THAI AIR ASIA review : 12 February 2010 : by K Rorke

Customer Rating : 5/5

Bangkok - Phuket - Bangkok. I booked this flight online, opting for preferred seating (highly recommended), pre-ordered meals, and a 20kg baggage limit. Check in at Bangkok took only a few minutes; passengers in the preferred seats were given the option to board first. The aircraft was a very clean, relatively new A320. Cabin crew were delightful. The return flight from Phuket was similar, although check-in was even quicker with the self check-in terminal. Both flights were exactly on time. A pleasure to fly with.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 28 October 2009 : by N Damrongphatr

Customer Rating : 5/5

BKK-HDY-BKK in spotless A320 aircraft. Both flights good, cabin attendant friendly, hot meal sold onboard of reasonable price and tasty. On a minus side - return flight is delayed for an hour, but was informed to be 30 minutes at check in, then keep changing to 40-50-60 minutes as we wait in the gate. Discount Gift Voucher for onboard goods presented to all passenger as a compensation. Very good airline to fly with.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 7 April 2009 : by B Walberer

Customer Rating : 3/5

BKK-KBV. Thai Air Asia still uses old B737-300 aircraft on this route. The interior, however, was clean and in good shape. The seats, while quite cramped, are ok for such a short flight. Both flights were delayed by about 30 minutes. On the outbound flight this was due to a mechanical problem, with the plane getting quite hot during the wait on the tarmac. I had to buy a tiny bottle of water for which I was charged 40 Baht. The flight attendants, though, were quite friendly and smiled throughout the flights. Overall, considering the price I paid for my flight I am satisfied with Air Asia. Just don't expect freebies on this airline.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 16 February 2009 : by K Peters

Customer Rating : 2/5

Bangkok - Chiang Mai and Bangkok - Krabi. A very old 737-300, most dated, dirty aircraft I have travelled on. The service was fine, just very difficult to understand the crew over the PA as their english is poor. Good value airline, but I think the 737-300's are just about done.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 7 February 2009 : by G Chew

Customer Rating : 3/5

Macau-Bangkok. I pre-bought luggage space thinking it was a 20kg allowance to be told at check in it was only 15kg (no options online to pay for more). The girl reprimanded me, but let me go without paying excess (I had 23kg), so I was happy with that. I sat next to someone who had to pay for 20kg, so I got off very lucky. Flight delayed for over 2 hours (no mention of this at check in). Nothing really to do in Macau Airport, so I paid to get into the lounge, which was okay. Flight booked 100%, and very little leg room - very cramped. I ended up in the penultimate row, and the staff ran out of most things by the time they got to the back (eg. the SIM cards). There was no mention of the 'THB1,900 voucher if your flight was delayed' from the cabin crew.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 19 January 2009 : by J Selvaku

Customer Rating : 4/5

BKK-CNX (Chiang Mai)-BKK. On both legs, the plane was a brand new Airbus 320. It almost felt it was its maiden flight since it was so brand new. Both flights were on time. Good customer service from the flight crew and all staff in Chiang Mai.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 6 October 2008 : by B Walberer

Customer Rating : 4/5

BKK-KUL-BKK and BKK-UTH-BKK. Both flights on aging B737-300 aircraft. The cabins on the domestic flights were somewhat run-down whereas the planes on the flights to/from KUL were dirty on the outside but clean inside. Although seats were quite tight the legroom was acceptable for a person of medium height. All flights were either on time or delayed by less than 30 min. The cabin crew was well groomed and friendly. Overall, my impression is that Air Asia gets you safely and reliably from A to B but without any extras and with minimal comfort. If you book well in advance and can get a good fare I would recommend Air Asia. However, if you book your flights on short notice you may not pay substantially less than on other, full-service carriers such as Thai.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 25 September 2008 : by David Huggett

Customer Rating : 5/5

Bangkok to Chaing Mai. For the price I paid, the experience was fantastic. Boarding quick with the plane being only half full and departed on time. The flight attendants were cheerful and polite. The plane was an elderly Boeing 737.

THAI AIR ASIA review : 5 September 2008 : by S Adrian

Customer Rating : 3/5

BKK to SIN. Cabin Crew nice and presentable - Boeing 737 looks very old, and the interior of the aircraft is not pleasant. Ants could be found everywhere on the cabin floor and my seat. Although, its a budget carrier, I still find cabin cleanliness is very important. 2hrs flight. Would travel with them again if the price is low.

