Update on Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport and Travel Situation in Thailand (27 Nov 2008, 4pm Bangkok time)
posted in Emergency News, Exotissimo news, Thailand |Dear Partners,
Bangkok - 27 November 2008: 16:00pm
Currently, the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport remains closed and Don Muang Airport in Bangkok was closed since last night. The atmosphere in Bangkok (and other places in Thailand) is normal. It is not clear when the airports will open and airlines will start flying again. Some airlines have cancelled their flights till at least 18:00pm this evening, while some till 18:00pm this Friday, 28 November 2008.
Exotissimo has been constantly in touch with our clients and most have opted to continue their sightseeing as normal. Clients who were supposed to use the Bangkok airports have been re-routed and offered alternative routes, for example Chiang Mai – Phuket direct flights, overland transfers between Siem Reap and Bangkok, night train from Bangkok to the border with Laos or overland transfers from Bangkok to Khao Sok or Phuket. This is definitely not the most ideal arrangement but the general mood amongst our clients is that they will just deal with it and adopt the Thai “mai pen rai (nevermind)” thinking. Several clients decided to cancel their Thailand or regional travel plans and instead opted to stay for a week at a beach near Bangkok like Ko Samed or Hua Hin.
Our guides, operations and reservations teams are staying in touch with our clients all the time and are assisting with booking additional services (like hotel accommodation). Our partner hotels have been very cooperative and understanding and are either waiving cancellation fees or offering special prices for extensions. We advise all clients to keep the receipts for the extra costs incurred so that they can try to claim these costs later from their airlines or travel insurance companies.
Clients who are staying in Bangkok or at one of the Thai beaches while waiting for a flight back home have given their flight ticket details to the Exotissimo ticketing team. We are now trying to re-book them for possible flights in the comings days. We urge clients who has gotten any news directly from their airline or those who have not given their ticket details to Exotissimo to contact our 24-hour operations emergency department (Tel: 0066-818672806 – when in Thailand call 08-18672806).
We hope that all international and domestic airlines will be able to resume their flights soon again.
Best regards,
Exotissimo Travel Team
