Author Archive

How To Fast Track Past The Long Immigration Queues At Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport And Get Through In Minutes Rather Than Hours

Three Ways To Beat Those Frustrating Immigration Queues

My excitement at packing my bag for another trip to my retirement house we built in Pakchong (Pak Chong) is tempered by the thought of suffering the long delays and waiting to get through the immigration checks at the airport on arrival. (And on departure but let’s not get ahead of ourselves!)

I started writing this post assuming that I would be in for the long queues at the airport immigration that we all know and hate.

Thinking about these delays, I recalled something someone had written on the Thai Visa wesbsite about fast tracking through immigration because he had a business class air ticket. I started to investigate the possibility of this fast track service and almost by accident discovered that anyone could fast track through the immigration, either the FREE way or by paying for it, whatever kind of air ticket they had bought!

This is the story…

Just How Bad Are The Long Immigration Queues At Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport?

I have been following with disconcertion the debate on the Thai Visa forum (Massive Delays Through Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport Immigration) about the long delays to get through immigration at the Suvarnabhumi Airport and as I pack my bag for my next trip to Thailand I’m not looking forward to it at all.

Some Comments From Disgruntled Travelers On The Waiting Times At The Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport

These are just a few of the many comments by travellers from the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport Passenger Reviews and Customer opinions forum on the AirlineQuality.com website.

“All I can say is the immigration procedure is farcical.”

“I’d rank such disorganised airports as Sydney, Ho Chi Minh and Denpasar as better run than Bangkok”

” I travel all round the world and this airport ranks as one of the worst major airports I travel through.”

“Transiting through this airport is nightmare.”

Fast Track Method No. 1. Get A Business Class Air Ticket?

Last time I entered it took me about an hour to get through (entering Thailand) and I was pretty fed up I can say. One guy on the Thai Visa forum said that if you have a Business Class ticket than you can go through the business channel and short-cut the queues.

It so happens that when I went to buy my air ticket earlier this year there were only one or two spaces left on direct flights near Easter and they were on Business Class on Thai Airways. I really had no choice but to cough up the £2,555.83 * ($3,322.58 or 122,679.84 Thai Baht) fare if I wanted to travel at that time (I did). Ouch!

Even so I could not get the exact flight I wanted and had to leave at lunchtime instead of the evening. Hence I lost a day at work.

* By comparison, my standard class ticket with EVA Air last Christmas was £1,149.73 ($1494.65, 551087.40 Baht). So Business Class is about double the normal fare. You’d expect a few extra perks for that apart from a wider seat and decent food.

Anyway I read this on the AirlineQuality.com website and I perked up a bit:-

“My wife and I flew business class and we were given a premium pass to help us through security and immigration.”

Also I just found this statement on flyerwiki.net:-

“At Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, Royal Silk Class passengers have their own exclusive check-in lounge, with separate fast-track immigration channels, before they proceed to any of six Royal Silk lounges”

And this:-

Fast-Track Immigration at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International airport

Updated on July 14, 2010

“All Première guests traveling from Bangkok on all Jet Airways flights will be able to enjoy the new Fast-Track Immigration service at the Suvarnabhumi International airport at Bangkok. No need to wait in long immigration lines! This new privilege offers Première guests a special immigration channel which bypasses normal queuing.” on the jetairways.com website. (Admittedly not Thai Airways, but the principle is the same. i.e. it seems that a fast-track immigration service is available.)

So I concluded that Business Class travelers can short-cut the immigration queues on landing at Bangkok.

Can anybody comment on whether you can by-pass the immigration queues on entering Suvarnabhumi Airport if you are have a business class air ticket?

Fast Track Method No. 2. The Free Way To Beat The Queues – Cheat

How I Avoided Missing My Flight Due To Long Immigration Queues Leaving Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport

If the immigration queues on arrival at the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport are terrible, they are nowhere near the terrible queues to get through the Thai immigration when leaving Thailand through the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport.

