Just a quick trip report on my flights in Nokair this week.
Started with a SQ flight to BKK from SIN ... nothing out of the ordinary, but from here I had to make my way across the the old Bangkok airport, Don Muang to catch a Nok Air flight DMK-PHS.
As the flight was at 7am I elected to stay at the Amari Airport Hotel which was once connected to the old International terminal via a footbridge. Cost was ~ $55 AUD for a superior room (ie a room that had broadband), could have had a standard room for about $40 AUD. A far cry from the last time I got a quote at this hotel it was around $200-$250 AUD for a night, pre airport move.
Interesting anecdote when I organised a car to take me from AOT - they were concerned that I was staying at the hotel - obviously some people book this "airport" hotel not aware that it is nearly an hour drive from BKK! I mentioned that I was flying Nokair, and the smiles came back.
Checkin at the hotel was quick, and handed a good old fashioned ving card - you know the ones with the holes in it.. I was upgraded to the "executive floor", after settling in, I went for a walk to the deserted"exec" lounge and then to around the different parts of the hotel. It was eerily quiet, not surprising, not a ghost town as such but a ghost hotel for sure. You could only imagine the hustle and bustle of what the hotle would have been like in glory days, but almost spooky staying there today.
In the morning, I ran into a colleague at checkout who was on the same flight as me, and for the both of us checkout took some time. Then ashort taxi ride, which involves heading north for a bit before doing a u turn to come back to a point about 1km south of the hotel (but on the other side of the highway). By now it was past 6:15am, and well I was a little concerned given the website indicated "Check-in counter... closes 45 minutes before the departure time", as Nokair is a LCC. However not quite Ryanair, Tiger or Jetstar. This is Thailand after all, and there were quite a few joined the queue after as, and no staff or pax hostility - everyone was checked in. The airport was a little busy with 2 Nok and a 1 2 Go flight, but as would be expected a ghost airport as well.
Soon boarded, a former Thai 737, could not tell the difference once inside the aircraft. Quick taxi and then takeoff, always a little unnerving when there's a seamless transition from taxi to takeoff, maybe I'm getting a used to airlines who do that pause at the start of the runway to do final preflight checks before charging down the runway. Served a water and some weird "pretzels" filled with crabcake, rather odd.
Return was the next afternoon, got a message by email that flight was delayed 2 hours. These flights are TG codeshares and all of my colleagues travelling had booked such codeshares got no notification at all, in fact when one checked with our TA they said flight still running on time. I booked late in the piece - and TG codeshare was booked out so TA couldn't book - so I had to book direct on NokAir website, indeed only seats on return where the business class seating "Nokair plus" - although I paid about $80 or so less than my colleagues - and they were all "down the back"
We eventually boarded - and I was now in the old TG domestic business class seats. We got a tray with OJ, a "pastry" with a coconut filling and small slice of chocolate sponge. And some water. J class LCC style. Of course not at all necessary for a 30 min flight. Due to late flight (and the need to transfer airports once more), I missed the last connection to SIN, so for the second time in 5 weeks I needed an unplanned overnight due to a missed connection, although can't complain about a night in BKK (or last time that matter, when it was NYC).
Oh and for those that have never seen a beak on a tail before ... here is the livery of a Nokair plane ...
Started with a SQ flight to BKK from SIN ... nothing out of the ordinary, but from here I had to make my way across the the old Bangkok airport, Don Muang to catch a Nok Air flight DMK-PHS.
As the flight was at 7am I elected to stay at the Amari Airport Hotel which was once connected to the old International terminal via a footbridge. Cost was ~ $55 AUD for a superior room (ie a room that had broadband), could have had a standard room for about $40 AUD. A far cry from the last time I got a quote at this hotel it was around $200-$250 AUD for a night, pre airport move.
Interesting anecdote when I organised a car to take me from AOT - they were concerned that I was staying at the hotel - obviously some people book this "airport" hotel not aware that it is nearly an hour drive from BKK! I mentioned that I was flying Nokair, and the smiles came back.
Checkin at the hotel was quick, and handed a good old fashioned ving card - you know the ones with the holes in it.. I was upgraded to the "executive floor", after settling in, I went for a walk to the deserted"exec" lounge and then to around the different parts of the hotel. It was eerily quiet, not surprising, not a ghost town as such but a ghost hotel for sure. You could only imagine the hustle and bustle of what the hotle would have been like in glory days, but almost spooky staying there today.
In the morning, I ran into a colleague at checkout who was on the same flight as me, and for the both of us checkout took some time. Then ashort taxi ride, which involves heading north for a bit before doing a u turn to come back to a point about 1km south of the hotel (but on the other side of the highway). By now it was past 6:15am, and well I was a little concerned given the website indicated "Check-in counter... closes 45 minutes before the departure time", as Nokair is a LCC. However not quite Ryanair, Tiger or Jetstar. This is Thailand after all, and there were quite a few joined the queue after as, and no staff or pax hostility - everyone was checked in. The airport was a little busy with 2 Nok and a 1 2 Go flight, but as would be expected a ghost airport as well.
Soon boarded, a former Thai 737, could not tell the difference once inside the aircraft. Quick taxi and then takeoff, always a little unnerving when there's a seamless transition from taxi to takeoff, maybe I'm getting a used to airlines who do that pause at the start of the runway to do final preflight checks before charging down the runway. Served a water and some weird "pretzels" filled with crabcake, rather odd.
Return was the next afternoon, got a message by email that flight was delayed 2 hours. These flights are TG codeshares and all of my colleagues travelling had booked such codeshares got no notification at all, in fact when one checked with our TA they said flight still running on time. I booked late in the piece - and TG codeshare was booked out so TA couldn't book - so I had to book direct on NokAir website, indeed only seats on return where the business class seating "Nokair plus" - although I paid about $80 or so less than my colleagues - and they were all "down the back"
We eventually boarded - and I was now in the old TG domestic business class seats. We got a tray with OJ, a "pastry" with a coconut filling and small slice of chocolate sponge. And some water. J class LCC style. Of course not at all necessary for a 30 min flight. Due to late flight (and the need to transfer airports once more), I missed the last connection to SIN, so for the second time in 5 weeks I needed an unplanned overnight due to a missed connection, although can't complain about a night in BKK (or last time that matter, when it was NYC).
Oh and for those that have never seen a beak on a tail before ... here is the livery of a Nokair plane ...
