Another Suvarnabhumi Experience

[rogerdee123]

A few days ago I passed thru Bkk airport enroute to Samui and found the new facilities really disappointing.

After hearing all the stories about lost luggage, I had decided to not check it all the way thru to Samui but instead take it thru customs in Bangkok and then recheck it at Bangkok Airways.

The first disappointment was that my incoming flight (TG from Hanoi) didn’t park at a terminal ramp but instead taxied to a (plane) parking area and then passengers rode buses to the terminal. The plane taxi time seemed quite long and it seemed the plane had to go all the way around the terminal building. It reminded me of the long taxi time at Tokyo. Then the bus seemed to drive all the way round the terminal again … only to make a U-turn and drive back about half-way around before stopping at the door. I timed this process and it took 15 minutes after touch down before we were entering the terminal.

I was expecting a long walk to Immigration but it wasn’t so bad. The immigration booths are in a staggered formation (instead of straight line) and it was a bit more difficult to determine which immigration booths were working and which weren’t as some immigration officers were sitting at the booths and not working but rather doing something on their computers. But immigration went smoothly in any case.

After immigration there is that impossible electronic sign which lists the luggage belts for your flight. This electronic sign was almost unreadable. Instead of the immediately arriving flights, it seemed to have listed every airline using the airport. It’s about 4-6 columns of multicolored words, numbers, logos which are entirely too small and which change every two seconds from english to thai. When you manage to lock onto something that looks like your flight, it changes into Thai langauge and easy to lose because of the small size and chaos the board projects. From a distance this sign reminds me of those fairy lights that you see in a lot of roadside bars out in the Provinces. In the old terminal it wasn’t necessary to break stride when looking for info on your baggage belt while walking past the computer screen. With this sign there was a crowd of passengers standing there trying to find their flight numbers amid the multicolored blinking lights and constant changing between Thai and English. I was able to find the flight number and belt number but for my wife it was hopeless.

The luggage arrived afer 15 minutes of waiting. No problems besides the 15 minute wait.

We exited thru the famous “miniature” exit point into the arrival hall. All I can say is that it is crowded and also chaotic. Indeed this airport projects a feeling of chaos.

I was looking for a sign directing me towards domestic departures but alas there was none. I asked someone who was touting taxis and he kindly pointed me in the right direction. There are trolly friendly escalators which go from floor to floor and this is a plus.

On the departure floor there again was the feeling of chaos. Very few signs. Difficult to push the baggage trolly because crowds of people blocking the walkways trying to read another version of those multicolored constantly changing signs, which are badly placed in my opinion, giving info on departing flights.

Finally found Bangkok airways check-in counters, but also no signs except for “Bkk Airways Check-In Any Flight”. But international counters are in the same row as the domestic counters. I incorrectly lined up at an international counter. When I reached the counter I was told to go to a domestic counter which was a few spaces down. I then looked for a sign and discovered that there were little “post-it” notes indicating international and domestic counters. As my experience continued I discovered that there are hundreds of these little post-it notes scattered around in lieu of proper signs.

After checking in for the flight at the proper counter where to go? I knew which general direction but again no signs. I asked someone at a bank counter and they directed me to the (incorrect) international departure entrance. I noticed the mistake when I saw the immigration booths thru the doorway. The guard at that door pointed me towards the domestic departure doorway.

Thru the domestic departure doorway and then again the question which way to go. My gate was A1C which looked like A10 in the handwriting on my boarding pass. There was thankfully a sign pointing towards gates A1, A2, A3, and B1, B2, B3, etc etc but alas no A10. I asked another airport employee where is A10 and she looked at my boarding pass and told me it was A1C and not A10. OK stand on the moving sidewalk. I arrive at a Y-intersection … A is in one direction and B is in another direction. Guess what. No signs. Luckily there is a huge lighted map of the floor with a “you are here” pointer so I could figure out which way to go. Again a crowd of passengers looking at this. Then I gazed down the A corridor and indeed if I squinted and strained my eyes, I could see some very small signs with the gate numbers above various doors off in the distance.

There was time for a bite to eat so into a restaurant called “???? garden”. This is one of those Thai style restaurants where you buy a plastic card encoded with various amounts. You use this card to buy your food and then on they way out you turn in your card and receive any unspent money back in change. I bought a 500 baht card. The restaurant was badly organized but perhaps this will improve with time. When I gave my card at a counter to buy some curry, the lady behind the counter disappeared with my card for a couple of minutes. It seems they have to take the cards to another location to deduct amounts from them. Alas they mixed up several cards and it was a bit of a hassle as they had to put the cards in a reader to figure out which card belonged to who. All the cards are the same color… i.e. blank white. So it isn’t difficult to mix them up, especially if one has several in their hand, as the ladies behind the curry counter did. I then went to another counter to buy a bottle of water and the same drill again .. the man scurried off with my (?) card, returning again a few minutes later. This time he only had my card so there was little chance of mixing it with others. The 7 baht bottle of water cost 80 baht … but what can you expect in an airport restaurant. This is why I got a 500 baht card for a dish of curry.

Then off to the gate for my Bangkok Airways flight to Samui. I had visions of a pleasant Bangkok Airways departure gate similar to Don Muang but alas this was not to be. It’s actually worse than the old Gate 1-5 downstairs international departure area at Don Muang. One huge room with a lot of metal chairs. It was really disappointed. The only way to be reassured that you were in the correct place was the Bangkok Airways ladies dressed in their recognizable outfits. Several doors/gates were there. Guess what? No signs. And no loud speakers. When a flight was ready for departure, they would tape A4 pieces of paper with the flight numbers onto the counter in front of the door.

But the flight left on time. And my luggage arrived at Samui OK. I suppose I should be thankful for that.