I experienced this for the first time whan I left Bangkok in January, 2012 and I nearly missed my flight.

I arrived at the airport with plenty of time to check in and there was no check-in queue. Then when I went through to the immigration desks my jaw dropped when I saw the huge queue. I had been used to long queues at Heathrow airport in the UK after the liquid bomb scare, but Heathrow seems like a fast-track process compared to what I witnessed in Bangkok.

The queue was ‘controlled’ by those portable posts with black webbing tape strung between them. The posts were arranged in zig-zag back and forth across the immigration hall and about twenty lines deep to the front of the queue.

As I slowly (very slowly) moved along the queue I became quite alarmed at how slowly it was moving. As an engineer (engineers always count or calculate everyhting) I started to count how far the que moved in a minute. Then a quick calculation showed me that is would take two hours to get to the front of the queue. Then I would still have the long walk out to the terminal whch as you know can be half an hour.

In danger of missing my flight, this was unacceptable.

Always naughty, I slipped under the webbing tape and was in the next line. Nobody complained so I did it again. And again until I was at the front of the queue and ready for the first hurdle of the immigration process – no not the immigration desks – but security. Shoes off, belt off, lap top out, jacket off and through. Then it was straight on to the immigration desks where the queues’s were quite short.

I’m not looking forward to doing that again.

Fast Track Method No. 3. Fast Track Airport Services

Fast Track Services To Avoid The Immigration Queues At Suvarnabhumi Airport

As I became engrossed in this issue of the long delays at the airport and the possibility of being able to fast track through immigration I started to do a bit of investigation on the Internet.

First I found this on teakdoor.com:-

Danish-Thai Chamber of Commerce : Fast Track Immigration in Suvarnabhumi Airport

03 February 2011

Danish-Thai Chamber of Commerce offers Corporate Members to buy “fast track” tickets that will make it possible for the members to skip the long waiting lines at the immigration in Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport. Hours of waiting in the ordinary line for tourists can be cut down to 10 minutes at the Fast Track counter for only 200 baht per ticket that are sold by the Chamber’s office.

“If you travel from and to Suvarnabhumi Airport on a regular basis you will spend much time in the immigration process. The fast track service will save a lot of valuable time for our members and at a very competitive price,” says Stig Vagt-Andersen, Member of the Board at DanCham, who has arranged the special offer.

DanCham offers 10 fast track tickets at 2,000 Baht while pricing found on various internet sites shows prices more than ten times higher than the offer from DanCham. Usually, the fast track service will be provided if you got a Premium Class flight ticket or you can buy the service from several companies in the airport.

That sparked my imagination and very quickly I found that there are several companies in Bangkok offering a fast track service at the airport to circumvent the immigration queues. Of course there is a fee for this service. Here are some of the fast track services I came across, with examples of their services:-

http://fasttrack.in.th/products.php

Service: Meet and Assist and escort through formalities on arrival and departure First Class lounge access at airport on departure.

Price: One person 3,700 Baht

http://www.thaifasttrack.com

Service: As soon as you step foot off the aircraft, we will have staff waiting for you at the gate to escort you to the VIP fast track immigration line for your convenience. After immigration, our staff will escort you to the baggage carousel and assist you retrieve your baggage. After retrieval of your baggage, we will escort you to the fast track customs line to avoid long customs check saving you time. If you have relatives/friends picking you up, we will make sure you meet up with them.

Price: 1,400 Baht. (it doesn’t clearly say if this is just arrival only or arrival and departure. I assume arrival only)

http://www.limousine.in.th/fast-track-immigration.html

Service: Our friendly Airport Hostess or host will meet & greet with you at the arrival gate, holding a sign with your name or a more discrete expression like a company name, logo, initials, etc.

She or he will help with carry-on luggage and lead you to the exclusive fast track immigration counters, where he or she will assist with immigration documents details to ensure that your official entry into Thailand occurs without any delays.

