Bangkok International Airport Closure InformationThe
page will remain online as long as the airport closures remain at Bangkok's Suwannaphum International and Don Meuang domestic airport as a resource for passengers flying into or out of Thailand. It will be updated daily.
Update: Friday 5th December
This may well be the last update on this page. Basically, what I have been saying over the past few days remains - you need to check with your airlines to confirm your flight and where it is flying in or out of.
The mainstream press is reporting that everything is back to normal and that the airport has been re-opened but frankly, that is a little misleading. There is still a massive backlog of passengers and it will be some time before the backlog is clear and it is business as usual with flights back at Suwannaphum. Good luck!
Update: Thursday 4th December
Regional airports in Thailand remain congested despite the seizure of Bangkok's airports ending but it is NOT business as usual at Suwannaphum airport just yet. Reports in the mainstream media talk of some commercial flights flying into the international airport but they would appear to number just a few at this stage.
In fact we are getting very mixed and confusing messages. I think it would be fair to say that Bangkok's international airport will not be back in operation with regular service and the backlog of stranded passengers both within and outside the country sorted for at least another week or so. This is just a guess so don't make any big decisions based on this!
But Thai Airways seems to be leading the way. A reader went in to see Thai Airways this morning regarding a flight to Auckland and was told that while tonight's flight was cancelled, he could get on the flight on Saturday night - and it would be leaving from Suwannaphum. A friend in Singapore reports that the first flight he can get out of Singapore leaves on Monday. There's a backlog alright. Interestingly, they are starting to tell people to go straight to the airport instead of BITEC after today - at least for some flights.
I guess the advice from yesterday remains. If you are flying in or out of Thailand it was important to contact the airlines to confirm your flight as well as verify just which airport you will be flying into or out of. Here's hoping that you do not have to use U-Tapao for all of the reports I have received maintain that it is still absolute bedlam there!
Update: Wednesday 3rd December
It has been reported in the local press that 350,000 tourists are now stranded inside Thailand. That's the entire population of a medium sized city such as Wellington, New Zealand's capital or Leicester, England or St. Louis, Missouri in the USA. Many airlines are continuing to fly into and out of U-Tapao airport although with reduced capacity the number of stranded passengers is still increasing.
But I must also ask the question of how many people are stranded outside of Thailand, both Thai citizens who wish to return home as well as foreign residents of Thailand who exited the country and now wish to get back - but who are unable to.
With the PAD protesters now leaving Suwannaphum Airport it has been announced that facility will re-open at midnight on December 4th and flights will resume service. Whether this means all flights will resume or not is far from clear. Travellers should confirm all travel both into and out of Bangkok to verify which airport they will be using.
There is reason for much concern with various reports from so-called aviation and industry experts saying that the airport would not be able to resume operation for a week or two as various systems would need to be checked and extensive security checks and sweeps made. That the airport is re-opening so fast could be seen as a tribute to the efficiency of the airport employees or perhaps, as a controversial move, the words cutting corners overheard numerous times.
A friend has a flight to Malaysia today with the flight leaving U-Tapao at 5:30 PM. He had to leave his condo at 8:30 to make it on time to BITEC Convention Centre where the check-in for this particular flight is. Passengers have been told they need to check in 7 HOURS BEFORE DEPARTURE TIME.
How much longer U-Tapao continues to be used a substitute for Suwannaphum remains to be seen. It would seem there may be a small transition period where both could be used. No-one knows for sure and for that reason it is imperative that you confirm everything with the airlines.
It's interesting that despite all of this turbulence and much concern about the effects it will have on the Thai economy that the Thai baht has barely moved against most major currencies.
Update: Tuesday 2nd December
In what should be seen a progress in the de-escalation of the occupation of Bangkok's airports, the Constitution Court banned Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat from politics for five years and perhaps more importantly, dissolved the People's Power party (PPP) as well as two of their other coalition partner parties. This is exactly what the group occupying the two airports wanted and surely it paves the wave for them to leave the airports and for the situation to return to some sort of normality.
However, as at the time of writing this, a little after 3 PM Bangkok time, both Bangkok airports remain closed and there is no end in sight to the occupation of Bangkok's airports by the PAD and therefore no end in sight on the horizon in this crisis. When this news broke a little earlier today, the immediate reaction from many foreigners was one of joy and there was hope that the airport would open. I would suggest that this is not the case and that we are probably still some time away from the protesters leaving, let alone any semblance of regular service at Suwannaphum resuming.
Sky News in the UK is reporting that the airport will be out of operation until at least December 15 as per this report.
I am surprised, and in some ways almost shocked, that a number of American readers are telling me that this is getting almost no coverage in the US media. The situation where hundreds of thousands are travellers have had their vacation plans drastically changed and where tens (or maybe hundreds) of thousands of passengers have been stranded I would have thought to be bad news. I do not wish to sound callous and mean absolutely no disrespect to those who have suffered through the terrorism tragedy in Mumbai, India, but it would seem that that has firmly relegated the Bangkok airport drama to something much less important or newsworthy.
It should be noted that in the local press it has been stated that once the airport is cleared of all the protesters - and whenever that may be is anyone's guess - that it will take at least a week for the airport to be operational again. AT LEAST A WEEK! That means that if you have flights booked in the next week then they will very likely be disrupted, or in the case of those airlines flying in and out of U-Tapao Airport, diverted there.
