Allways get a buzz when i book my flight..

The excitement allways starts when i book my flight back to Thai..booked it yeasteday ..i fly at the end of May, booked lt early to save money
I usually fly by Emirates or Etihad but this time its KLM..it has just come cheeper than the other airlines and i fancied a change flying via Amsterdam instead Dubai or Abu Dhabi
I know its a long 2nd leg of the journey but might be able to settle into a long sleep

[cdnmatt]

Word of caution. Don't take over-the-counter sleeping pills! Tried that once, and never again. You become extremely tired, but still too uncomfortable to sleep well. Not fun.

I haven't been on an inter-continental flight in ages, but I've heard now most have electric outlets and high-speed internet available. In that case, I'm good to go for a 20 flight if needed! Just hang out, do some work, play around on forums, etc. No problems.

[timmberty]

i used to do the stop once lark, never again, just get me there a.s.a.p.
so much easier no worries about getting to different gates etc etc
on and off .. the only way to do it. and not a great deal more expensive.

[gerefan2]

i used to do the stop once lark, never again, just get me there a.s.a.p.

I think it depends which class you are travelling in.

Yes, direct if you are in economy...get it over with as quickly as possible.

Stop once if Business. Quite nice to have a break in a decent lounge, a nice seat when you get back on with drinks on arrival, and, yet another, free meal.

[timmberty]

gerefan .. i dont get your free meal part of the post .. surely you have already paid for it no ?

[joe552]

Flying from Dublin the choice is a short hop to London or Amsterdam, then a long 2nd leg, or flying one of the either Etihad or Emirates. As a smoker, I like a break half way with the chance to stretch my legs - so for my last few trips have used Etihad. Was upgraded to Business once, and while I enjoyed it, I didn't think it was worth the extra money

[bruce_nyc]

I hear ya... We are about to book our flights again.... April 18 through May 20 or so.... ( We have to decide today exactly what our return date will be... That's the only thing we're waiting for before booking the flights. )

Yes. Once you have the flights, then we start coloring in the details..... the hotels, the sidetrips, hotels and tours in those places, etc. And that's when it gets exciting. That's when you can start telling people when you'll be there, and begin locking down plans... That's when it feels "real". :mob:

I take 1/2 of a benedrul caplet when I want to sleep for 4 hours ( on a plane or otherwise ). It works great, and I'm not drowsy later. If I need to sleep another 4 hours, I take the other half of the caplet, as needed.

Unfortunately, there are no airlines offering non-stop flights from New York to Bangkok any more.... so we will always have to layover somewhere.

In August/September, we did Qatar Airways and changed in Doha, Qatar. That was not bad. The airplane equipement and service was above average.... nice. The layover was exactly precidely how much time you needed to comfortably transfer from one flight to the next... with almost no waiting. I liked that.

In January/February, we flew on Royal Jordanian and changed in Amman, Jordan. On the way to Thailand, the layover was about 12 hours. They immediately put us on a bus and gave us a very decent hotel room, which even included a decent buffet dinner in the hotel. I slept for 2 hours, then went down and ate dinner, then slept for 6 more hours ( in a real bed! )... before the wakeup call to take the bus back to the airport. That wasn't bad. However, on the return back to New York, the layover was about 5 hours.... and no such benefits. The Amman, Jordan airport is NOT a comfortable place to hang out that long. The airplane equipment and service was noticably not as nice as Qatar Airways. For all these reasons, I wouldn't take Royal Jordanian again.

This might be of interest to anyone deciding which airline to take. JACDEC Airline Safety Rankings 2012 http://www.jacdec.de/jacdec_safety_ranking_2012.htm

I just now booked my flights. Emerites has a 13 hour layover in Dubai on the return flight. They offer complimentary hotel, transit, meals, and visa. Should be interesting. I might have enough time to see a glimpse of Dubai...

[francois]

Was upgraded to Business once, and while I enjoyed it, I didn't think it was worth the extra money

All the free upgrades I received were always worth the extra money. :dontknow:

[bruce_nyc]

I'm guessing that he meant..... While the upgrade was free, and enjoyable.... He would not pay for it, in the future, if it weren't offered for free....

[gerefan2]

tim

gerefan .. i dont get your free meal part of the post .. surely you have already paid for it no ?
If you travel business class you get a free meal, drinks and probably a shower in the business lounge during the stop over.
If you travel economy, you have to pay for it!

Everthing is a personel choice..whats right for one person might not be ok for another ....
Like the meals for instance.....last time i felt too bloated with all the food they give you i had to say no thanks cause i'm not used to eating that much nomally but its ok to have a choice

[gaymandenmark]

If you travel business class you get a free meal, drinks and probably a shower in the business lounge during the stop over.
If you travel economy, you have to pay for it

I have never paid for any meals flying from Europe to Thailand.
I would also say that there is nothing like free meals, 4 different menus, drinks and showers, you have already paid for it in the price of the ticket.

[joe552]

Thanks bruce, that's exactly what I meant.

