I had the pleasure of flying with Bangkok Airways last year from Bangkok to Koh Samui. I booked my flight with a UK travel agent and it cost just over £100, although prices do vary throughout the year. It is also possible to book tickets directly, via the Bangkokair website, as well as with online travel agencies.
Bangkok Airways (36 years old this year!) provides domestic flights within Thailand (destinations include Hua Hin, Sukhothai, Chiang Mai, Phuket and Pattya) as well as flights from Thailand to Laos, Vietnam, China, Singapore and Cambodia. For travellers to the island of Koh Samui, in the Gulf of Thailand, Bangkok Airways offers upwards of ten flights a day. The flight takes 50 minutes and the plane takes you over some fabulous scenery - imagine little green islands dotted all over an azure blue sea - simply gorgeous.
There are two things that, for me, sets Bangkok Airways apart from other airlines. Firstly, the high level of customer service and secondly, the airport at Koh Samui...
The service I received was nearly perfect. The only hiccup was when I arrived at Bangkok international airport, hubby in tow, our flight appeared to have been cancelled. There was no sign of our flight number on the departures board and upon check-in, we were told that our flight had indeed been cancelled and we had been put on another flight that left twenty minutes after our original flight. This apparently happens quite often due to the large number of flights that are operated to Koh Samui each day - quieter flights are simply consolidated with busier ones. However, the change was made so seamlessly that we didn't really mind and we spent the extra twenty minutes eating Thai snacks in the airport cafeteria.
I was surprised and impressed to see that the departure lounge at Bangkok airport provided ALL passengers with complimentary newspapers, fruit juice, snacks, bananas (loads of em!), tea and coffee. There were also a couple of computers with very slow internet access for waiting passengers to use.
The flight was on a tiny turbo prop plane which was comfortable enough. The flight attendants were very friendly and professional. Despite the fact that the flight took less than an hour, we were served a hot meal and beverages which was also impressive - the staff dealt with this extremely efficienty. There was simply no time to get bored! The food was a bit strange ( we had what looked like chicken nuggets with spaghetti) but the cakes were nice!
The airport on Koh Samui is something else. It is privately owned by the airline and was built using local materials - the low-rise buildings are thatched with coconut palm leaves! A truck towing a number of little carriages took passengers to the rustic terminal. The airport has taxi and money changing facilties. There is also a little gift shop for those last minute souvenirs, as well as a couple of cafes where you can get fresh coconut water.
On departure, all passengers can browse the complimentary newspapers and use the temperamental and slow internet access. Again, there are also refreshments available for everyone. These little touches made Bangkok Airways an enjoyable airline with which to fly.
All in all, I was extremely happy with my experience with Bangkok Airways. The only real negative point is the 500 baht (around £8) departure tax which is levied on all flights leaving the airport. This has to be paid at the time of leaving Koh Samui airport (ie, it is not included in the price of the ticket) - remember to keep some local currency back for this!
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Good review. I have flown Bangkok Airways a number of times and think they're great also. Just don't like to sit next to the prop in case it comes off....... The airport at Samui is beautiful. One of the nicest I've seen.
Lelo 18.02.2008 19:06
I like Bangkok Airways too and yes the airport in Koh Samui is really good
steveuk 20.10.2004 19:45
I'm flying to Koh Samui with Bangkok air in December! can't wait :-) it's good to know that it's a good airline. Thanks, Steve
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