Many of the problems I experienced can indeed be corrected with time. But the airport was clearly not ready for opening. It’s obvious to see it was rushed. The lack of signs is appaling. For passengers, the airport now is a very stressful experience and a feeling of chaos dominates the experience.

Other observations …. No water in the mens room at the Bangkok Airways departure area … the airport is constructed with a hel_l of a lot of glass, who is going to keep it clean? It’s already smudged and dirty … the ceiling is simply exposed air con ducts, wiring conduits, etc and my wife told me this is the “new style” of interior decorating. One has the feeling of being inside a warehouse.

.......................

I came back thru Suvarnabhumi on Saturday arriving at domestic side from Samui. Surprise surprise! Bangkok Airways 717 plane pulled up to the ramp!!! hel_l of a long walk to baggage area but OK good exersize. BUT .... Baggage was late !!!! One hour after plane's touchdown, baggage started coming on the belt.

Because I was late and heard bad things about waiting time for taxi's, I decided to take a limo IF they had a car right there on the spot. Well AOT now has a monopoly on airport limo's. No more 800 baht limos. Now the cheapest limo price is 1,100 baht! Amazing Thailand again!

As we were driving away from the airport there were long lines of cars parked up against the barrier with people standing outside taking photos.

A few other observations ....

The multicolored constantly changing baggage belt locator sign in the domestic baggage area is easier to read than it's cousin on the international side. Only the names places (arrival from) are changing from Thai to English and not the whole line of information. I don't know maybe they've corrected things since last week. Or maybe the signs are different in International and Domestic.

I also noticed more signs. I think they are putting up signs now.

Walking in from gate A5 I spotted the Bangkok Airways lounge area which is a across from gate A3. When going to gate A1 one doesn't know it's farther down the corridor.

The doorway going from domestic baggage area out into the arrival hall is really quite wide. However they have blocked most of it with translucent glass panels so arriving passengers go thru a doorway about 10 feet wide. I realized these panels are there to keep non-passengers in the arrival hall from going back into the baggage area. Maybe this was the thinking behind the small doorway on the international side.

[z21rhd]

Rogerdee,

Great report, just hope it is published in the BKK post.

Suvarnabhumi is a shambles !

[Pattayatony]

Rogerdee,

Great report, just hope it is published in the BKK post.

Suvarnabhumi is a shambles !

Thanks for a great report. This airport is a bloody disgrace and the Thais should be ashamed of themself.

[svenivan]

Rogerdee,

Great report, just hope it is published in the BKK post.

Suvarnabhumi is a shambles !

Thanks for a great report. This airport is a bloody disgrace and the Thais should be ashamed of themself.

Tony, the Thais have had a good help of a bunch of farang architects and consultants to ###### it up. Was it not a couple of 100's German specialists being there for a year to help the Thais to open the new airport smooth?

[salty]

It seems to me that the people at the top (like most organisations) didn't want to know about any potential problems. They were determined to open the airport asap come what may, and any attempt to point out the obvious shortcomings were "discouraged".

[ilyushin]

Really miss Don Muang! The new airport is gonna take time to workout all the problems. Probably years.

Still wish that they had eased out of Don Muang instead of all at once.

[Plus]

... Thais have had a good help of a bunch of farang architects and consultants to ###### it up. Was it not a couple of 100's German specialists being there for a year to help the Thais to open the new airport smooth?

You mean Thais were expecting German architects to put up signs for them? A slight case of misunderstanding.

[OldAsiaHand]

All these reports remind me of when they were building the Sky Train in Bangkok. Remember those big signs they hung from the overpasses at all the major intersections?

"Designed By Italians and Built By Thais!" they said.

I could never decide whether that was supposed to be a boast or a warning label.

[Soju]

For me, I didn't think the new airport was as bad as a lot of others were saying, short of the big problem with the dinky arrival area. But those experiences were based on one international arrival and a couple of domestic arrivals and departures. Last night was my first international departure and I had a walk around before my flight and saw a lot of the complaints that people were talking about which I hadn't seen yet.

Lots and lots of construction and unfinished places if you walk down some of the concourses.

Lots and lots of stained tiles as well as slippery tiles.

Some areas were very dirty, dusty, and/or had strong chemical smells due to the construction.

Many windows were filthy.

For me, the impression you get of the airport is quite different if you're flying domestically or only arriving internationally as opposed to departing internationally. Although one's impression could vary widely depending on which gate they depart from and which path they take to get to that gate. But all the problems I saw yesterday I think will go away soon as the construction is finished.

One big plus though, was that IMHO the wide range of choices for food/drinks for departing international passengers is a vast improvment over Don Muang. I'd say 1000% better. I never once bought any food or drink airside at Don Muang due to the terrible selection and rediculous prices. At Suvarnabhumi I wouldn't hesitate to buy something if I needed to. The prices seemed a bit higher than in downtown Bangkok, but not excessively so. I only spot checked prices here and there, so there could be some places with unreasonable prices.

Edited October 9, 2006 by Soju

[rogerdee123]

Another stressful experience at Suvarnabhumi Airport. This time outbound international.

I had an early morning departure and decided to go early to tour a bit more of the airport and take a hotel Limo instead of the risk of getting a taxi driver who hadn’t yet been to Suvarnabhumi. I also don’t know that part of Bangkok or the airport so decided to splurge for the Limo. Guess what? The hotel has taken the opportunity of the new airport to increase it’s airport limo price from 1200 baht to 2200 baht! Amazing Thailand again!

Drive to the airport at 5:30AM was uneventful and took perhaps 5 minutes more than a drive to Don Muang.

Upon arrival at the airport the police had put the orange plastic cones up blocking the entrance to the “Limo Driveway” which is close to the terminal doorways. They did this because that driveway was full of and blocked by taxis. So much for that convenience of a Limo. But anyway Mai Pen Rai. Only an additional 40 meter or so walk.

