Asia's Boutique Airline (Bangkok Airways)

Member Name: rosebud2001

Product:	Bangkok Airways
Date:	31/07/08 (28 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Excellent level of service

Disadvantages: None

Bangkok Airways bill themselves as Asia's "boutique" airline, and its not hard to see why.

Their most famous route is that between Bangkok and Koh Samui and they even own the airport at Samui. The airline also flies to destinations all over Asia, including Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan and Hong Kong.

The planes are small and some are turbo props but with the growth in popularity of tourism on Samui more jets are being used.

The service onboard is outstanding and is far superior to anything I have experienced in the US or Europe. Everyone on board receives a meal and drink and children's meals are excellent, also including a sticker scene game incorporated into their meal boxes to help children pass the time on their flight.

While the airline is probably best known in the west for its routes to and from Samui, they also fly to Chiang Mai, Krabi, Pattaya, Phuket, Trat and Sukothai within Thailand, as well as their hub of Bangkok, and destinations in China, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Within Bangkok they are based at Suvarnabhumi Airport - this is a great advantage for the foreign traveller as a lot of the lower cost budget airlines use the old Don Mueang airport in the city which is quite some distance from Suvarnabhumi which is of course the main international airport in Bangkok.

It is easy to book flights with this airline using their website, which is available in English. Fares are high compared to some of the low-cost airlines in the region but the service is far higher. They do have a near monopoly on flights to Koh Samui which sadly doesn't mean really cheap fares but the high service you receive is in marked relief to that you get on Nok Air for example.

http://www.bangkokair.com

I have used this airline many times and will continue to do so on future visits to Thailand - they are expanding their routes and I would seek them out when visiting other parts of Asia for the high levels of service I have come to expect from them.

Summary: One of the best airlines in the world