chexfan

What are my options of getting from BKK to the Royal Orchid Sheraton? I'll be arriving around 10a.

I can't believe that this trip is here already. I am so unprepared.
Many thanks for your assistance in advance!

YVR Cockroach

Fast, easy, most comfortable. Cab. Get the booth to write down the address on the voucher. have to pay for expressway if you choose to use it. Will run some THB 700

Morrissey

I just returned from BKK last week. I arrived on UA875 late in the evening. After going through immigration and customs (each of which took all of 2 seconds, no questions asked), ignore all the touts who are trying to get you into a private taxi or limo. Instead, go OUTSIDE to the taxi booth, as previously stated. Make sure the taxi driver turns on the meter. My cabbie spoke almost no English, and he had a bit of difficulty finding where I wanted to go. There was no traffic at that time of the night. Including the 70 baht toll charges, the total fare was under 300 baht.

You can get your baht after going through customs, BTW...

Remember to bring home some durians for your friends!

corky

I don't know if they still offer it but when I stayed at the Royal Orchid, we took a boat back to the airport. It was expensive but we avoided alot of the traffic. The boat connected with a shuttle bus for the last short leg of the trip. It was fun--they had FA's on the boat & (!) a bar.

UAL Traveler

When will you be coming to town? I'm heading back down to BKK from HKG tomorrow, and will be in town for around two weeks. If I'm not in meetings, perhaps I can meet you at the airport. If interested, let me know, and I'll provide my local Thai mobile #.

chexfan

Thanks for the info guys. I was so excited for this trip a month or so back. But with my parents' visit, moving and busy work recently, I have not prepared for the trip. Thanks again.

UAL Travelin' Man... you have mail!

ROADRUNNER

I usually negotiate a fare and avoid the meter which seems to end up costing more.
At the airport, the regulated taxi service desk is inside and has a set fare to the hotel with instructions for the driver. The only extra is if YOU want the driver to use the Expressway, which saves a lot of time and surface streets. THey will ask you, if you want to spend the extra dollar or so for toll. It is best to say Yes and pay it. This Xpressway is a major improvement over my first trips to BKK about 6-10 years ago.

LH738

I totally agree with ROADRUNNER on the Expressway. I've never been so fast in the city.
Last time I let me pick up by the hotel which is much more expensive than a taxi - but very comfortable. I prefer negotiated fares because you don't get a surprise afterwards and the driver goes straight to the hotel: Fares may be higher if you negotiate with the driver - but blood-pressure remains lower.

(BTW, the Sheratons in BKK have a triple points promo that can't be booked online. I stayed last week in the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit: I made the reservation online (selected any cheap room) and put the promo code in the remarks field. The next day I checked on www.spg.com : the reservation agent already added the promo code to my booking. At the end I got triple points AND the online bonus .)

UAL Traveler

Note that the elevated road past the airport is called the 'Tollway.' That connects to the 'Expressway' in town. I would guess that a good number of taxi drivers realize that most farang do not know the difference, and will use both, but I have known of several cases where surface streets were taken from the airport to the beginning of the Expressway, which took a while. The Expressway is actually more expensive (40 baht fixed price) than the tollway (30 baht from first entrance south of airport to Expressway entrance), but usually only 1-2 km of the expressway are used before exiting in town. However, I do use both for those times during the day when the surface streets are slower. Surprisingly, during certain times, the surface street directly under the tollway is actually faster, and provides quicker routes to most in-town destinations... though you do need to be a bit familiar with the roads and shortcuts.

If you want to take both superhighways, to save confusion with the taxi, say (in Thai): bpai tow-way, bpai tang doo-un, khrup or end with kaa for a female speaker. tang doo-un = Expressway.

airoli

I've just booked the Peninsula for my first ever stay in Thailand in May. Is a cab the best way to get there (apart from the Peninsula Mercedes transfer, which is not included in my rate)? And if so, how much should I expect to pay including the road tolls?

Thanks.

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airOli, the Swiss Air Line.

milehighj

the taxis from the airport can sometimes be really cramped and ratty. not always what you want after a long flight or are heading straight to a business meeting.

a good alternative is to take the Thai Airways limo service which uses mercedes benz E-class cars. sets you back about THB300 (flat rate depending on destination), including toll. book those after customs clearance, before you emerge into the public meeting area.

Stewie Mac

No. Helicopter is.

Go on, you know you want to; biggest James Bond moment of my life so far...

airoli

Thank you both for your replies. I doubt being able to afford the helicopter, but the Thai limo seems to be a good deal indeed.

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airOli, the Swiss Air Line.

kawoh

300THB for the THai limo's.... very very cheap!! how much would it cost you to get to say - Siam Square??

I typically exit, walk out the sliding doors, up a bit to the taxi counter, mention my location, they write it in thai, give you 2 dockets, the larger one you keep the smaller you give to your driver. the larger one is a complaint form, to keep them honest. Typically always i get charged a little more than what's on the meter, but that's fine, i really dont want to argue.

They have a 50 THB surcharge from the taxi stand (all of around US$1), but if you want to save some bucks, you can go upstairs and catch a taxi on the highway or a taxi dropping someone off... save you 50 THB, but be careful, they go fast on the main road.

Expect your cab fare to town to be around 200 THB, plus the 50 THB airport stand surcharge plus 70 THB in tolls (first one is 40 THB, second one is 30 THB) - you will need to give this to the driver when he gets to the toll pay booth. Agree re the expressway, don't waste your time and patience going the other way to save a buck or so! make sure they securely put your bag in the boot or put it in the back seat with you if you can. Also, maybe sit in the front seat and put on a seat belt... they got around 140k on the highway and there are no seat belts in the back... if it makes *ANY* difference!!

The total fare of around 200 plus 50 plus 70 is about 320 THB, this equates to about A$13.. or about us$8..

Cheapest cab fare i got was about 125 THB from the city (hilton wireless rd) to the airport plus the toll... i was shocked... he did want to charge me 300 THB, just insist on meter... meter ... meter.. and they'll do it, rather than argue. thai's don't like making a situation of things.

avoid the public transport bus, though very very cheap, it is slow, and the bus drivers can tend to decide to go off somewhere rather than where they are supposed to go properly if they know you are a tourist and no one else is left in the bus to complain about where they are skipping.

i have seen they may be building a train out to the airport eventually, but don't expect it for quite a while yet.



[This message has been edited by kawoh (edited 02-20-2003).]

milehighj

should be 300-350THB for the TG limo. if you paid that amount for the regular cab, you've been figuratively and literally taken for a ride. i never pay more than 200THB for that distance, even in heavy rush hour traffic.