I’m a Royal Orchid Gold Card holder so where is the check-in? The Limo Driver had let me off at the Thai economy boarding area. Inside the terminal there is chaos and confusion even at this early hour. Long snaking lines of passengers waiting to check-in at the Thai economy check-in counters. A Thai man with an ID around his neck is standing there and I ask him where is the Thai Gold Card check-in. “Ask Information” is his helpful response. The Information desk lady tells me to go to Business & First Class check in area which is Rows A & B . I am now at H & J. It’s a long walk but I don’t mind. At least I’m away from the chaos of the Thai economy check-in lines.

I arrive at the Business/First Class area (Row A & B ) and am greeted by two young men in military style uniforms like commercial security agencies issue to their staff. They won’t let me pass and tell me that Gold Card Check-In is at Row H & J. I tell them I was just at Row H & J and was sent to A & B by information staff there. The two young men won’t budge. So I start walking back and see another information desk. Several ladies working behind this desk and all insist I can check in at Business/First Class (Row A & B ). I tell them I just came from there and the guards told me to go to H & J. They insist the guards are wrong. One of the young ladies reluctantly agrees to go with me to Row A&B . The two guards stand firm and insist I should check in at Row H & J. The young lady argues with them for a few seconds and then tells me something like … “Sir you are in the wrong place, you are suppose to be at Row H & J”. I remind her that I am here in the wrong place because she told me to come here.

So I trek back to rows H & J and the long snaking lines are now almost reaching the terminal entrance doors. People are everywhere and it’s difficult to maneuver the baggage trolley. I don’t see any signs for Gold Card members and kick myself for not getting in the snaking economy line when I first arrived. I see another young lady dressed in the Thai Airways uniform and I ask her where to check-in. I think surely there must be a short Gold Card check-in line somewhere! She doesn’t know but takes me up to a check-in counter at about H 15 (in front of glaring eyes of the passengers in the snaking line) and the lady at the counter says Gold Card members are suppose to check-in at counters H1, H2, & H3. So I maneuver back again thru the crowd. Now I see the sign! It’s about waist high and difficult to see amidst the crowd. The Gold Card line is also hopelessly long. It intermingles with the even longer snaking economy lines which are by now are indeed backed up to the terminal doors.

But OK I get in what appears to be the end of the Gold Card line and resolve myself to probably missing my plane. In any case this line is shorter than the normal economy line. Passengers are brazenly cutting line. Many people frustrated and upset.

Another Thai lady dressed in Thai Airways attire is at the head of the line checking passenger tickets before they go to the check-in counter. Because the lines are so long and intermingled, there are regular economy passengers in the Gold Card line. The Thai Airways lady sends them away and tells them to go to the long snaking regular economy line. I feel sorry for these passengers. Three farang traveling together refuse to leave the line and a minor scene develops with the Thai Airways woman giving up and letting them go ahead and check-in. A Thai man tries to cut line in front of me and I ask him in Thai where he is going and tell him I’m in line and motion to the end of the line. He leaves.

Finally I reach the check-in counter. It’s taken one and a half hours since I arrived by Limo.

Check-in is smooth enough. Then to Immigration. Similar to the old airport there is an endless line of immigration counters but also similar, many are empty. But the lines here are nothing compared to the check-in lines.

Pass thru immigration and although I don’t have as much time as I intended I’ve still get plenty of time. I realize I need to piss. So I decide to check out the Thai Business Class lounge. To get there one must take an escalator down.

The Business Class Lounge is full of passengers. I’m about fourth in line to have my boarding pass checked. The crowds make me wonder. It was never like this in the Business Class lounge at Don Muang, except perhaps that lounge which was way down there at the end of the corridor (Gate 7?).

As I look for the toilet in the lounge I pass by one refreshment counter … hmmm no booze … also only food I see is those sandwiches they make with mayonnaise and green peas and carrots and some cupcakes … and of course soft drinks and those coffee machines with a line of about 2-3 people waiting to grind out a cup of coffee. I continue walking. Eureka! I see the toilets. I enter. A urinal is available but there is a line of about 6 guys standing in line waiting to take a shit. There are only 3 or 4 (can’t remember) crappers. Clearly not enough.

Back out and I continue walking to check out the rest of the lounge. It’s very long and sometimes narrow. It’s like a long hallway which intermittently widens out into small rooms. All the seats are occupied. There are maybe four refreshment areas in the lounge. I see booze. Only that one refreshment area has no booze. The others have. But the food selection is still meager. Where are the curry puffs? The chicken rolls? The spring rolls? And the miniature kirsches? Alas I spot one lonely piece of what looks like a strudel amongst the plates of pea and carrot sandwiches and cupcakes. Nothing appeals to me. There is no place to sit so I decide to leave. I do see some people using their laptops for internet so apparently wifi is working but I didn’t try it myself.

Back up the escalators to my gate area which is “D”. All the shops have an exclusive look to them. They look expensive. I think this is why there are few passengers in them. In the old airport the shopping areas were semi- “mah boon krong” style, friendly and inviting. These new shops remind me of an upscale Bangkok shopping center. Like the first floor of the Emporium. The kind of shops I normally walk hurriedly past.

However the electronics shop is too tempting to pass by, so I go in to check the prices. They sell Mac computers! They have a Macbook Pro priced at 100,000 baht. I didn’t ask about the specs and there was no printed information about it nearby so the only way to know if it’s a bargain or overpriced is to ask a salesperson and they are all busy. Oh well I don’t need to know. They also sell iMacs! Even the large screen ones. I wonder to myself how a passenger will get this on the plane. But Mai Pen Rai. Bangkok no problem. I always check out the digital cameras and compare prices with Panthip prices. Oh Man! Big disappointment. Most of the digital cameras are in a display case back behind the sales counter and you can’t see the prices! ? In Don Muang it was easy to window shop the cameras as they kept them in glass display cases with prices displayed which you could see up close.