Thai Air Asia review - by M Tam

29 July 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

BKK-PEN. Efficient with check-in - though watch your baggage weight as they weigh bags separately and check the 15kg limit. Staff caused confusion by putting final call on the monitor 10 minutes before boarding had even started. Buying the Express Boarding sticker is a joke - about 20 people had the stickers and people were pushing and shoving in the line. Not recommended if you have kids in tow. The experience after leaving the gate is that they are running a bus with wings. There is no allocated seating (despite being an international flight) and so people argue over where to sit and block the aisle with carry on luggage - this contributes to their on-time ratings I'm sure. Staff are pretty gung-ho about selling you stuff although the price of food and drinks onboard is very cheap, better value than in the airport! Thanks to my sharp elbows I managed to get row 1 but aircraft (737) pretty torn up inside. Probably isn't that old actually but the passengers aren't well behaved! Given that the price is rock bottom I would certainly fly with them again, but would be hesitant to go on a flight longer than 2 hours.

Thai Air Asia review - by S Bryant

16 May 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

Bangkok to Chiang Mai one way flight. The flight was very straightforward with easy check-in and boarding. It was the first flight of the day, so no delays and I arrived in on time with my baggage very quickly delivered to the belt. The plane was a little bit old with one or two shabby looking internal fittings. It is a budget airline with very cheap tickets with no frills on the service, but for such a short flight all I want is to get there safely and on time so Thai Air Asia did that job well.

Thai Air Asia review - by Andy Johnson

30 April 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

BKK-SIN-HKT-BKK. Overall a good airline and you get what you pay for. All flights, apart from the HKT-BKK on time, but even then that was only half an hour late. Purchasing the Xpress board is definitely worth it, you get to go on first and choose your seat before everyone else makes a dash for it. Have to say that unassigned seats makes it a lot easier and people just sit down and boarding is a lot faster. Inside the planes have leather seats, interior looking a bit tired and grubby in places but for an hour or so flight you don’t really want luxury. Checked in baggage limit is only 15Kg, so had to pay excess baggage on 2 legs, but I was prepared for that and the price wasn't too bad. Food to purchase is very tasty, can recommend the tuna sandwiches and donuts and coffee! Cabin crew typically Thai and always very kind and gracious. All in all you get what you pay for and if you want a plain and simple No frills flight from point A to B its does the trick. I certainly would recommend them and use them again.

Thai Air Asia review - by D McCarthy

2 March 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

Several sectors on Thai Air Asia - BKK to Chang Mai, Chang Rai to BKK, BKK to Krabi then Phuket to BKK. The best thing we purchased was the Express Boarding option - for just 100 BHT ($3 Australian) as we were always first on and avoided the stampede. I was surprised at how few people purchased this option - no more than 5 or 6 per flight, but it saves the scrum prior for a piddly amount of money. The concern is that they make no boarding announcements whatsoever - so you have to "hover" around the boarding gate. We were lucky with our luggage as for 3 of the 4 sectors we were not charged for excess baggage - our bags were at least 2-4kg overweight. We could not get over the amount of so called "carry on" baggage bring into the plane. Huge candy-bags and small suit cases were dragged in and as long as they fitted into the overhead locker it was no drama with the flight attendants. There turnaround is the quickest I've ever seen and although the 737-300 arircraft is looking a bit worn on the inside it got us to our destinations on-time. Only one of the sectors was delayed for 1 hour due to bad weather but all in all, for $41 Australian each one way - you couldn't complain at all. Flight attendants were happy and smiling and the inflight menu was surprisingly good, and very cheap, compared to Australian standards (such as Virgin Blue).

Thai Air Asia review - by Martin Cartwright

4 February 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

Kuala Lumpur to BKK with Thai Air Asia. My first experience of this low cost carrier. Punctual, comfortable (I am 1m93 tall), efficient, friendly flight attendants who seemed to enjoy their work. The food and beverages offered were high quality and very reasonably priced.

Thai Air Asia review - by Neil Hart

27 January 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

BKK-UTH. Aircraft boarding was a bit of a scam, and express boarding was a waste of money. Service and cabin crew very good - was not charged for excess baggage.

Thai Air Asia review - by P Lundstrom

21 January 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

BKK-CNX. Flight was two hours late at departure. No information or communication given to passengers. When flight was called it was a stampede to get on the aircraft. No control at the gate what so ever. Just another cattle call flight. CNX-BKK flight was slightly late departing. I will say it was the fastest turn around I have ever seen, faster than those at SWA. Uneventful flight, arrive BKK on time.

Thai Air Asia review - by F Schwimmer

9 January 2008   Customer Trip Rating :

Bangkok to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai to BKK, BKK to Phuket, and Phuket to BKK. Each flight was 1 to 3.5 hours late. I have no issue with paying for excess baggage over 15 kg. since it is clearly stated in the policy. My issue is that westerners are required to pay whereas Thais are most often not required to pay for excess baggage. While waiting at the check in counter for my husband to pay the fine to the cashier, I saw the Thai family in front of me with one 27 kg. bag and a second 25 kg. bag being allowed to proceed without being charged. When I commented to the check in clerk she told me that it is because the Thai family asked politely. I think this is disgusting.

