I was just curious if there are other people from the United States that are trying to plan trips to Thailand right now and are reconsidering? I am trying to book a trip in February but I was thinking about maybe flying into Cambodia instead. Not sure what the closest airport would be in Cambodia that is close to Bangkok. However I think this might be a better alternative then trying to fly into Bangkok. With all the problems going on there now I would rather take a bus or train from Cambodia to Thailand. Also gas prices have been coming down considerably now in the United States. A few months back it was over $4.00 a gallon but now it is under $2.00 a gallon. That is half the price now but for some reason airlines are still charges high prices. Not sure why that is. Any how if anyone has any feed back for the two things that I talked about I would greatly appreciate it. I hope everything gets better quickly in Bangkok. It is my favorite place to go for the holidays! Greg 

some airlines fly on chiang mai. i dont think this will last until february =D

I saw an airport in Cambodia that was very close to BKK. I think that might be closer then flying to Chang Mai. I am not sure however.

yeah...also,many go...from Phuket...

Flights to PP in Cambodia usually go through BKK. So, it's not really an alternative as such.

I too doubt very much that this will be going on 'till February.

Posted by Hobbes

"Flights to PP in Cambodia usually go through BKK. So, it's not really an alternative as such."

And flights to Cambodia are still landing in BKK today?

This will be resolved shortly.It wont last into December much less February.

Posted by Katoom

"And flights to Cambodia are still landing in BKK today?"

Obviously not. You should perhaps take note of the little word 'usually'. At present we have anything but business as usual going on in BKK.

Of course you can also fly to PP through Singapore, KL and probably a few other regional hubs but not directly from the anywhere in the US afaik, which is what the journal poster was after I belief (but please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong).

Bangkok is the primary transit spot to Cambodia (unfortunately for the Cambodians this week). Although you can also go via Saigon (Ho Chi Mihn City). I think one of the budget carriers goes from Chiang Mai to Siem Riep, but forget which one. You can fly direct to Chiang Mai via Taipei (China Airlines) or Seoul (Korean Air).

This will all be over by February, but I must say that Chiang Mai is a much easier transit spot than BKK (unless you like long walks and taxi rides).

Some airlines made the mistake of getting long-term fuel contracts at peak prices, so they are screwed until those are finished.

I think a lot of you don't understand what I am talking about unfortunately. I am talking about getting to Bangkok from the US. Instead of flying from the USA to Bangkok airport you can fly from the US to Cambodia. Then you can take the train or bus to cross the border into Thailand. This way you can bypass the problems at BKK airport.

If the BKK airport is not safe and secure by the time of your trip, then thailand is in anarchy and you would want to avoid it altogether.

It may not help you, but I found out Thai is flying from Copenhagen to military airport U-TAPAO at Pattaya (directly) instead of BKK these days. It seems like they keep the daily schedule in that way. There might be other flights (probably) landing there as well. It gives me peace in mind coz I'm going on Jan. 2nd.!

Yeah I guess I still have time anyhow so there is no need to worry just yet. By then ticket prices should be a little better also.

I think you need to read the responses more careful. There are no direct flights from the US to Cambodia. All flights to Cambodia go via some Asian hub and almost all would go via BKK (if and when it opens again).

Even if you could go to PP direct, there is no train connection between Cambodia and Thailand. You'd have to use bus and taxis.

HTH.

Im flying out on the 2nd of Decmber from Utapoa to Kuala Lumpur then on to Dubai. Some airlines are running out of Utapoa at the moment but there is only 3 check in counters and one luggage scanner so its a bit stretched their but at least im getting back to work....

Like someone else has already said, if you can not fly from BKK in february then we are all in a little trouble, bangkok is the hub of asia... it needs to be re-opened or its going to bankrupt Thailand.! They Thailand Travel and Tourism authority are currently paying 200million baht a day to keep stranded passengers in hotels.!

I'm scheduled to fly on Dec 23, and I'm not worried about it. There's no way an advanced country can allow its people to hijack the main international airports and not deal with it. I reckon it will come to a boil in a few days and it will be back to business at the airport by the time I'm ready to fly. February will be no problem.

As for the political unrest, that's not likely to end any time soon, but there too, it wouldn't make me change my flight.

well waiting on the airport to open up is enough for me since I am still currently waiting on being cleared through my company and when that happens unless they pay up I will wait on the BKK Airports to open back up

Posted by Hobbes [ 30 November 2008 | 9:52AM ]

I think you need to read the responses more careful. There are no direct flights from the US to Cambodia. All flights to Cambodia go via some Asian hub and almost all would go via BKK (if and when it opens again).

Even if you could go to PP direct, there is no train connection between Cambodia and Thailand. You'd have to use bus and taxis.

HTH.

CI, MH, CZ, VN do have flight from US to Phnom Penh but you have to via their hub which is not BKK.

Stop thinking about taking train from PNH-BKK unless you want some unforgetable trip for your life.

I checked a few times online and I could get a flight into Cambodia without going from Thailand first. However I have seen some okay prices lately for booking tickets in February. So it seems that ticket prices are starting to come down a little. Here are the two sites I use when booking tickets to Thailand. Maybe they will be of some help for other guys in the US that want to travel to BKK soon.

http://www.bookingbuddy.com/?source=google_ct_thailand_flights&s_kwcid=ContentNetwork|455206965

http://www.asia.com/find.php?fm_mic=4iiel5w&fm_creativeID=I016&fm_datecalc=0&fm_xml=1&fm_xml_popup=1&redirectsingleMenu=air&ComboMenu=%253EChoose%253C%252Foption%253E%250D%250A%2509%2509%2509%2509%253Coption%2Bvalue%253D%26&singleMenu=air&comboMenu=&flightType=2&date1=02%2F18%2F2009&date2=03%2F09%2F2009&adults=1&children=0&rooms=0&Submit1=SEARCH+BEST+PROVIDERS+%3E%3E&city1=Rochester%2C+NY%2C+USA+-+%28ROC%29+Monroe+County&city2=BKK