I’m hungry and have time for a quick bite. So I go to a restaurant called “Asian--- something?”. It specializes in Asia dishes. I happily discover that it has Som Tam. So I order som tam and Vietnamese spring rolls and coffee and water (and prepare myself for an expensive bill). They make a mistake and bring me Thai spring rolls instead of Vietnamese but Mai Pen Rai. Happily they don’t use the encoded plastic card method in this restaurant but use normal “check bin” bills. When the bill comes I’m pleasantly surprised. They only charged me 35 baht for the 7 baht bottle of water! So there’s hope for this airport yet!!!

I get to my gate and it’s too small. Confined in a glass walled cubicle. 95 chairs (yes I counted) for 200+ passengers. People were standing around the walls and between the rows of chairs. I notice that there are two stands for TV sets for passengers to watch but alas there are no TV sets.

I check out the toilet. Despite the small size of the gate, there is indeed a toilet. But it isn’t clean. There are shoeprints on the toilet seat and piss on the floor. I suppose this is why there are no long lines of guys waiting to shit here.

The plane boards and this is also more stressful than Don Muang … because … there cannot be two lines (one for business and one for economy). Naturally when they announce for business boarding, everyone rushes to the gate, the layout being such that there can only be one line. A Thai Airways unsmiling man acts like a policeman and goes thru the line making economy passengers leave the line. I have a gold card so I escape from humiliation.

The plane is of course late because of the horrendous situation at the check-in counters. We sit in the plane for awhile and wait for the traumatized stragglers to board. The plane departs about 30 minutes late.

When I reach my destination my suitcase has three different baggage tags on it and I realize there were probably baggage problems which I was blissfully unaware of.

I realize that the only place I had a chance to sit down in the airport was the restaurant.

Also I realize that the era has passed whereby one could quickly navigate into and out of the Bangkok airport. Suvarnabhumi airport is a real consumer of time.

If the long check-in lines don't inprove, I think if I can afford it I will travel business class at least outbound to avoid the lines.

Edited October 9, 2006 by rogerdee123

[samtam]

This is very interesting report, and does not surprise me, given my own recent experience at the airport. What is somewhat strange is that there are all these interesting and comprehensive reports on the website, but very little of comparison in the local English language press, which might have a wider readership. Also, I do not know what is being said about the airport in the Thai media. Can anyone comment? I imagine it would only be in the latter that it might come to attention of those who might be able to do something about it, or is that being too naive?

[z21rhd]

This is very interesting report, and does not surprise me, given my own recent experience at the airport. What is somewhat strange is that there are all these interesting and comprehensive reports on the website, but very little of comparison in the local English language press, which might have a wider readership. Also, I do not know what is being said about the airport in the Thai media. Can anyone comment? I imagine it would only be in the latter that it might come to attention of those who might be able to do something about it, or is that being too naive?

Sam Tam,

At the moment the previous Taksin government is being hammered in the Thai Media for forcing the opening of Suvarnaphoom before it was completed. Also for the location of the airport on wet marsh land which is no longer there and able to suck up excess rainfall - resulting in flooding in areas elsewhere.

The Nation Newspaper carries a link to the Thai Visa blogs on Survarnaphoom Shambles - you will find it on the home page in the left hand column.

Suandaao

[rogerdee123]

>Also I realize that the era has passed whereby one could quickly navigate into and out of the >Bangkok airport. Suvarnabhumi airport is a real consumer of time.

>

>If the long check-in lines don't inprove, I think if I can afford it I will travel business class at least >outbound to avoid the lines.

...................................

On the Thai International website they are now advising departing passengers to arrive at the airport for check-in three hours before flight time.

The website also says that Thai has set up a "call center" to deal with lost baggage. This sounds to me like lost baggage is a chronic problem.

[baboon]

Thanks for your report. I am really worried now. I am supposed to meet my mother on the 27th, and having no sense of direction and worse eyesight, dont know what the poop will happen.

2 friends of mine were there 3 days ago to meet a friend. The judgement? It would be a joke, but it is not funny.

[tartempion]

Unfortunately some people have been congratulating AOT and the Thai people (although I don't see what the tahi people have to do with building this airport, except the handfull who made a fortune out of "service charges") on day one of the opening.

Now it seems the real basic conception errors are becoming obvious.

Soom Savanaboum will be added to to the long list of airport failures caused by the stupidity of those who made it possbile.

I spent my working career in computers and am writing a similar book on expensive software failures which should not have happened, if only top managers would listen to those who know.

Off to discover Savanboum myself 10 days from now

RIP

[STEELINOX]

I hope they iron out all the glitches and service issues b4 I get there!

[rogerdee123]

The following comments on the airport are from http://www.airlinequality.com

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport by E Chamberlain

10 October 2006

I know it is new but the Y check in for Thai is appalling - the queues so long they were going outside the doors with people milling around everywhere not knowing where to go - in the middle of this is the check in for TG GoldCard holders which meant that you couldn't get into that line without pushing and shoving through the masses of people (if you could find it). Traffic flow is basic stuff but they seemed to have forgotten about it at Suvarnabhumi. The taxi situation is pretty bad too - initially taxis were not going to be allowed to pull up to the terminal but to a remote depot and then you transferred to a shuttle bus - a really stupid idea which they finally realised - but up shot is there are no taxi ranks and finding a taxi on arrival is very difficult and confusing. The building is huge and the walk to the gates can be quite far so you need to factor in more time in order to not miss your flight. Even though the airport is so big the main public areas feel quite small and crowded with you having to duck and weave between people and shop displays - again this was never really a problem at Don Muang. Yes it is a fabulous building and the proble'ms will be ironed out with time I hope but I dont feel as if the airport experience is that superior to the old terminal

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport by Richard Eveleens

5 October 2006

I used the new airport 3 times now in 1 week (2 times departing, 1 time arriving), overall I am satisfied, it looks new and impressive. Although there are some problems with the new airport, first off all, the toilets are a disgrace, flooding when flushing, filthy, and not enough toilets around in some area's of the airport, at airside, they are tucked away behind the shops and those area's are very poor lit. Then there is still some construction work to be done, but on first impression it does look finished. Be warned of some delays when using this airport because everything is new and still needs to be adjusted. From the city to the airport will take you about 30-45 minutes and when using the meter expect to pay around 200-300 THB and 65 THB toll charges.

