The whole world has been impacted by COVID19. Economically, socially, every single person is having some impact. We think of those who have died from the virus and those currently struggling to overcome it. Some people have been impacted wore than others. In Thailand, many people have had already meager incomes vanish. A coalition of groups in Thailand have formed COVID19 AID to help vulnerable groups across Thailand during COVID-19 through: 8,000 Care Packages for seniors, low-income families, refugees and people in need 12,500 Meals for the homeless Emergency supplies for professionals battling the virus…
Trip Reports
Category Archives for Trip Reports.
Dodging National Closures – Last Plane to Bangkok
I was in the USA for family reasons on a long arranged trip and was in the Northern suburbs of Philadelphia, USA. My Home base is in the northern suburbs of Bangkok, Thailand. Having worked in public health, I monitored the virus carefully. As the infections accelerated flight cancellations, lockdowns and compulsory quarantined accelerated. I decided to cut short my US business and get back to Bangkok. This was a rather nerve wracking trip as I tried to dodge the virus, country closures and airline shutdowns. Booking Finding a way home from Philadelphia proved to…
Two stunning Qatar 350 Flights- my best trips Ever
Qatar Airways has been my favourite airline for five years now in both economy and business class. I have not yet had the privilege of flying Qatar first class. Today’s two stunning flights were from Bangkok to Doha and then Doha to Vienna. They were so good that I didn’t want to get off the plane at the end! Qatar Airways continues to edge out Emirates for my number one favourite carrier. At third place sits Cathay Pacific. Booking I find that Qatar Airways offers one of the most user-friendly online booking systems of any airline. They…
NOK Air Trip Report
If you travel around Thailand, you will see Nok’s bold yellow planes with an image of a bird at the front of the aircraft nose. The word “Nok” is Thai for Bird. I have flown them half a dozen times and recently, I joined them for a flight from Ho Chi Minh to Bangkok’s smaller airport: Don Muang. Don Munag (DMK) handles domestic and regional flights and is not to be confused with the bigger and busier Suvarnabhumi Airport. Booking: 10/10 Their easy to use website delivers and their app is one of the best…
Hong Kong Airlines revisited – Trip Report Bangkok – HK return
This is a follow on from last month’s trip report on Hong Kong Airlines. Prior to trying them late last year, I had not heard much about Hong Kong Airlines. Their Partnership with Virgin Australia (which I have Platinum status with) was the motivation to fly them and now after four delightful flights with them, I am hooked. The only issue is the on-going speculation, that they may not survive financially. This promopted me to ask the question in my last report ” are they a great airline but a lousy business?: Booking: 6/10…
HK Airlines Trip Report -good airline -lousy Business?
There is an old adage about Australian airline Ansett before it collapsed that it was “a great airline, but a poor business”. Virgin America, Kingfisher, Malev and Transaero have all been similar examples which have all finished up providing good and/or innovative service but which did not last financially. In 2019, Hong Kong Airlines airlines has the same feel. My flights with them were highly enjoyable but the carrier, part of the cash strapped HNA group is rumored to be on the brink of closure. The HK government drew up contingency plans in case HK…
Cambodia’s Lanmei Airlines – Review and Trip Report
The driving distance between Siam Reap and Phnom Penh is just 314.7 km (200 miles) but the roads are so bad the bus trip between the two Cambodian cities takes around seven back breaking shuddering juddering hours. I have done it with a newly relocated dislocated shoulder and I had no wish to recall that memory. While there is now one train line in Cambodia operating and a second one about to be reopened, there is no train from Siam Reap. The flying distance from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh is about 231km (143 miles).…
My 2018 Travel Adventures!
No surprises for my friends and colleagues that I flew, railed, rode ferries and drove the equivalent distance of about five times around the world. My focus was predominantly on Asia, Australia and New Zealand with visiting 24 major cities in ten countries at least once. I also dropped in on many smaller towns including Bringalbert, Australia which has a population of 12! Where did 2018 take you? My year started with a fabulous New Year’s Eve in Shanghai, China now one of my top 20 cities in the world. I took 5000 photos through the…
Qantas A380 Business to Singapore-sailing to one million km
Today’s flight was special because whilst aboard I reached a “milestone” of one million kilometres flown with Qantas. This has taken me an enjoyable chunk of my life! Normally on the Australia to Singapore segment, I have usually been on A330s. Today was the second time I have traveled on the 380 on this routing. The utilisation by Qantas of the 380 on this routing now occurs when there are periods of high demand from Melbourne to Singapore. Booking: 8/10 I chose to fly in Qantas Business Class which is on the 380’s upper deck…
China’s Spring Airlines – Surprisingly Good Choice
Spring Airlines are described as the “Ryanair of China“. The commentary pages are littered with complaints against the carrier. For example: As a result, I fully expected a flight from hell that would make a really interesting blog post for my first flight of 2018. What I got would put many “full service” airlines to shame. Booking :3/10 We wanted to fly direct from Shanghai to Bangkok. Six airlines ply the route non-stop including full-service Carriers: China Eastern/Shanghai, Juneyao Airlines and Thai Airways as well as low cost Air Asia, Lion Air, and Spring. Fares…
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