Taxis at airport

[Mike Chan]

I/ am a frequent business/holiday traveller all over the world. In the 30 years that I have flown everywhere, I have yet to land in an airport where I could not board a taxi straight after customs clearance and straight to my hotel.Well, the impossible has happened here at the brand-new state-of -the-art Suvarm airport at Bkk! There are no taxis at the arrival terminal to pick you up....you have to queue and then board a shuttle-bus to the taxi-stand 1 km away and then queue and board your taxi! It's ok if we dun carry any luggage but we all do and many with heavy ones! Imagine having to load first on to the shuttle-bus and then unload at the taxi-stand...plus the Q waiting time. This is NOT good for a modern fabulous airport! AOT....please find the space for a taxi-queue near the arrival terminal pronto before you start losing massive visitors to Bkk! I kid you not!

[j.albjerg]

Apparently Mr Chan is a new visitor to Thailand.
If you were familiar with Thai logic this is very logic. Why should a taxi be available outside the terminal. As much of logic is based on individuals and their economy, it is logic that you place the taxi stand a long way from the terminal. In this way an entrepreneur – probably with some good connections - can make a nice lot of money. Never mind the hassle it creates for the millions of passengers arriving at BKK AP every year.

[mike chan]

Thanks for the sarcasm....But I've been told by a friend who had just returned from Bkk that the AOT had responded to the taxi via shutlle-bus criticism by providing a taxi-stand at the airport's basement. Good move as I plan to holiday in Bkk next month. Here's to Bkk,the city of angels....Cheers!

[Ian]

Why not simply go to the Departures area ? It's clogged full of taxis.

[guess who]

Mike, going Bangkok for your naughty business as usual. So much energy, take a 1km walk to the taxi stand as a warm up lah! ha.. ha..

[mike chan]

Whoever you are, you obviously have a dirty mind! For goodness sake,Bkk is not solely nor mainly about sex. I happen to have a sister and a cousin and their families there.Besides reunioning,I also happen to enjoy the food and shopping esp at MBK and Paragon.For your info, the food and fruits are twice better in quality and at half the price compared to S'pore.Thai massage which I find thereupathic for my aged body is also easily available everywhere and very affordable compared to strait-laced S'pore.The budget airlines,the cheap 4-star hotels and the mrt/skytrain facilities are also significant reasons Bkk is my favorite holiday destination for a week's break from the stress and hassles of S'pore.Anyway, thanks if you think that at my sexagenarian age I'm still virile and horny.Unfortunately even if the spirit is willing, the old flesh is weak.....I'll just stick to massage, thank you very much!But you should wash your dirty mind with Dettol pronto!

[mike chan]

Mr Forum administrator, if you refuse to show my reply to "guess who?",you should also delete his message to .me. How on earth could you have okayed his insult to me without him using his name neither his email address? The proper etiquette should be to show both name and emadd as in all the other letters in this forum.

[AD]

Mike ! and also ADAM if you are reading this.
I flew into the new airport on the 25th. One word of advice, just be careful about getting a taxi. As i came thro immigration etc ., i was mobbed by taxi touts offering me a taxi direct to the city centre "tao rai" .......i was told Bht 1500 .very quick service!!! which i refused, next came his friend with an offer of Bht 1000, good price said he ! i refused and went downstairs to a cab rank and got a metre taxi cost me Bht 500. so there is a lesson.
We touched down at 2130 and i was in my hotel by 2300. By the way , there are not enough seats in the airport for waiting and its a very boring concrete and steel monstrosity of a terminal.
Dave.

[Rooster]

Oh. Yes, AD. There are not enough seats in the arrival and departure areas. I am thinking whether it is a security reason. AD, there are at least 4 to 5 tiers of taxi and limousine services. Yes, it will cost 1,500 baht to price on the meter. For the 1,500 baht, you will get something close to Mercedes-Benz or some European models of limousine. I have used 800 baht for Japanese model of limousine to 600 baht for private yellow/green taxi to anywhere in the main Bangkok area. I think it is a fair price. It is depending on the comfort and luxury that you want. According to AOT, taxi older than 5 years old is not allowed into the SUV. But any taxis from anywhere could take their customers to the SUV. When you are going to take metered taxi at the arrival area at the lowest level, you will depend on the queue and availability of the metered taxis. If you have large luggages, you will need the newest model with larger trunk space since these taxis have LG/NGV tanks in their trunks. I think they need to also have van taxi service for family or group with lot of luggages.

[Leaving on a jet plane]

Rooster, You gave out a very clear picture and useful imf. of how to deal with a taxi from SUV.

I'll be arriving this new airport for the first time next week. I'll have someone to pick me up.
What the best spot that my driver and me meet ? After a long flight from the US, I need an easy area to meet someone so I can reach my hotel a-s-a-p.

Thanks in advance.