Originally Posted by doradee

It is a tricky business when a monk travels because many people, thais and non-thais, assume that monks should just receive the lowest level of service/product as they are "supposed to live a simple, humble life." The truth is- it is inconvenient for the monks/passengers/flight attendants alike when the monks travel in coach, especially on a long flight. A monk cannot have a physical contact with a woman, and when a monk is flying in the tight economy class, it's difficult for him and the female passengers/flight attendants to try to avoid each other... and one would have to arrange the seating assignment beforehand, so that the monk will not be seated next to a female passenger. Food service is also a challenge. Monks cannot eat past a certain time, but like anyone they do have to eat to survive. So on some flights, monks cannot receive the same food service like the other passengers due to this time restriction. Also- Thai people are often uptight/uneasy being around a monk, so having one seated so close to them is undesirable.

What UTTER lunacy!!!

For these reasons alone, I think that a monk should always be upgraded when flying. It's just easier for everybody.

I don't think it's a TG's policy to give monks automatic upgrades. However, people who deal with monks frequently and understand these challenges know to try to book monks in business class, if possible. When a monk travels for personal reasons, he'd do it on his own expense. However, when he's traveling on a mission (which is often the reason why monks do travel), the organizer of the mission would usually cover the expenses and if they know better, they would book the monk in business class. Most monks don't have that much money, but even if they do, they usually won't spend it on flying business class.

Now- there are also monks who are wealthy or come from a wealthy family. Being a monk is not necessarily a life-long commitment. It's a rite of passage for Thai men. Some become a monk for a week, month, year, etc.; these monks, before they entered monkhood, are just normal people with jobs, with family, with frequent flyer membership and elite status.