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport by Carl Andrade

5 October 2006

Spent 3 hours airside in transit to Kuala Lumpur. My first impression - this airport resembles a shopping mall with an airport attached. It's huge and gives the feeling of being disjointed. Good sineage, attractive open spaces. The only major fault I could find is that there is very little seating outside of the lounges. There is a TG Economy class transit lounge that has seats, occupied mainly by people stretched across, asleep. Plenty of cafes and restaurants. I did not see the check in areas or the arrival lounge.

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport by Francis Chan

5 October 2006

We arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport on the evening of Oct. 1, two days after it opened. The airport looked magnificent from the outside. But once inside, there was a sense that this colossal structure is not yet completed. The pillars, some ceilings and some walls were cement. The overall colour scheme was a depressing grey, and the lighting was insufficient. Washrooms were also lacking. Chairs were just metal, with no padding. At regular intervals were big brightly coloured statues of mythical giants, adding to the oddity of the place. Once outside immigration, the atmosphere was chaotic. To get to the city by public bus, we had first to wait outside the arrival hall for a shuttle bus, which took us to a public bus terminal several kms away. Then we had to find a public bus that would bring us nearest to our destination, all the time lugging our bags. The atmosphere in the public bus terminal was like any bus terminal in Thailand - chaotic and confusing, with the bus conductors shouting out their destinations. The experience was really disappointing and stressful.

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport by Mike Preston

5 October 2006

Leaving Wireless Road at 8pm on Saturday night, the third night of operation of the new airport, I reached Suvarnabhumi in 45 minutes and at a cost of just 185 THB (£2.60) by taxi. There is no train, and although there seem to be buses, nobody was able to tell me the times or departure points from Bangkok. Inside the terminal, landside, hordes of locals were sitting on the floor or just wandering around. Despite the crowds and seeming chaos, check in was fast and efficient but I would have appreciated a warning of how long it would take to get to the gate for my flight, C3, at the far end of the complex. There were a lot of people in uniforms hanging around to give directions but they didn’t seem to have much of a clue. The building is impressive, with pleasantly efficient but not garish lighting, and a futuristic design. Unlike most buildings in Thailand, it was not unpleasantly cold, in fact in some places it seemed that the air-conditioning was not working at all. The electronic boards are a bit of a joke, flicking so fast between English and Thai that reading either was almost impossible. Airside, passport control was very busy and queues moving slowly, and there were no audible announcements for departures, not even in the business lounge, the board was not working, and the departures were not called, despite the attendant saying they would be. Finding the lounge was impossible, as the map on the invitation I was given at check in was confusing, and signs for ‘Airline Lounges’ point in every direction, making it impossible to find the right one, even though many of them still seem to be under construction. It seems that they will all welcome anyone who has any kind of invitation. Very confusing. The very long central core of the airport leading to the departure concourses is lined on both sides with shops, and in the centre of this already narrow area are open plan dining areas, restricting the flow of pedestrians. I shudder to think how difficult it would be to move in this area if the airport were really busy, and it is already close to the designed capacity for its first phase (45 million per year). Indications of how long it would take to get to the gates, such as those at Schiphol and other airports, would be helpful. The ‘airport guides’ available only show the shops and catering facilities, without any information about airline lounges or departure gates. If they had put 10% of the amount of thought that went into making the airport a commercial enterprise into making it passenger friendly, it would be fantastic. King Power, the company that seems to own the concessions for retailing, must be making a fortune. There are far too many shops and catering concessions and too little seating. Catering seems very expensive by Thai standards. I am sure they will iron out the operational and signposting problems quickly, but I think this airport will very soon reach capacity and start to show signs of strain and wear especially at the passport control and security choke points. Singapore, if you can put up with the rudeness and arrogance of the officials there, is a more efficient airport, but if you allow plenty of time, Suvarnabhumi is a more pleasant experience all round.

[Soju]

Even though the airport is so big the main public areas feel quite small and crowded with you having to duck and weave between people and shop displays - again this was never really a problem at Don Muang.

I'm really surprised that this person never experienced this problem at Don Muang. I don't think there was a single time in all my many trips there that it wasn't a problem. The duty free area at Don Muang was always packed with too many people shopping and/or trying to get to their gate. It was always slow going for me getting through this area.

There are however two points in Suvarnabhumi that require special attention. At the two concourse intersections (right in the middle of the intersection) are places where they have Thai dancers performing. I certainly don't mind the idea of having a dance show to entertain passengers, but right at the busy intersections where passengers then stop to watch and totally block anyone else from moving is just absolutely rediculous. I guess the problem isn't so much with the dance show but more to do with rude passengers who just stop and don't take the time to move in closer and allow other people by. If they were to rope off an area and post signs for people to step inside the roped area if they wanted to watch, it might work out ok. If not, you just have to do like me and push your way through these rude people, perhaps allowing your luggage to give them a good jab and maybe they'll get the message that they're not being very courteous to their fellow travelers.

A tip for people who like to avoid the crowds is to not use the duty free if possible. For me, I used the TG Lounge one level down, and from there was able to access my gate without ever visiting the duty free level if I wanted to. I'm not sure if this was possible for everyone though, as I was flying TG business class and entered via the Fast Track immigration zone and from there immediately took the escalator down to the TG lounge.