After collecting your luggage from the Bagage claim area, she or he will then guide you through customs and deliver your bags to one of our limousines that just then pulls up in front of the arrival hall at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

If you are traveling by other means of transportation, you will be taken to it instead. If the pick up vehicle does not hold green or yellow license plates, please ask the driver to park in the parking building and meet at outerdoor number 3.

Price: 1,100 Baht. (Arrival only, limousine not included)
Price: 2,100 Baht. (Arrival and departure, limousine not included)

Other Services Offered

These companies also offer other services, typically limousine transport to/from your hotel.

Which Method Will You Choose To Get Through Thai Immigration At The Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport?

Grin And Bear It?

There are those who hate being ripped off and see these fast-track services as being a rip-off. These people may take the view that the airport shouldn’t need fast-track services to get what is taken for granted in most other airports around the world.

Having spent many thousands of Baht on air tickets and other transport costs the last thing they want is to fork out for ‘services’ that fill in for the Thai immigration and airport planning and execution failures.

They may take a cynical view and see the immigration department deliberately creating long queues so that they can take a rake-off from the fast-track services. I personally don’t think this is true, but some people may think so and consequently get angry.

Pay For The Fast-Track Service?

I have no experience of the services, having only just discovered them.

If anyone has used them every reader would love to hear their comments, so please post your experiences below.

Get A Business Class Ticket?

Again, I have not flown Business Class to Bangkok (until this time coming), so I have no experience, but watch this space for a report in a couple of weeks time.

At around twice the normal fair, business class tickets are extremely expensive and most people would find the additional cost difficult to justify. I’m travelling alone but if you are travelling with your wife two trips (to the U.K.) would cost around £10,000. That’s $15,000 or 480,000 Baht! Half a million Baht!

That’s nearly as much as we paid for the brand new Toyota Hilux Vigo pickup we bought in Bangkok.

Whatever your views and experience please leave a comment below. Your email address will not be divulged to any third party and you have the choice if you want to be kept posted of further comment.

Can I Retire In Thailand With $630,000 Cash And No Other Income?

This question arises again and again just as the question “How much does it cost to build a house in Thailand”

The answer is always as long as a piece of string. But let’s try to do better than that and open it up for comments.

The question was:-

 Hello Alan,

My name is P, I am formerly from Scotland but now live in Australia. I am 59 Years old and I am seriously considering Retiring to Thailand. I have Approx $630,000 and wondered if this was enough to live on ? I have nothing else, only this amount of money. I would be grateful if you could help me with this Question.

Thanks, P

This Is My Short Answer To The Question Of How Much Money You Need To Retire To Thailand

Your question was “Is $630,000 enough to retire on in Thailand”

Now it’s my time to ask a question. If you’re not going to retire to Thailand, where are you going to retire to?

Perhaps your question should have been “Can I get a better standard of life retiring on a lump sum of $630,000 in Thailand that I can in Australia with the same amount of money?”

P, I hope this helps.

There are so many things to consider, so many different situations, it’s really impossible to answer your question.

But my advice is “Have a Plan B”.

Dear Reader Please Add Your Comments Below

Many of you already live in Thailand. Some have lived in Thailand for many years.

Please give us the benefit of your experience of what it costs to live in Thailand, and what the risks are with your retirement budget.

 This Is Where We ‘Always’ Go For Lunch In Pakchong (Pak Chong) – Plus Buying A Lathe In Thailand

Pah Pai has been running the wonderful restaurant in Pakchong (Pak Chong) for around 30 years.

I always look forward to having lunch in Pakchong (Pak Chong) at Pah Pai’s restaurant.

It has a lovely garden and plenty of shade from the sun.

This is a sign advertising her restaurant in Pakchong (Pak Chong):-

Sign Advertising Pa Pai's Restaurant In Pakchong (Pak Chong)

Here is a photo of  Pah Pai herself in the restaurant garden:-

Photo Of Pah Pai Herself In The Restaurant Garden

Watch this short video to see how lovely the garden restaurant is:-

Pah Pai’s speciality is Larp Phet – is a north eastern food and Phet means Duck.