I guess another point is if you can sleep on a plane, a 10/14 hour flight might be okay. I can't so I get really bored after about 4/5 hours, so look forward to breaking up the journey. And the flight home has to be the most depressing experience of all.

[bruce_nyc]

So true about the flight home. It generally sucks.

It should be interesting to see how I like having 13.5 hours in Dubai on the way home.... with hotel room and meals provided.

Maybe I could crank up Grindr and Scruff and get some Middle Eastern action in my hitel room..... :-)

Might be a really nice way to break up an excruciatingly long trip.

And long as I don't get arrested for being gay.....

[Neal]

When I used to fly, I don't anymore. I flew New York over the top to Hong Kong on Continental/United and then a quick hop with Emerites from HK to Bangkok.

[anonone]

Hey bluechris. Happy for you with booking your flight. I understand the feeling of totally...I experience it myself.
In fact, when I don't have at least one ticket booked, I feel a bit of unease. I really need to have it to look forward to...the next time I get to see BF.

As for the flight choices, it is very much a personal preference. As Bruce and Neal indicated, being in the US now means no possibility for a non-stop flight. On the plus side, we are so far away and enjoy some good frequent flier programs...that free trips come pretty quickly if you play the game correctly.

I always figure out a way to fly in at least business class. As I am still working (my ass off), I only get to spend about a week in Thailand each trip. If I had to make the trip in coach class, you can bet the first couple of days would be me recovering from the trip...not having fun with BF. Being able to get good sleep on the plane allows me to hit the ground running. In fact, I am usually up partying the whole night on my arrival....and only get to sleep after the sun has come up. I stay on the go the entire week, then collapse on the plane back home. I can then go back to work right away when I get home....and actually be productive as well.

I am about a month away from the next trip. Like you bluechris...I am buzzed about it.

[Neal]

Quick games I used to play:
All expenses even for the house and business got put on either Amex and transferred to Continental or a Visa Continetal card.Business owners and buyers put your invoices and purchases all on that card! Rack up the miles. Use one basic airline. Use miles to upgrade and not for free tickets!! Free tickets you get no miles. Upgraded you use some miles but as you fly on the plane you get many miles back. Use only partner airlines. Using one airline gets your membership grade higher faster and at top or next to top you usually get added bonus miles when you fly. Look for all deals using your credit card to book flights! Happy travelling business class where it is so comfortable.

Yeah Anonone,
It was good telling my bf i'd booked my flight.....i like to time it so i'm back there for my birthday at the begining of june cause i like being with him on that day..and then i like to go back in Dec for his birthday..his family and friends allways give me and him a nice party on them days..great fun!

Yeah I keep my phone on vibrate so the buzz I get is from the credit card company telling me I've exceeded my credit limit in paying for the ticket.

[Oliver]

Ye, it's a good moment for me too.
I was pretty low when I arrived home to a freezing London in February.
I was in my home at 2130; my flight to Bangkok was booked by 0930 the next day thanks to EVA's user-friendly on- line system.
And I felt better.

[pennyboy]

I usually fly direct London/Bkk in economy with an infrequent upgrade to Business. All meals and drinks are included in the price and although business is very nice I would not pay the extra required after I worked it out it would cost me over 50 pounds per hour. I also take a sleeping pill and usually manage about 6 or 7 hours sleeeping and wake up feeling fine.

[latintopxxx]

I believe confusion has arisen due to the American factor, in the US meals are not provided in economy (coach) class, even on long (3 hour plus) flights whereas in Europe the vast majority of airlines give you a meal or a snack/sandwich on flights that are longer than 90 minutes. As for business class lounges, all the US airport Delta lounges (I have used the ones in SLC, Detroit, Atlanta, Chicago, LA and San Diego) have no real food, a few snacks like pretzels and biscuits, abd booze+soft drinks, but no food. So a total waste of time. Most business class lounges in Europe have some real food, like fruit and sandwiches and sometimes even restaurant qulity like rice and a beef stew. The same goes for most Asian business class lounges, almost all have half decent food and drinks.
However..after all this...I cant believe I'm even having this "chat"as the quality of food is not a deciding factor in my choice of airline. All I care about is the schedule, safety and lastly price, and price is last as in most cases I do not pay for them anyway.

[ceejay]

I usually fly EVA direct from London to Bangkok. It leaves at about 21.30 British time and arrives at about 3.30 Bangkok time. I take a book, watch a few movies on the plane and try to avoid sleeping on the flight. That way, I can go to bed about 21.00 Bangkok time, have a good nights sleep and wake up at a reasonably normal local time fully adjusted to the change in time zones.
Pretty much the same on the way back - leave BKK at 13.30 local time, and get back into my houise at about 22.00.
And yes, I've always started planning the next trip the day I got back. I am (boo hoo) 3 weeks away from the end of my first really long (5 month) stay and I've spent a few days recently looking at places where I might want to rent a house when I come back in October (or earlier - but not much chance of that)

[timmberty]

tim

gerefan .. i dont get your free meal part of the post .. surely you have already paid for it no ?
If you travel business class you get a free meal, drinks and probably a shower in the business lounge during the stop over.
If you travel economy, you have to pay for it!
i see, kinda .. so if you pay $2000 you get a free meal .. if you pay $600 you have to pay $20 for a meal ..
im to poor to go anything other than cattle class ... if they still had peddles to make the big bird fly id be a peddler and save how ever much i could ..