[number6]

Rogerdee,

Great report, just hope it is published in the BKK post.

Suvarnabhumi is a shambles !

Thanks for a great report. This airport is a bloody disgrace and the Thais should be ashamed of themself.

not really fair - lets see western wonderful projects - the dome london mmmmmm - the olympics athens - mmmmmmmm - the wonderful readyness in USA for hurracane ? that hit a little town donw south somewhere - um need i go on

all these gripes will go as long as main buildings are ok - i odnt know if they are

Oh just remembered i used to be a computer ocnsultant - wow some really good cock ups there - dhss - swansie - new benefits system

give it time guys give it time

[cobra]

Some good reports,

Just keep in mind, Start-Up and Commissioning of any facility this size and scope will be problematic.

I've yet to see anything fully completed by opening day, the commercial pressure to start generating cash-flow is just too great.

This being a commercial enterprise must still adhere to the basics:

1. Maximum extraction of money from passengers passing thru the facility,

2. Limit seating, (seats only make money on airplanes),

3. Throttle down concourse travel-ways to increase dwell-time in front of shops for maximum impulse shopping,

All these inconveniences and apparent poor flow control, are most likely not design flaws.

Just grab a coffee, get out your book, hunker down in your queue, and let the adventure and romance of travel take you,

[bks]

We have been in and out of the new Airport in the past week and overall had no real problems. Didn't like the design which was very cold and unfriendly. So unlike thailand.

The small exit area was a bit annoying, but thats all. The worst was checking in to leave on an international flight was very lengthy as the staff seemed to be new and couldn't work the computers. In contrast Booking in on a domestic flight with Bangkok Airlines was very quick.

[indothai]

I had a short weekend trip to BKK. Overall, it was very smooth. I forgot to time myself, so the times are just a guess.

My plane parked pretty far so it was a lengthy brisk walk to immigration (10 minutes?). During that walk, I only saw 2 toilet areas, each only had room for 3 people (Mens). Immigration was quick (Thai passport), there were lines for the foreign passports. Baggage took about 10 - 15 minutes, and more than enough carts.

Noticed the floors were slippery from the dust, construction is still on-going, mostly surface/facia type constructions.

Leaving BKK was smooth also, arrive 3 hours before flight, checked-in 2 bags. No one was in line so it was within 5 minutes that I got my boarding pass. Decided to look around a bit and catch lunch before going into immigration.

Tons of people sightseeing the new airport, so much so, that the parking lot was full. If you can, avoid eating outside, there are places to get food inside after immigration. Actually, avoid eating at the airport if you can, it's a complete rip-off. I spent over 600bht for 2 at that canyon coffee place for lunch.

Overall my experience was good. Things moved quick and smooth. Give it a couple of months for the shock-and-awe to wear out and construction to finish, then I think it will be a nicer airport.

Didn't see any ghost.

[linglop]

Arrived from Hong Kong yesterday. Baggage arrived within five minutes of my arriving at baggage hall. No one waiting at immigration. Back in Nonthaburi within hour during rush hour for Baht 250 plus toll charges in metered taxi which i hired on the fourth floor.

Only moans were the small size of the men's toilet in arrivals and ridiculously situated duty free shop, which the airports authority of thailand should have removed by now, in the arrivals area, prior to immigration. Plenty of signs following disembarkation indicating baggage and immigration.

I put the ridiculously situated duty free shop in arrivals down to the sheer arrogance of the chief executive of King Power. Fortunately on departure ten days ago few passengers were buying at the duty free outlets and perhaps King Power might get the message, or not.

[gdk]

Another stressful experience at Suvarnabhumi Airport. This time outbound international.

I had an early morning departure and decided to go early to tour a bit more of the airport and take a hotel Limo instead of the risk of getting a taxi driver who hadn’t yet been to Suvarnabhumi. I also don’t know that part of Bangkok or the airport so decided to splurge for the Limo. Guess what? The hotel has taken the opportunity of the new airport to increase it’s airport limo price from 1200 baht to 2200 baht! Amazing Thailand again!

Drive to the airport at 5:30AM was uneventful and took perhaps 5 minutes more than a drive to Don Muang.

Upon arrival at the airport the police had put the orange plastic cones up blocking the entrance to the “Limo Driveway” which is close to the terminal doorways. They did this because that driveway was full of and blocked by taxis. So much for that convenience of a Limo. But anyway Mai Pen Rai. Only an additional 40 meter or so walk.

I’m a Royal Orchid Gold Card holder so where is the check-in? The Limo Driver had let me off at the Thai economy boarding area. Inside the terminal there is chaos and confusion even at this early hour. Long snaking lines of passengers waiting to check-in at the Thai economy check-in counters. A Thai man with an ID around his neck is standing there and I ask him where is the Thai Gold Card check-in. “Ask Information” is his helpful response. The Information desk lady tells me to go to Business & First Class check in area which is Rows A & B . I am now at H & J. It’s a long walk but I don’t mind. At least I’m away from the chaos of the Thai economy check-in lines.

I arrive at the Business/First Class area (Row A & B ) and am greeted by two young men in military style uniforms like commercial security agencies issue to their staff. They won’t let me pass and tell me that Gold Card Check-In is at Row H & J. I tell them I was just at Row H & J and was sent to A & B by information staff there. The two young men won’t budge. So I start walking back and see another information desk. Several ladies working behind this desk and all insist I can check in at Business/First Class (Row A & B ). I tell them I just came from there and the guards told me to go to H & J. They insist the guards are wrong. One of the young ladies reluctantly agrees to go with me to Row A&B . The two guards stand firm and insist I should check in at Row H & J. The young lady argues with them for a few seconds and then tells me something like … “Sir you are in the wrong place, you are suppose to be at Row H & J”. I remind her that I am here in the wrong place because she told me to come here.