Pah also does a lovely Yum Pla Muk (squid salad) and of course the usual range of Thai yams and curries.

Yum Pla Muk (Squid Salad) At Pah Pai's Restaurant

A lunch for Kanyah and myself with about three dishes plus rice and two large bottles of Heineken costs around 500 Baht.

Buying A Lathe In Bangkok For My Model Engineering Workshop

When I retire to Thailand I intend to be making model steam engines and other kinds of models.

To do this you need a model engineering workshop which must contain a steel workbench and a lathe.

A milling and drilling machine are also important, and my lathe incorporates both of those machine tools – saving me a lot of money.

On the Model Engineers Workshop In Thailand – Buying A Lathe page I show you how I bought a lathe from a lathe shop in Bangkok. Also there is a story about using the Garmin nüvi® 2565 Sat Nav to find the lathe shop in Bangkok.

As to the steel workbench, you can see that on the Model Engineers Workshop In Thailand – Steel Bench page.

As I Struggle Here Back In The U.K. To Catch Up With My Work, Projects, And Try To Get Back To Normal Living – Retiring In Thailand Is Becoming A Bit Of A Strain!

I’ve been back in the U.K. a week now since my Christmas trip to Pakchong (Pak Chong) where our Thai retirement house is and I’m feeling under a lost of strain and pressure.

Far away is the idea of retiring in Thailand right now.

And yet a lot of this pressure is because I am planning to retire to Thailand that I am creating too many jobs and too much pressure for myself.

Trying To Catch Up, Trying To Stand Still, Trying Just To Get Some Piece Of Mind

• Make all the posts on the RetiringInThailand website using the photos and movies of my last trip
• Reply to and approve all the comments made on the website by dozens of readers
• Catch up with work at my day-job
• Catch up with my other two projects one having a deadline coming up in a few weeks and I have a stack of work to do
• Prepare and pay the VAT for the last quater for my own limited company
• Chase up a load of stuff I ordered last year by mail order (for model engineering) and which hasn’t arrived
•  A major project related to my car
• Buy air tickets for my next trip to Thailand at Easter
• Buy tools and a model kit to take to Thailand on my next ‘retiring in Thailand’ trip to our retirment hosue in Pakchong (Pak Chong)
• Tryto finish my model steam engine I’m building in my model engineering worshop in Nottingham.
• Work on the design of my next model engine (a steam traction engine) to be built in the U.K.
• Try to suport Kanyah in Thailand as she suffers the loss of the thai landscape gardener, lives on her own and tries to combat loneliness and bordom
• Ponder on how to keep kanyah happy and occupied when she comes here in the summer and I’m still working 12 – 14 houras a day…

The list goes on and on and on… and all this while I’m working away from home in London during the week only travelling back to my home in Nottinghma at week ends.

Why Am I telling You All This?

1. So that you can understand why I am slow respond to your comments posted on the RetiringInThailand website and to answer questions, and slow to post the photos and videos from my last thailand trip
2. So that you’ll understand that retirning to (for me) Thailand is not at all a straighforward thing like jumping on a plane and lying in the sun for the rest of your life
3. It may be theraputic for me to get all this stuff off my chest and written down – may take some of the pressure off me

One New Page Posted “Setting Up A Model Engineering Workshop In Thailand – Making A Steel Work Bench”

This exercise (plus buying the lathe) sounds trivial but for me it was a major test of my resolve to retire to Thailand. To see whether I am ready to make the commitment or not.

On retring to Thailand my plan is to spend a lost of time in my model engineering workshop making steam models. So, in order to do that i need to invest time, money and effort into buying the tools I need for the workshop and setting it up.