[gerefan2]

tim/gaymandenmark

I wish Scotty was still here to put my case...

In full what I actually said was...


Stop once if Business. Quite nice to have a break in a decent lounge, a nice seat when you get back on with drinks on arrival, and, yet another, free meal.

and...


If you travel business class you get a free meal, drinks and probably a shower in the business lounge during the stop over.
If you travel economy, you have to pay for it!

The wording about yet another free meal, you will see, is said tongue in cheek. If youre not British that means jokingly.

You see, if you travel from London, you get a meal:
a) In the Business lounge (not Pretzles) and
b) On the Aircraft (not Prestzels) and
c) At Doha (again not Pretzels) and
d) On the aircraft again (not Pretzels).

Thats 4 meals not 2 as in economy. Get it? Not difficult.

As you will see from my post the meals are at the end of my message, said jokingly, and NOT the important thing, its the improvement in conditions.
You should try it one day.

[timmberty]

no you totally lost me now ... and im rather partial to a pretzle ...
so are you saying you do get an extra free meal if you pay 4 times as much, or not ?
belive me 2 free or paid for meals on a plane is 2 too many ... just give me a can of chang and leave me alone for 11 hours and everything is fine.

[gerefan2]

im rather partial to a pretzle

just give me a can of chang and leave me alone for 11 hours and everything is fine.

No style.... Stick with Aeroflot Air Cargo.

[joe552]

Just for fun, I've priced Business Class flights for the dates I'm travelling with Etihad via Abu Dhabi and they're coming in at тВм2500 compared to the тВм750 I paid for economy. No matter how much you eat and drink - on the plane and in the lounge - and the extra comfort factor, that's a huge difference. Think of the number of boys I could off for the difference!

[timmberty]

[quote]im rather partial to a pretzle

just give me a can of chang and leave me alone for 11 hours and everything is fine.

No style.... Stick with Aeroflot Air Cargo.[/quote:1g8sus5j]
now theres an idea !!

[gerefan2]

And I certainly wouldnt pay for a biz class ticket

There is a God after all.

I'm not botherd about flying in Buisness or first class...for the price ┬г511 in Economy is ok for me

[Neal]

Keeping all my purchases on the airline card, all my travel on one airline and anything else I could get miles for, I always had enough miles to upgrade to business class for miles and pay just a very little more so it was well worth it. NY to HK was 14 hours I think. There were 3 nice meals a private movie selection of many movies, falt bed for sleeping and free booze although I don't drink.

[RatThai]

I thought I would join the thread as I am booking my next trip to LoS for late April, going to miss Songkran this year deliberately. Like ceejay I tend to fly Eva Air in their Premium Laurel class not quite full business with flat beds otherwise I use British Airways and fly their business class using my airmiles. I prefer non stop flights unless I am travelling to Australia in which case I always do a night over in somewhere like Toyko or Singapore. Upon arrival in BBK it is straight to the hotel or my villa if staying in Pattaya and arrange a massage - the best thing after a long flight. I then indulge myself with a nice meal and early to bed with BF for a good nights sleep. A good sleep on the first night sets me up and never get jet lag or tidiness. You need to rehydrate the body and rest it. I admire you guys who can go out to the early hours on your first night, but I prefer to cuddle up to my Bf's warm body and talk until we fall asleep. I am getting excited just thinking of it - need to ring bf now....

[anonone]

Very nice RatThai. There is nothing wrong with that setup at all.

I certainly spend some quality time with BF upon my arrival...and it ends up cuddling with him falling asleep. However, I am so excited to be back in Thailand...and having slept a lot of the 20 previous hours on the plane...there is no way I am falling asleep.

Once BF is asleep, I head back out to keep the party going. That usually entails heading to Krazy Pub, where I am known to keep buying bottles until the sun comes up. Sometimes the staff and I stay at their bar....sometimes we head out to Dave Man Club. Once the sun comes up, we head to a hole-in-the-wall restaurant (10 baht plates). Cheap peasant Isaan food. Spicy as hell and just the thing to soak up some alcohol before sleep. :sign5:

http://i1272.photobucket.com/albums/y388/anonone3/10baht_zps9cb7bd8b.jpg

Finally back to the room and more time with BF. We spend the day together, mostly in the room catching up, talking, sex, napping...what have you. We do usually hit a massage place that first day. You are certainly correct after a long flight, a massage is just the ticket to get things feeling good again. BF usually opts for Thai massage....I go for the oil. (One too many strong Thai massages in my past leaves me a bit leery of them).

Damn I am getting excited to get back....only a month or so left to wait.