[cwoodward]

Possibly because its not been built yet!
Seriously though 2 major Bangkok airport(s) extensions are close to being put to tender. The below adds some detail

https://www.globalconstructionreview.com/thailand-plans-two-major-airport-expansions-next-year-as-tourists-return/

[LuganoPirate]

It seems F and C fares are coming down in price with increased competition on many routes. Out of South Africa I’ve seen reductions of over 30% on many routes. Qatar in particular are being very aggressive and I think the other carriers have to follow.

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BPP

[AMcWhirter]

[quote quote=1351647]Finnair fly’s 14 flights a week on the route and were full both ways. So I have no idea why BA cannot put a 4 class A380 on the route? Seems odd as it is such a tourist trap,[/quote]

Thanks for the comments.

Finnair is a sixth-freedom carrier and I expect it is attracting customers from Scandinavia and other Nordic countries.

SAS no longer serves BKK. It suspended its year-round Thailand services in 2012 after 63 years of service.

Norwegian long-haul (which used to serve BKK) is no longer trading.

SIA’s Scoot was operating LGW-BKK until last year I believe. It was thought Scoot would make a success of London-Bangkok but it failed to do so.

The A380 is an expensive aircraft to operate and I do find that BA will deploy the super jumbo on high revenue routes. In which case SIN and HKG would be favoured over BKK. Let’s hope BA does restart BKK in 2023 but with less capacity.

It is true that EK and QR operate their A380s to BKK.

But flight time from the Gulf to BKK is shorter (than from Europe) and flights of around seven or eight hours are considered the “sweet spot” of aviation as CEO Azran Bin Rani said at the time Air Asia X retreated from Europe.

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BPP

[norbert2008]

The terminal was there when I flew out last month and last year, about 20 gates Thai’s many spares planes parked there.

[BPP]

When I started this thread back on 10 February, I did not anticipate the huge response which has been very illuminating. Thank you all.
If these ridiculous increases are indeed demand led then it begs the question as to who is satisfying this demand.
When I first started travelling some many years ago, Business Class was the preserve of mainly (not in any particular order):
1. Senior execs with a ‘pay grade’ which included Premium Travel
2. Government/State employees similarly rewarded.
3. Expats whose contracts allowed for Premium travel.
4. Retired members of the above with decent pensions!
5. People (like me then) prepared to fund the difference Y to J to travel in comfort.
6. A small number of ‘high net worth’ leisure travellers. I now note that ‘Trailfinders’ have stopped advertising inclusive holidays with Business Class travel.
I am sure there are others.
Having checked again recently – with seat costs now some 2.5 / 3 times the cost of three years ago, who is buying these seats? Do 1-3 still exist?
Another way of looking at these fares is the ‘hourly rate’ which is now some £400/hr. Even with the added benefits of Lounge access etc – still absurd!! The other issue which I raised initially is the apparent cartel operating across the major carriers.
These costs cannot be justified by companies or most individuals and if we ‘The Peasants’ – (me now) revolt they will come down.
An afterthought – I do wonder how much of this is due to carriers like the MEA’s redeeming vouchers given at the beginning of the pandemic (at the old price) which is now reducing their income and capacity for new business at the same time??
BPP

[MartynSinclair]

@BPP – or it could be that prices are higher because pre covid they were too cheap.

The best bargain for my pre covid ex Europe ticket to BKK (via HKG) return, was ca. Euros 1,300 in J. I would generally pay within the band of £1,700 – £2,500 sterling in total. Remembering also that these flights would come with sufficient avios for 3 or 4 free business class Eu sectors or 8 sectors in economy. Those were the days, BA paid me to fly with them…. 🙂

Post covid I am paying between £2,300 and £2,900. I don’t think I have paid over £3k. I can still justify my overseas travel in business at these prices. I may find at £4k difficulty in justifying the travel. With good research or using a TC, semi decent prices can be found, but flexibility in travel dates…needed. Remembering also, the comparative hotel costs have also gone up….

I was due in Asia in December but the prices this far out are too horrendous to contemplate so I am likely to move December’s visit to January.

BKK, despite it’s popularity is still a challenging destination for one world travellers. No direct flights and only QATAR and FINNAIR flying. Finnair have the additional problem of each HEL to BKK rotation now taking more than 24 hours, due to circumnavigating Russia.

It will be interesting to see when more direct flights go to BKK, especially BA9/10 being turned back from cargo to passenger.

Until there are more seats, and Russian airspace reopens, travellers, where cost is not a major issue, still need to grab seats and will pay. I fall into the category of, if being flexible can reduce costs, I will be flexi.

But there again, I can just pass the increased costs to my clients….

An additional interesting point, I use the Westin in BKK. The hotel had a 2 week period recently of 100% occupancy and this apparently is not unusual now in BKK. Currently running at 87%. People are still travelling, flights are full, prices are high in business (and economy)…

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Jacob, cwoodward, BPP

[BPP]

Hi Martyn
Thanks for the input, I should have added Airline employees to the list of freebies!
I too have a provisional (oldies – hasbeens) meet up planned for December in Bangkok but as you say fares are absurd as of now. Unless things change significantly then a plan B will be needed.
BPP

[stevescoots]

if there is demand over capacity then the market dictates the pricing. from what i have seen post covid in J on the routes i have taken there is high demand and people are paying. used to pay on average 2.5K UK-HK-VN and back once a month, now its 3.5 on average to get the flexibility I must have.
As martin points out there are some reasonable prices out there if you can take odd routings or do not need flexibility. Hotels are the same. in HK until 2012 i used the same hotel in Shatin close to our office then their prices doubled caused by huge demand by mainland shoppers, I decamped to one in ETST and was paying almost the same rate from 2008 until Feb this year, now they have put our corp rate up 80% so I went back to Shatin where the rate is now 2008 pricing…as there are no mainland shoppers back yet. Supply and demand

[cwoodward]

Rates are as Steve and Martin elude to getting softer re fares and hotels. It is far from uniform yet but I was just checking some fares for upcoming trips fares two and three months out there is defiantly some downward movement but that movement very patchy.

[alistairNicoll]

I have just received an email from Emirates “Seek the thrill of travel and enjoy special fares”

Bangkok return business class from £3975*

Ouch

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BPP

[BPP]

Ouch indeed!

[cwoodward]

Pretty ‘special’ for sure

[Author]

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