Korean Air Skypass - Incheon Airport Transit Hotel

I face a 13hr layover at ICN (I don't mind, it's a great airport) and I plan to book a 12hr block in the transit hotel.

However, this hotel is before immigration and bag claim.

I fly in on KE A380, and leave later that evening on Thai to TPE. Where will my luggage go? How do I collect it?

I have been in transit before (DXB) but that was a connecting flight on the same airline (ICN-DXB-LHR) so EK took care of my bags for me by just transfering them to the next plane.

TBH, I am in transit at HKG for 7hrs also, after a flight on EK before my flight on KE to ICN. I have no idea where my bags get put... :(

1. See if Korean Air at your origin will check your bag through to TPE on Thai Air. I've seen the unexpected before like Air New Zealand checking though bags onto Air New Niugini. You never know till you ask.
2. If not you'll have to exit through immigration, collect bag at baggage claim, exit customs, recheck bag at Thai Air departures, then reenter airport through immigration. Sounds tough but ICN is extremely efficient. Will only take a few minutes (unless Thai AIr counter isn't yet open).

1. See if Korean Air at your origin will check your bag through to TPE on Thai Air. I've seen the unexpected before like Air New Zealand checking though bags onto Air New Niugini. You never know till you ask.
2. If not you'll have to exit through immigration, collect bag at baggage claim, exit customs, recheck bag at Thai Air departures, then reenter airport through immigration. Sounds tough but ICN is extremely efficient. Will only take a few minutes (unless Thai AIr counter isn't yet open).

But that's the problem, check in counters do not open until 3hrs before the flight leaves. I have had that before at ICN with EK. I got to the airport about 7hrs before my flight, hoping to quickly 'bag-drop' and then get airside to use the facilities. However, I had to wait a few hours before I could even drop my bags.

So no way to get back to the transit hotel until around 4pm? lol no idea what I'm going to do now.

Even if these flights are not on the same ticket, KE should be able to tag your luggage all the way through to TPE. IF you have separate tickets, just show the check-in agents your ticket on TG so they can code everything properly. Once that is done, KE transfers your bags over to TG automatically.

Upon arrival, go to the transfer counters to get your TG BP instead of immigration/customs and pass through transit security to get back into the terminal.

If KE can't check your bag through (and I would be surprised at that) or if you do not want to check your bag through, then you will have to clear immigration and customs and hope you can get TG to check you in while the counters are open for earlier flights. If you cannot get checked in, I suggest getting a local hotel for the layover.

Even if these flights are not on the same ticket, KE should be able to tag your luggage all the way through to TPE. IF you have separate tickets, just show the check-in agents your ticket on TG so they can code everything properly. Once that is done, KE transfers your bags over to TG automatically.

Upon arrival, go to the transfer counters to get your TG BP instead of immigration/customs and pass through transit security to get back into the terminal.

If KE can't check your bag through (and I would be surprised at that) or if you do not want to check your bag through, then you will have to clear immigration and customs and hope you can get TG to check you in while the counters are open for earlier flights. If you cannot get checked in, I suggest getting a local hotel for the layover.

Thank you for the response.

Problem is, I am effectively doing two transit stops, whilst using 3 different airlines to get from A to B.

BKK-HKG with EK
HKG-ICN with KE
ICN-TPE with TG

So when I check in with EK, would they make sure my bags ended up in TPE? Not a chance! They have a partnership with KE so my bags would end up in ICN perhaps, but then what? I would still need to go through immigration and baggage reclaim.

TG have flights to BKK at 09.35 and 10.20 so the check in counters for TG would be open from around 06.30 I presume. I hope they will allow me to check in for a later flight...has anyone got experience of this before?

I could get EK to send my bags to ICN (TPE is pushing it a bit), then go through immigration. Wait an hour, get a coffee, then try to cheekily check in/bag drop when the TG counters open for their morning flights.

If i can get airside around 8am-ish, then I could even begin to use the ICN facilities as I await my flight.

I am effectively doing two transit stops, whilst using 3 different airlines to get from A to B.

BKK-HKG with EK
HKG-ICN with KE
ICN-TPE with TG

EK, KE and TG all have interline agreements with each other. So, in theory, I think they should be able to check your bags all the way through from BKK to TPE.

I've often interlined bags with two different tickets/carriers, but rarely (I think only once) with three. I think the only times I've encountered problems have been when:
a) the length of flights and/or stopovers involved meant the final flight wasn't yet open in the system, at the time I was checking in for the first flight. So, if you have a 7hr stopover plus a 13hr stopover, you may also encounter this problem;
b) the ticket numbers for the subsequent flight(s) were not properly entered against the baggage check details, resulting in the bags being off-loaded at an intermediate point, as they couldn't be associated with an identified passenger on the onward flight. (This is more likely to happen at a remote airport where check-in isn't fully computerised, rather than somewhere like BKK, HKG or ICN).


So when I check in with EK, would they make sure my bags ended up in TPE?
In theory, they should be able to (or if for some reason they can't, they'll tell you at check-in in BKK). However, if they can't, or you don't trust them to, then you'd have to pick up the bags in either BKK or ICN, and re-check them again.