“Fast” track is an oxymoron for most 70 year olds....
Patanawet (January 22nd, 2018)
[i][color=#0000FF]"One day our descendants will think it incredible that we paid so much attention to things like the amount of melanin in our skin, or the shape of our eyes, or our gender, instead of the unique identities of each of us as complex human beings."
~ Franklin Thomas[/color][/i]
My next trip will be my first time using the fast track now im 70, , before have used it as a business class pax, but business fares are getting a bit more costly now and would rather spend the money on the holiday
Fortunately, I no longer have to transit BKK. Cathay fly MAN - HKG - CNX and, even with Immigration and baggage collection, can be at the house 30 minutes after touchdown. Chiang Mai airport is great for both internal and international flights.
I'm in the same boat. Before the Business Class fare was around $4200 from Washington DC whether u went left handed via Japan or right handed via the Emirates. This time I checked and the prices were $5000+. So, I'm flying "enhanced" coach class for "only" $2900+. We'll see how that works out. (The regular coach fares were all around $1000!!)
I prefer to get through passport control quickly, then I can grab a water & wait for the bag sat down on a seat. Although, if the wait is 15 minutes, I can cope.
As for business class, well I don't know how long you take from the US, but since it's ~24.5 hours round trip from London, lets estimate 36 hours in the air from the US (both ways). So $1000 economy to $5000 business is about +$110 per hour in the air ? A big difference.
I suppose for anyone worth a few million it's business class all the way, but some of us haven't made that much just yet. For your typical " middle class" economy, or premium economy is where it's at.
Where in the immigration hall is the Fast Track booth?
Where is it in the old airport? That where I have problems coming in on Air Asia!
Here is a link with diagram of location of the fast track lane Basically you just keep walking and look for a sign saying fast track or something similar.
If you are on the moving walkway you will pass it and then must exit and walk back to it.
ggobob (January 22nd, 2018)
I passed through Fast Track, at Suvarnabhumi Airport, on Saturday evening. It is a few minutes’ walk to the right of the main immigration hall. There were 4 lanes open as I approached, in three lanes there were around 6 people queuing and in the fourth lane there were only 3 people queuing. I wrongly chose that lane. The first person was checked through fairly quickly. But when it came to the next two, an American couple, there was a problem. The passengers behind me quickly sensed something was amiss and jumped lanes before I thought to do so. But then more passengers entered and joined my lane and the other 3 lanes, so I missed the opportunity to change lanes.
The immigration officer shouted across to a colleague and she left her booth and walked down the hall and picked up a couple of forms TM6 Arrival/departure cards. OMG! The dipstick American couple had not completed the TM6 cards! And the idiot of an immigration officer instead of asking the couple to go away and return when the forms were completed allowed them to stand at the booth, slowly filling out the cards. Grrrrr . . . Meanwhile, the hall started to get busy with passengers lining up behind me and in the other lanes. So much for fast track! Normally though, it does live up to its name and I pass through quickly.
At least by the time I reached the luggage carousel, the luggage from our plane was being unloaded and I waited just a few minutes before picking up my suitcase. And once through customs, the airline complementary pick up supervisor spotted me, allocated a driver and I was quickly transported into town feeling absolutely knackered after my long journey.