Reisen

Just to follow up on this, I booked about a month ago, and am relatively happy with what I got.

I initially had United holding a routing that was all first class, including IAD-ORD on UA, ORD-NRT on ANA, NRT-BKK on UA, BKK-PEK on TG, and PEK-IAD on UA.

However, the dates weren't ideal, and I was a little shy on UR points to transfer in order to book it. I wound up screwing up the Ink Bonus, and thought it was just $3k, not $5k spend, so wouldn't get the points in time.

Thus my final routing wound up being all in business, with the exception of one flight in coach:

IAD-LAX on UA, LAX - NRT on UA, NRT-TPE on EVA, TPE-BKK on TG (coach), BKK-PEK on TG, PEK-IAD on UA

We also added on a side trip to Cambodia on Thai Air Asia. I tried doing an open jaw to get us there at least one way, but the routings were terrible. Tickets were only $124 each.

I have us booked at Le Meridien in Siem Reap, and am considering the Park Hyatt in Tokyo. In Bangkok, we're staying with friends at their apartment.

Overall, for 240k UA miles and $177 in fees, I was very happy with United. The only downside was that business seats opened up on a direct flight from IAD-NRT that cut out the LAX layover, but United wanted to charge me $75 per person to change flights. Since we already have bulkhead in business elite on the new 787, I opted to keep our current routing, even though it is 4 hours longer.

Nick207

Getting to USM may be tricky as Bangkok Airways built and owns the airport, you should look and see who they share award availability with to find the right carrier(s) for your trip.

Overland travel is incredibly simple in Thailand, the train system is good if it connects your destinations and there are more buses and minivans (available for charter) than you can shake a stick at. If you can get yourself to BKK, URT, HKT, or even somewhere like PEN or KUL you can get to Ko Samui in 24 hours or so, much faster if you can find a cheap Firefly/AirAsia flight to USM. Flights to USM aren't quite as cheap as other inter-Asia flights, likely due to hefty fees at USM, but I just booked USM->PEN for ~$65 one way on Firefly. (notice that's a one-way fare departing USM, more on that later)

There are many well trodden and simple routes to Ko Samui from BKK with your choice of ferry, train-ferry, or bus-ferry methods of travel.

One last word of advice: Having spent the last month and change exploring islands up and down the Malaysian peninsula and in the Philippines, Ko Samui may not be 'the island you're looking for'. Development is out of control here. There are some nice locals around, but many of them obviously resent the crushing influx of package tourists and resort-goers. This is not an island of deserted white-sand beaches and turquoise waters... perhaps it once was, but now its officially discovered and developed to death. The water is much clearer up around Ko Tao (visibility around Ko Samui is poor) and even Ko Pha-ngan is not quite as full of self-important tourists if you avoid the southern portion of the island. I think this is going to become (or may already be) the next Bali... where the Balinese are an endangered species.

I wish someone had told me to look into some of the less-publicized islands like the Ko Muk/Kradan/Ngai group, Ko Libong, Ko Bulon-Lae, or if you like a bit of development but not Phuket/Ko Samui levels of it: Ko Chang (Trat), Ko Maak, and Ko Kut.

Let me know if you need more details on getting around Thailand and in particular to and from Ko Samui and I'll be glad to share what I've learned.

texasexpat9

It's funny that you mention Koh Phangan, that is actually where we are having the wedding. We lived in Thailand last year (in Krabi) and during our travels around we also found Koh Samui and Phuket to be horribly over-developed.

Since Thai Airways flies to USM and they are part of *A we are hoping to be able to connect at BKK. We made the mistake of flying to Suratthani airport for a cheap fare one time and caught a minibus to the Koh Samui ferry. Worst thing we have ever done! It was a white knuckle ride the entire way. We lost count of how many close calls we had. Have had a lot of bad bus trips in developing countries, but that one took the cake.

What has been your favorite place in Thailand so far?

thebestman36

We have spent 6 winters in Thailand over the past 7 years. We enjoy crowds and beaches. Favorite place, by far, is Koh Tao. We can spend 3 months there without getting too bored, walking to different beaches each day, going to different beach bars at night. Garbage is becoming a problem, and a sad thing to see, but it is what it is. We like Koh Samui, but not as much. We like the smaller size of Tao, more of a small island feel, with so much less traffic and such. On the flip side, we love Pattaya, for the x rated, sensory overload, good time, even as observers. Also rates as our fav place for street food, with so much available and at great prices.
We have not visited many of the smaller islands, as they would be too quiet for us for our longer stays. Even Koh Chang was too quiet for us.

CANONGATE1

I am trying to booka trip to HKT from ATL on United and it routes thru Beijing how do I arrange a layover over there for like 3 or 4 days? I know you can book online but I don't see where you can break down the flight to arrange a stop over? Would 2 ladies be safe there?

Thanks

moondog

Beijing is a lot safer than Atlanta. You don't need to get a PRC visa if you keep your stopover under 72 hours.

CANONGATE1

I see online I am looking at March a flight from ATL to HKT with a couple of hour layover in Beijing avail how can I change that to stay 4 or 5 nights? Do I have to call instead of book online?


Thanks

moondog

I think you need to call. Do you have PRC visas?

samplat

You should be able to book it using multi-destination option online. Ual.com can usually figure out the correct pricing/miles.

Beijing is a great city to visit though I think March is still quite cold. On the flip side, you won't have too many tourists crowds to deal with.

whackyjacky

If I'm not going to be there for awhile, I always go w/72 hrs. A PRC Visa is kinda expensive IMO (around $150) for a short stay.

DenverChris

Could use the help of the experts here. Want to surprise my wife with a trip to Thailand for Loi Krathong. Is it too late to book for this year?
Ideal would be to partake in the festivities in Bangkok and Chiang Mai and then spend 5 days on the beach.

We have a good amount of miles and points, but they are pretty spread out and I'm not sure how to best utilize them.

Balances:
Me
AA - 56,793
Delta - 7,429
Hilton - 92,804
IHG - 61,679
SW - 15,488
United -7,750
US Air - 70,001

Wife

AA -2,394
SW - 27,139
Starwood -25,684
United -52, 956
Us Air - 40,052

Reisen

I'd start with pooling your starwood points (spouses can transfer between accounts), so you can transfer 40k and get 50k airline points. You could probably get there in coach, but business would be tight.

philemer

Just moved from MilesBuzz!

mrstraveler

Slightly confused by this post because I thought AA didn't allow international stopovers, so I need some clarification. I'm looking to book a similar award JFK-HKK-HKT or JFK-HKK-BKK on Cathay Pacific in F or business and wanted to spend a few days in Hong Kong.

moondog

My understanding is that you can book a true stopover on a rt award. On one way awards you can have one at your international gateway. I used JFK in this capacity last month. I'm not sure if hkg qualifies.