And even on the same dates there are upwards of ten different Economy fare buckets, which sell out from the lowest price/least flexible (~ W) to the highest price/most flexible (Y). Or what were they quoting? BKK-YVR-BKK? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
binnsy Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Just booked a return ticket with EVA to LHR and the price was 34650 Baht if you want i can PM the lady who booked it for me with her contact details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldsailor35 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Nope you can buy a ticket in the UK for outgoing flights from BKK, there may be a difference in taxes. PS: some airlines you may have to show the credit card you ised to purchase the ticket with online. Waza, are you sure about that? Although for once on TV I'd like to be proved wrong! If this correct, how is it done as booking agents in UK, i.e. eDreams all quote fares from Bangkok-London at BKK rates. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldsailor35 Posted January 25, 2013 Share Posted January 25, 2013 Just booked a return ticket with EVA to LHR and the price was 34650 Baht if you want i can PM the lady who booked it for me with her contact details. Thats good, nearest i could find in august-sept is EVA 37785 bht. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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