September 28, 2006: Bangkok's
new US$3 billion airport, Suvarnabhumi Airport opened It can handle over
75 flights per hour & 45 million passengers per year. Tourism
accounts for almost 15% of the Thai GNP & this new airport is designed to make
Bangkok the leading air hub & tourist destination in Asia.
Bangkok's
Suvarnabhumi Airport is built on a drained swamp .. Cobra Swamp .. Suvarnabhumi
is known by locals
affectionately as Swampy-poon or Cobra Swamp Field ..
everything has a nickname in Thailand.
Bringing duty free tobacco or alcohol
into Thailand.
Summer 2008: 50% of 'nothing to declare' arrivals are stopped &
thoroughly checked.
The duty free bags from an airline or
airport duty free shop are sure way to be
stopped & checked!
You are allowed 10 packs of 20 smokes duty free. Cigars & pipe tobacco
are limited to 500 grams (1.1 pound).
Thai customs appears to be in the crack down mode on tobacco.
Contraband / non declared cigs will be confiscated + a 3555Thb
fine per carton.
In Thailand tobacco is a controlled substance. If you
need your brand from home, contact the Thai consulate before travel for proper
paper work to be filed pre-travel then declare & pay Thai tax of 450Thb per
carton.
Experienced Thai visiting smokers know well the Thai "Marlboro"
is very different from a Farang
Summer, 2008 Update: The
runway problems are apparently resolved & subsidence issues addressed.
Outside the long security lines most issues with the new
airport have been professionally resolved.
All international flights land at Suvarnabhumi and all Thai customs
/ Thai immigration is done at Suvarnabhumi (except flights direct to Phuket).
All transoceanic flights land at Suvarnabhumi.
For planes landing in
Bangkok, immigration & customs are done at Suvarnabhumi no matter final
destination.
The restroom usage when a 747 lands is huge .. restroom
renovations on the arrival concourses in 2007 & 2008 have addressed this issue well!
Luggage pick up is the fastest most efficient I have
experienced at any airport. The initial lost luggage / wrong conveyor /
wrong luggage pick up has been worked out.
More often than not luggage is
waiting upon clearing immigration.
For short layovers there is a "luggage storage" station next to the
Airport's Tourist Police station on level 3.
Storage fee: 100Thb per day per piece
They open each piece & thoroughly go through it .. you are
encouraged not leave any electronics.
Don Muang, the wonderful old airport, is still used for some
domestic flights..
Be sure make travel time considerations between
airports if domestic connections are scheduled out of Don Muang. (45 minute
travel at 6AM can turn into more than 2
hours at peak traffic).
The airports are far apart but connected 100% by multi-lane
highway / toll way.
Always take the toll ways .. a few baht toll can save hours!
The Suvarnabhumi green shuttle bus, route #555, to Don Muang
costs 40 Thb.
If traveling light the fastest way to Don Muang from Suvarnabhumi
is to combine taxi & BTS. If you have more than 2 small bags the BTS
transfers will obviously be difficult.
Taxi from Suvarnabhumi to BTS On-Nut.
BTS from On-Nut BTS Station to BTS Mochit Station. BTS Map.
Taxi from Mochit BTS to Don Muang.
Total cost under 400 Thb.
Of course, reverse for Don Muang to Suvarnabhumi
Additional toilets have been added to restrooms on all arrival
concourses.
If you arrive on an international flight late at night &
are transfering to Don Muang keep in mind that Don Muang is without any
concessions until about 6 AM.
Passport control is still a mess .. There should be 1 que going
to multiple passport control desks like LAX. Multiple lines with new lines opening
at any instant makes for chaos
Passport control line tip: avoid the passport line with
travelers obviously from South Asia, Africa or the Mid-East.
New airline luggage weight restrictions & associated over
weight fees are ridiculous.
My dear mom was forced to pay almost US$500. for her 2 new
suitcases full of souvenirs on the plane. It was to late to make other
arrangements & she was reluctant to leave any of her vacation souvenir bounty
(100% stupid tourist junk!).
Make arrangements for 'commercial shipping home' from your
vendors at time of purchase.
Or .. ask your hotel to help with international shipping before
departing for the airport.
We recommend taxi to & from the airport.
The Airport Sky Train construction is 2 years behind schedule .. perhaps early
2011.
For destinations outside Bangkok we recommend a limo ..
a few 100Thb for a luxry ride to Hua Hin or Pattaya or Ayutthaya is a bargan.
Airport - Sukhumvet Thb600 Ayuttaya RT 1500
Hua Hin 1 way 2500
Short term parking is 250Thb per day. For the fee of 3
days you can taxi to the airport from any part of Bangkok, from most areas the
2 day fee exceeds taxi fare.
Long term parking is 125Thb per day .. but very inconvenient if
you have more than minimal luggage. The Intra-airport bus system is more
trouble than it is worth, can require bus changes inside the air port compound. Bus pick-up stations can be as much as 200 meters from "far
corner" of long term parking area .. during rainy season, no way!
If you are traveling light, taxi to / from the On Nut BTS .. the closest mass
transit station.
Paid WiFi is available in the airport, 30 minutes 100Thb.
There are usually open free WiFi hot spots in the airport. TIP: look for
areas of the terminal with several persons typing on their laptops!
Suvarnabhumi Airport was claimed as one of the crowning
achievements of deposed Prime Minister Thaksin.
The
military-installed government that ousted Thaksin has opened several corruption
investigations into the airport .. the airport has become a focal point of
corruption investigations into Thaksin's administration.
The Suvarnabhumi runway cracks were reported in the Bangkok Post 2 years prior to the airport
opening. A lawsuit was threatened by the PM Thaksin's cronies
/ contractors. The
Bangkok Post published a retraction & the editor who uncovered the faulty
construction was fired!
More than 100,000 sq meters (1,000,000 sq feet) of runway are affected.
The the construction was bonded by Diphaya Insurance.
Repair costs are expected to be more than 1 billion Thb.
Problems reportedly are due to inferior design, poor construction technique &
concrete not up to specification.
24 August 2005, Bangkok Post news editor Chadin Thepaval was forced to
resign because of law suites threatened by ousted PM Thaksin .. he correctly reported cracks in the runway of Thailand's new
Suvarnabhumi Airport.
