speedbird001

Just as a couple of examples.

• The airport is filthy and falling apart after 10 years of use. Actually it was like this from the beginning.
• What is wrong with the air conditioning. So many warm spots. Didn't they know that an all glass terminal in one of the hottest and most humid climates requires adequate cooling?
• The furniture in the Thai business class lounge is dirty, stained and scratched. The food menu hasn't changed in years. It is barely edible and in general disgusting.
• And here is my favorite... On my flight from BKK to RGN this past Monday, we left from a bussing gate; went to the other side of the airport and then climbed stairs and boarded from a proper gate and jetway? What was the point of that? And not the first time I have experienced it.

With so many Asian airports and airlines among the best in the world, why can't Thai follow their example?

BinSabai

probably because you left on an international gate from a domestic gate (A and B concourse)
TG use some aircraft alternating for domestic and international flights. Now coming from a domestic flight it can either park at a domestic gate (in this case departing international passengers need to be bussed) or at a international gate (in this case arriving domestic passengers need to be bussed). Change gate is not efficient and time not sufficient

JVPhoto

I'm not going to eat off the floor but BKK is filthy and falling apart? I'm wondering if we are talking about th same airport.

mihaid

Tokyoite

Not to attack your post, but you better be ready to elucidate on your points. I believe you either expected too much, or didnt plan for your transit at BKK.

1. So awful compared to which airport?
Definitely not better than SIN/ICN/HKG/NRT/KUL. You will definitely be shocked to transit/use Jakarta CGK, Saigon SGN etc.
How was the airport in Yangon (RGN)?

2. "The airport is filthy and falling apart after 10 years of use." Where, or which concourse, exactly? It could help us understand where the filth and damage is. I'll be passing through BKK in a week and can actually go to check!

3. "What is wrong with the air conditioning. So many warm spots. " You are in the wrong country then. Heat in a hot country is expected. Move to a cooler spot! How cool was the airport in Yangon (RGN)?

4. "The furniture in the Thai business class lounge is dirty, stained and scratched." You should have used another of the 10+ Thai business class lounges with "better furniture". Here is the photo with the lounge map.

5. "The food menu hasn't changed in years. It is barely edible and in general disgusting." You should have used another *A lounge like the EVA Lounge or Silverkris lounge, to avoid the "disgusting" food.

6. "Why can't Thai follow their example?" Budget and politics. Bangkok and Thailand in general is a tourist destination. So, a majority of the passengers are economy class, looking for the cheapest ticket to travel. Business destination like HKG/SIN/TYO/TPE pay more attention to business travelers with better lounge offerings.
As mentioned by someone else, Thai rotates their aircraft between domestic and international, and it is cheaper for them to bus all of you than to tow the plane to a new gate (towing fees, double gate fees etc.).
By the way, about the TG lounges, it is true that the business class lounges are not of a good standard for a major *A airline at their home base.
You have many other lounges to hop around, other *A lounges I mentioned in 5 above, or just eat in one of the restaurants in the departure concourses.

Its easier as a passenger to just manage your expectations!

SunLover

I think the Thai people like their inside temps on the warmer side. Not only would cooling every "spot" in the terminal to western standards cost two arms and a leg; it would be unnecessary for most, and rather ozone unfriendly.

JVPhoto

flyerby

Taken not long ago ....

shoven

Wow I know BKK is not perfect by any means but that's a very harsh and over the top description. I went through 10+ times last year and will do the same this year I have never experienced anything like what has been posted, sure it can feel warm sometimes but its a tropical country and while the Thai lounges might not be the best I would say there adequate and as mentioned above there is always the BR or SQ lounges you can use I have been in the BR lounge many times and quite like it to be fair.

mcgahat

1. While I agree that Thailand could have done better on the building of the new airport and the design as I do personally find it a bit dull.....filthy and falling apart is not how I would describe it. I do find the restrooms to be filthy most of the time but that is due to the customers more than the airport in my experience.

2. It is a pretty hot area of the world and not sure they could have done anything to make the place totally cold in all areas. I find other airports in that region to be about the same personally. Not saying they couldnt have done better but minimizing power usage should be a priority and I have never found it unreasonably hot inside.

3. I will agree about the TG lounge and and the food, no argument there. Stopped going in their lounges because of what you mention as there are better in the airport as mentioned by others.

4. Never had this myself but someone gave the reason and not sure that is much different than leaving from a normal bus gate any place in the world although a bit different.

JVPhoto

Hopefully you were just transiting in BKK because if you can't handle the airport you're REALLY not going to like Thailand.

BinSabai

well said!

Thaikwai

+1 !!!

kittiyut

As a Thai (spending more than half of my life living abroad), I should be offended by the OP comments and join in with many others defending the airport... on the contrary, I see both sides of the coin and actually somewhat agree with the OP - to a certain extent.

1. Having HKG as my home base airport for 5 years, flying to BKK always irritates me, making me ask "why?" every time I land. The airport was built after HKG but looks decades older and and worn out, and everywhere you look, you see corruption & corners being cut...why? why? why? TIT I guess. Progress has been made throughout the years, but it really is "putting lipstick" on a pig, so to speak.

One can argue.... well it is better than other regional airports or much better than LGA/JFK/EWR, etc. But doing so only stalls progress, why not stop accepting the status quo and aspire to be better... especially from the beginning?

2. Gave up on the hope of adequate cooling a long long time ago. Hot country, bad design, under powered air-con, corruption, etc. etc.

3. All the lounges, even the F lounge, are long in the tooth and seriously needs a refresh/refurbish/make over. But the food being "disgusting"? It might not be appealing as what you can get outside the airport. In this case, I will have to do what many others here have already done - compare it to what you can get in the good 'ol USA. Now "that" is disgusting.

4. @BinSabai - Thank you for the explanation. I was scratching my head in bewilderment as well.

timster

The OP has nailed it pretty well IMHO.

BKK aspired to be a new SEA hub, challenging SIN and HKG, from the beginning. When it opened, it was clear that it had failed before it started.

The internal design is dreadful. It's like an underground car park with useless touches of a hi-so downtown shopping mall. It's not designed to provide services and comfort to pax, or even a pleasant and varied shopping experience (like SIN), but just to extract money from them.

Air conditioning design is not rocket science. Either the architects made mistakes, or the financiers / builders cut corners. IIRC a lot of those standing air conditioners were added after the opening.

It was supposedly designed by a team of Chicago (?) architects. I am not sure who the builders were. Most major Thai buildings are international company/Thai joint ventures, ie international company provides the engineering / construction expertise, Thai company provides the building supplies / construction workers. The scope for corruption surprises no one. They were re-laying collapsing taxiways in the first year.

The TG J lounges are a disgrace. It has always been my assumption that the furniture in the TG lounges (especially the woodwork) came from the old lounges at Don Meung. Some older hands around here can confirm if that is actually true. Either way, that's what the furniture looks like.

The use of buses by TG is a disgrace at their hub airport.

The only thing I haven't really seen is that BKK is filthy. Like most high profile public spaces in Thailand, there is a veritable army of cleaners. I am sure there is dust up in the rafters, but at ground level it is not too evident. Parts of it are definitely falling apart though - the toilets in the TG lounges for example.

BTW I love Thailand.