Currency Exchange
The Thai baht has slipped a little against most major currencies. It is trading at 35.5 baht to the US dollar meaning anyone changing dollars will get well over 35 baht for every dollar. I think it's fair to say that as long as the occupation of the airport continues and the PAD's slow grip on paralyzing the country's infrastructure remains then the baht will continue to slide.
More on the Overstay Issue
A very good question that I have received from a number of concerned readers and one which I cannot answer is just what the consequences are of someone who finds themselves on an overstay as a result of waiting to get a flight out of the country and is picked up police, for whatever reason. Logic dictates, based on the announcement by Thai Immigration, that they will waive all overstay fines due to being able to exit via the airport, that it would not be a problem. But this is Thailand you just never know.... The truth is that there *could be* an issue as to whether a regular policeman would know about the visa overstay waiver with Immigration. After all, this is Thailand and the left hand does not always know what the right hand is doing. I guess my advice is that you should be extra careful so as not to meet any cops. The other thing is that you could extend your visa at Immigration. A 7 - 30 day extension - dependant on the type of visa you have - can be had for 1,900 baht at the Immigration head office on Soi Suanplu, just off Sathorn Road. It usually takes about an hour or so.
Financial Assistance for Tourists Stranded in Thailand
For tourists who find themselves stranded in Thailand, you can contact the Tourism Authority of Thailand by calling 1672. They are assisting tourists by providing lodging and food up to 2,000 baht in value. There are a number of hotels participating where lodging is provided as well as coupons for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Call the TAT for more details.
Update: Monday 1st December
Current Situation
Bangkok Suwannaphum - CLOSED, occupied by protesters.
Bangkok Don Meuang - CLOSED, occupied by protesters.
Chiang Mai - OPEN, business as usual.
Phuket - OPEN, business as usual.
Samui - OPEN, business as usual.
Hat Yai - OPEN, business as usual.
U-Tapao - OPEN, being temporarily used by some airlines.
Both of Bangkok's airports remain closed and there is no indication that the situation will change any time soon. Each airport is occupied by huge numbers of PAD protesters.
It is expected that even when the protesters do eventually vacate the airports - and there is absolutely no indication when that will be - it could be a number of days before the airports can resume regular services. There will need to be a massive clean up operation followed by a security sweep. With that in mind, travellers may need to look at alternate plans to exit the country.
For Passengers Leaving or Wishing to Leave Thailand
For all passengers who hold an air ticket out of the country via Suwannaphum, Bangkok's international airport, you should contact your airline. Some airlines have diverted flights from the closed Suwannaphum Airport to U-Tapao Airport which is located east of Pattaya, about 2½ - 3 hours' drive from Bangkok. There are also revised check-in procedures with check-in conducted at a number of Bangkok hotels as well as a convention centre. Contact your airline for confirmation of your flight as well as your check in location. Also, please be aware that you may need to check in as many as 6 hours before scheduled departure. Transport by bus is being provided from the check-in point to U-Tapao Airport.
Unfortunately the situation at U-Tapao has been described as "chaotic". The airport is not geared up for the sort of numbers passing through and thousands of passengers have been forced to wait outside the airport terminal. There are also massive traffic jams approaching the facility.
Many airlines have suspended flights to and from Bangkok at this time while others, such as Qantas, have diverted some flights via Singapore. You need to contact your airline or travel agent for more information.
Thai Airways have said that all tickets have to be re-confirmed. This means that just because you have a ticket to fly to Sydney, London etc. on a certain day they must be confirmed. There is a chance you may not be able to fly that day. You should contact Thai Airways or the agent that you booked your ticket through to re-confirm your departure date. It would be prudent for all passengers on all carriers to do this.
If you absolutely must leave Thailand there are various options available to you. If you wish to fly out of the country, Chiang Mai, Phuket, Ko Samui and Hat Yai all have international flights but they are small airports and simply do not have anything like the range of connections of Bangkok's Suwannaphum Airport. As is to be expected, flights out of these airports are filling up quickly.
You could try and make your way overland to Kuala Lumpur or beyond to Singapore, both of which are large international airports with similar number international connections to Bangkok's Suwannaphum Airport. Unfortunately this is quite a long journey. The options to get to the border are train, bus or taxi. I would expect a taxi or private car hire from Bangkok to the Malaysian border would cost around 12,000 baht so the idea might be to try and defray the cost with a couple of other travellers.
One could head north to Vientiane in Laos, or Phnom Penh in Cambodia, both of which have international airports but have a very limited number of connections - many of their connections are with Thailand.
Concierge desks at some 5-star hotels are helping to arrange charter flights in small aircraft (14 passengers) to Singapore or Kuala Lumpur for a price of around $US 1,600 per person for people who REALLY want to leave Bangkok.
Visa Overstay Issues
Thai Immigration has announced that it will waive the daily visa overstay fine of 500 baht for those passengers who can show that they had a ticket to exit the country via Suwannaphum.
For Passengers Flying into Thailand
Many airlines have quite simply cancelled all flights coming into Bangkok. You need to contact your airline or travel agent to establish the status of your flight.
A number of airlines flying into Thailand, including Thai Airways, have rediverted flights to arrive at U-Tapao airport.
Unfortunately, reports have it that in addition to the airport being in a state of flux and much chaos, the taxi crew operating there have seized the chance to make some serious money and passengers are reporting quotes of 2,000 baht for the short journey to Pattaya or 4,000 baht to go all the way to Bangkok. Compare this with the regular fare of 1,200 baht from Bangkok to Pattaya and only 800 baht going the other way.
If you have any questions at all, I will do my best to answer them for you. Feel free to drop me an email at : stickmanbangkok@gmail.com