So I trek back to rows H & J and the long snaking lines are now almost reaching the terminal entrance doors. People are everywhere and it’s difficult to maneuver the baggage trolley. I don’t see any signs for Gold Card members and kick myself for not getting in the snaking economy line when I first arrived. I see another young lady dressed in the Thai Airways uniform and I ask her where to check-in. I think surely there must be a short Gold Card check-in line somewhere! She doesn’t know but takes me up to a check-in counter at about H 15 (in front of glaring eyes of the passengers in the snaking line) and the lady at the counter says Gold Card members are suppose to check-in at counters H1, H2, & H3. So I maneuver back again thru the crowd. Now I see the sign! It’s about waist high and difficult to see amidst the crowd. The Gold Card line is also hopelessly long. It intermingles with the even longer snaking economy lines which are by now are indeed backed up to the terminal doors.

But OK I get in what appears to be the end of the Gold Card line and resolve myself to probably missing my plane. In any case this line is shorter than the normal economy line. Passengers are brazenly cutting line. Many people frustrated and upset.

Another Thai lady dressed in Thai Airways attire is at the head of the line checking passenger tickets before they go to the check-in counter. Because the lines are so long and intermingled, there are regular economy passengers in the Gold Card line. The Thai Airways lady sends them away and tells them to go to the long snaking regular economy line. I feel sorry for these passengers. Three farang traveling together refuse to leave the line and a minor scene develops with the Thai Airways woman giving up and letting them go ahead and check-in. A Thai man tries to cut line in front of me and I ask him in Thai where he is going and tell him I’m in line and motion to the end of the line. He leaves.

Finally I reach the check-in counter. It’s taken one and a half hours since I arrived by Limo.

Check-in is smooth enough. Then to Immigration. Similar to the old airport there is an endless line of immigration counters but also similar, many are empty. But the lines here are nothing compared to the check-in lines.

Pass thru immigration and although I don’t have as much time as I intended I’ve still get plenty of time. I realize I need to piss. So I decide to check out the Thai Business Class lounge. To get there one must take an escalator down.

The Business Class Lounge is full of passengers. I’m about fourth in line to have my boarding pass checked. The crowds make me wonder. It was never like this in the Business Class lounge at Don Muang, except perhaps that lounge which was way down there at the end of the corridor (Gate 7?).

As I look for the toilet in the lounge I pass by one refreshment counter … hmmm no booze … also only food I see is those sandwiches they make with mayonnaise and green peas and carrots and some cupcakes … and of course soft drinks and those coffee machines with a line of about 2-3 people waiting to grind out a cup of coffee. I continue walking. Eureka! I see the toilets. I enter. A urinal is available but there is a line of about 6 guys standing in line waiting to take a shit. There are only 3 or 4 (can’t remember) crappers. Clearly not enough.

Back out and I continue walking to check out the rest of the lounge. It’s very long and sometimes narrow. It’s like a long hallway which intermittently widens out into small rooms. All the seats are occupied. There are maybe four refreshment areas in the lounge. I see booze. Only that one refreshment area has no booze. The others have. But the food selection is still meager. Where are the curry puffs? The chicken rolls? The spring rolls? And the miniature kirsches? Alas I spot one lonely piece of what looks like a strudel amongst the plates of pea and carrot sandwiches and cupcakes. Nothing appeals to me. There is no place to sit so I decide to leave. I do see some people using their laptops for internet so apparently wifi is working but I didn’t try it myself.

Back up the escalators to my gate area which is “D”. All the shops have an exclusive look to them. They look expensive. I think this is why there are few passengers in them. In the old airport the shopping areas were semi- “mah boon krong” style, friendly and inviting. These new shops remind me of an upscale Bangkok shopping center. Like the first floor of the Emporium. The kind of shops I normally walk hurriedly past.

However the electronics shop is too tempting to pass by, so I go in to check the prices. They sell Mac computers! They have a Macbook Pro priced at 100,000 baht. I didn’t ask about the specs and there was no printed information about it nearby so the only way to know if it’s a bargain or overpriced is to ask a salesperson and they are all busy. Oh well I don’t need to know. They also sell iMacs! Even the large screen ones. I wonder to myself how a passenger will get this on the plane. But Mai Pen Rai. Bangkok no problem. I always check out the digital cameras and compare prices with Panthip prices. Oh Man! Big disappointment. Most of the digital cameras are in a display case back behind the sales counter and you can’t see the prices! ? In Don Muang it was easy to window shop the cameras as they kept them in glass display cases with prices displayed which you could see up close.

I’m hungry and have time for a quick bite. So I go to a restaurant called “Asian--- something?”. It specializes in Asia dishes. I happily discover that it has Som Tam. So I order som tam and Vietnamese spring rolls and coffee and water (and prepare myself for an expensive bill). They make a mistake and bring me Thai spring rolls instead of Vietnamese but Mai Pen Rai. Happily they don’t use the encoded plastic card method in this restaurant but use normal “check bin” bills. When the bill comes I’m pleasantly surprised. They only charged me 35 baht for the 7 baht bottle of water! So there’s hope for this airport yet!!!

I get to my gate and it’s too small. Confined in a glass walled cubicle. 95 chairs (yes I counted) for 200+ passengers. People were standing around the walls and between the rows of chairs. I notice that there are two stands for TV sets for passengers to watch but alas there are no TV sets.

I check out the toilet. Despite the small size of the gate, there is indeed a toilet. But it isn’t clean. There are shoeprints on the toilet seat and piss on the floor. I suppose this is why there are no long lines of guys waiting to shit here.