I could have easily spent the last two weeks in Thailand ‘on holiday’ – going out and around or doing not much at all. But instead I had to prove that I could start setting this model engineering workshop up in Thailand ready for my retirement.

This is not an easy thing to do in a country where ‘model engineering’ isn’t heard of and there aren’t many places you can buy the tools and materials.

Plus there is the inertia and the need to motivate Kanyah to help me go out and seek out what I need. And to fight Kanyah’s critisism of me spending a lot of money on ‘silly tools and steel’.  A lot of determination and courage was brought to bear.

Anyway the Making a Steel Work Bench in Thailand  project is finished now and the story is online.

Buying and installing a lathe in Thailand is another project that I completed but the web page is not complete yet.

That’s my rant for today – got to get back to that huge to-do list I made above.

After Our Thai Landscape Gardener Asked For An Extra 30,000 Baht I Asked Kanyah To Terminate The Contract!

Rip-Off Thai Gardener Suspected Of Being In Cahoots With Our Neighbour Over Extortinate Commisssions

Kanyah phoned me this morning to tell me that the day before yesterday our Thai landscape gardener had arrived on site at our retirement house in Pakchong (Pak Chong), Thailand, with 3 labourers and cleared the garden areas of vegetation, builder’s waste and other rubbish ready to comence the garden landscaping.

She told me the labour cost 220 baht/day which is line with what some people have mentioned in comments on the previous post ”Gardening Contract For Our Retirement House In Pakchong (Pak Chong), Thailand“.

Kanyah told me how clean the garden areas looked now and promised to send me some photos so that I can post them up here on the RetiringInThailand website.

She also told me that the gardener had asked her for another 30,000 Baht on top of the 120,000 Baht we had already agreed for the landscaping of our Thai garden as detailed on the “Gardening Contract Post.

She explained that she had been angry with the gardener and was yelling at him asking why he was asking for more money now and why didn’t he ask for 130,000 Baht when her husband (myself) was there (in Pakchong) and when the contract was negotiated and agreed?

“We didn’t tell you the price was 120,000 Baht” she told him. “That was your price, not ours. If you wanted 130,000 Baht why didn’t you ask for it” she told him.

She asked me what I wanted to do. To go along with the 130,000 Baht or to cancel the contract?

Well, no doubt you won’t be surprised that I firmly asked Kanyah to cancel the contract.

Kanyah agreed with me 100% and said she was suspicious of our neighbour Noi trying to sqeeze more money out of us through the gardener.

Update As The Gardener Returns And Is Promptly Sent Packing

Literally just a few minutes ago – about an hour after Kanyah’s first telephone call this morning – she called me again the say that the Thai landscape gardener had returned and she told him that the contract was terminated and told him to leave.

She also said that when she made the first telephone call to me this morning the neighbour’s wife Tim had been standing in our doorway, listenening. Kanyah suspects she was spying for Noi.

Seems Like What People Have Said Is true

After I made the the “Gardening Contract Post several people emailed me or posted a comment on the website to say that at 120,000 Baht i was being ripped off and warned me about the neighbour being in on the deal to get a fat commission.

Seems they may well have been right after all!

Some people suggested that there were several gardening centers around Pakchong (Pak Chong) and that I should go out and visit them to get advice and costs, buy plants etc and basically ‘do the landscape gardening’ myself.

I did explain (at length) that I am back in the U.K. now and that I have not time to spend in Pakchong (Pak Chong) making a Thai garden.

I suggested this route of visiting the local gardening centers in and around Pakchong (Pak Chong) to Kanyah but she wasn’t too enthusiastic about it to say the least. here approach seems to be to leave the garden as it is until I can go over and sort it out.

Well, I guess I could sort it out (i.e. get the garden areas landscaped and looking nice) but I’m no gardener and my retiring in Thailand plans are all about building steam model engines in my model engineering workshop!

So unless somehow Kanyah manages to find another thai landscape gardener then it looks like the Thai garden will stay rather bare for some time to come.