The plane boards and this is also more stressful than Don Muang … because … there cannot be two lines (one for business and one for economy). Naturally when they announce for business boarding, everyone rushes to the gate, the layout being such that there can only be one line. A Thai Airways unsmiling man acts like a policeman and goes thru the line making economy passengers leave the line. I have a gold card so I escape from humiliation.

The plane is of course late because of the horrendous situation at the check-in counters. We sit in the plane for awhile and wait for the traumatized stragglers to board. The plane departs about 30 minutes late.

When I reach my destination my suitcase has three different baggage tags on it and I realize there were probably baggage problems which I was blissfully unaware of.

I realize that the only place I had a chance to sit down in the airport was the restaurant.

Also I realize that the era has passed whereby one could quickly navigate into and out of the Bangkok airport. Suvarnabhumi airport is a real consumer of time.

If the long check-in lines don't inprove, I think if I can afford it I will travel business class at least outbound to avoid the lines.

I arrived yesterday for the firsttime at the newairport, the problem I had was at immigration the person at the desk whas supprised to see a resident book seems to be the first time he see something like this, he also had problem to read the alphabet and had to ask help from his college next to him which took some time, also the board to tel you which belt your luggage arives is very confusing to read.

The lightning for the emmigration police is also poor.

To find my wife was confusing only by callign her solved the problem

gdk:o

ps verry new airport as his problems lets wait and see a few months everything will get smooded out little by little

[Noel]

To 'rogerdee123': when is your book being published?

Only kidding , excellent content and thanks very much for taking the time and trouble to share...

[rogerdee123]

I arrived again today at Suvarnabhumi on an inbound international flight. The overall experience was better than 10 days ago. So there is hope! But still some glitches which indicate the airport still isn't yet up to Don Muang par.

My first pleasant surprise was the plane was pulling up to a boarding/exit gate and not parking somewhere off on the ramp. "Maybe I can make it thru immigration and to the taxi quickly I thought". But alas it wasn't to be.

After exiting the plane and walking thru the elephant trunk into (we thought) the terminal, passengers were instead directed out a side door outside on the tarmac AND INTO A WAITING BUS! Why park the plane at a gate and then put the passengers in a bus?? Well it is anyone's guess. Maybe the doors leading into the terminal were stuck in closed position. Or maybe someone just thought .. "let's give these passengers an Amazing Thailand experience!" No explanation was offered. Passengers were amazed. Amazing Thailand Again!

The bus then began it's 270 degree circumnavigation of the terminal. Actually this time it made a wide circle and didn't follow the contours of the terminal like the last time. This wide circle drive allowed the bus to pick up some speed and the drive wasn't as long as the last time when the bus stuck close to the terminal walls and made numerous 90 degree right and left turns as necessary to get around the place.

The bus pulled up at a doorway and we disembarked and began enjoying the traveling adventure of searching for immigration. This time there were numerous signs unlike 10 days previously when there were no signs. This time the problem was there were too many signs and they were all pointing if different directions. For clarification I should say that there was one or two big permanent sign and dozens of A4 paper signs. Some passengers had confidence in the big sign while others liked the green colored A4 signs while some took a liking in the white colored A4 paper signs. But actually, although we were confused, almost all of the signs were correct. There were only a couple that were pointing the wrong way. Indeed, although we couldn't see them, the immigration booths were, in essence, everywhere. I myself saw a nearby green colored A4 sign pointing through a passageway and decided to take the road less traveled and low an behold thru the passageway was the endless row of immigration booths (many of the empty of course). However there were almost no passengers besides myself in this area so I found a lonely immigration officer who brightened up when I handed her my passport. Immigration was quick and painless.

Then to the multicolored constantly changing baggage belt sign. I was able to determine that my luggage would be on belt 7 (if lucky). However I was standing at about bely 16. It was a bit of a walk from belt 16 to belt 7 but what the hel_l ... sit back and enjoy the adventure of traveling. OOpps .. can't sit back ... must walk. But great traveling adventure.

After arriving at belt 7. I only had to wait about ten minutes for my luggage. Eureka! It arrived! Then walk back to the customs .. I don't know ... about half way back to belt 16. Only half of a hel_l of a long walk and another enjoyable travel adventure.

Then out thru the small opening and into the maddening crowds. OK I admit I splurged and went for a Limo again. However surprise surprise! This time it only cost 900 baht. Last week the same limo (a Nissan sedan ) going to the same hotel cost 1100 baht! Amazing Thailand! Maybe they realized it was a rip off at 1100. Or maybe I more simply I was just ripped off last week. Now they just need to drop another 100 baht and I'll be happy. Anyway boarding the limo was no problem and another enjoyable travel adventure.

It had only taken 45 minutes from the plane touchdown to my sitting in the airport limo. I need to cut another 20-25 minutes off to equal Don Muang's efficency, but with all that walking and the enjoyable traveling adventures, I'm not sure it's possible at Suvarnabhumi to get out much quicker than that.

I still had my limo receipt from the last trip and I showed them to the driver (who was from Surin, BTW, and could speak Khmer) and asked him about the change in Limo price. He had a good laugh and put me in a good mood. I told him I expected the price to drop to 600 baht by next week and that also touched his funny bone.

Maybe there's hope for Suvarnabhumi.

Maybe some of you guys are right and I'm just a wingher and complainer and looking for faults in an otherwise great improvement in the old and familiar Don Muang. Maybe I should try to open myself up so I can enjoy the adventure of traveling thru Suvarnabhumi. Ok I'm trying.

My goal on this trip was to get to one bank before it closed at 3:30PM and indeed I made it ... although I didn't make it to the second bank.

But what the hel_l ... have another beer and som tam and enjoy the experience. Wait for the next surprise or absurdity. I'm just glad I'm here and not in New York!

Chok Dee

[Fabian]

Be three hours before departure time, that's just ridiculous.