Thai Air Asia review - by Alvin Lo

27 December 2007   Customer Trip Rating :

KUL-BKK on Thai Air Asia. Even though this was a no-frills flight the onboard service was awesome! Thai FAs were full of smiles, extremely polite and greeted everyone upon boarding and disembarking. Don't bother paying extra for the Xpress boarding doesn't make much difference at LCCT KL anyway. Less than 5 mins apart between the Xpress boarding and normal boarding.

Thai Air Asia review - by Cherry Embury

12 December 2007   Customer Trip Rating :

Chiang Mai - Bangkok. This flight was delayed, causing concern to my daughter and I, as well as other passengers - all on long haul flights with connecting flights in Bangkok. Thai Air Asia ground staff were excellent. They not only telephoned our follow up airline, but made sure that our baggage was first off the plane as well as organising a bus and ground staff in Bangkok to ensure a speedy check-in for our connecting flights. They took the stress out of what could have been a stressful experience. Thankyou.

Thai Air Asia review - by Richard Eveleens

23 October 2007   Customer Trip Rating :

Bangkok - Phuket return. Air Asia still not give out seat numbers, so whenever the plane arrives or is announced to be ready for boarding, pax try to be the first in line with pushing and all. They now have priority boarding, but they can make more money with letting pax pay for preference seating, and by doing that making the boarding procedure a bit more smooth. As a seasoned traveller I know if you are bussed to the plane you should stay in the middle so you are first out, (if you want to be in the scrum that is), On the outbound flight I managed to secure the emergency seat and had a lot of legspace, on the return flight as well because I was first in line after the priority boarders. But if you not want to be in the scrum, if you board last, walk to the back of the plane and you will still be able to get a row of seats most of the time. Flight itself uneventful, on time, you get what you pay for so have to pay for drinks or snacks if you want any. Only minor point apart from the boarding procedure is that the plane used was very old, and it does show, although soon these 737-300 series will be replaced by Airbus 319.

Thai Air Asia review - by F Chan

15 April 2007   Customer Trip Rating : n/a

Bangkok-Langkawi. Very basic service - you get what you pay for. Departure from Suvarnabhumi airport but no aerobridge, stood in the bus for 20 minutes before it moved to the aircraft parked at a great distance. Old B737-300 with tight legroom except for emergency exit seats. Plane less than half full, maybe because this is still a new route. Cabin crew very friendly. Food & drinks sold on board were rubbish - basically only cup noodles and soft drinks, sold at prices 4 times what you can get at 7/11. If you want a cheap airfare and can pay months ahead, and don't need comfort & frills, then use it.

Thai Air Asia review - by M Roberts

20 March 2007

BKK-HAN. Check-in was slow as both counters had 2 large Thai tour groups checking in with about 40 passengers each. My bag weighed 20kg and my friend 15kg, as the limit is 15kg each, had to pay excess luggage, although, the charge was relatively (compared to BA standards) reasonable at US$15 for 5kg. Ryanair style boarding (no allocated seat), so everybody queues at the gate door for 30mins before boarding. Boarding was via a jetway (front) and stairs (back). Plane was an old 737-300 and packed. Not sure if it had pressurisation problems but all passengers seemed to be having ear problems on descent into Hanoi. Overall OK for a 55min flight that was 50% of Thai price.

Thai Air Asia review - by Andrew Batt

19 February 2007

BKK-SIN-BKK. No complaints about anything on these two flights. Both ran pretty close to time, the cabin was clean and FAs were friendly and efficient. For the price - less than half of the Thai or Singapore flights - you cannot go wrong. Just remember that there is no allocated seating, you're bussed to the plane at Suvarnabhumi Airport (so it pays to be last on the bus and first onto the plane) and they do not allow passengers to bring their own food. Prices are not extortionate but are more than you would pay from the shops. Planes used - B737-300s - although old were very clean and tidy. I timed the turnaround in Singapore, and from when the wheels stopped rolling on the inbound flight until they started again on the outbound was an impressive 19 minutes. I will be flying with Thai Air Asia again.

Thai Air Asia review - by James Bowen

26 January 2007

BKK-Krabi-BKK. Great service. Really were pushed for time (left just 1h45mins to catch a connecting flight at BKK) but took the risk on Thai Air Asia and it paid off. Flights were pretty much on time both out and return. In flight service similar to easyjet with snacks to buy. Older, tatty Boeing planes but leather comfortable seats. Would use Air Asia or Thai Air Asia again. BTW my checked in bag was nearly 20kg and the limit is 15kg but wasn't charged on either in or out flight!

Thai Air Asia review - by David Passmore

19 January 2007

BKK-HKT-BKK. Check in at BKK and HKT was quick and efficient, and despite having to be 'bussed' on and off the plane at BKK, an airbridge facility was used at HKT. There was only slight delays on departures but arrival on schedule. Boarding reasonably orderly considering that no seat allocation is used. The 737 used for both sectors was old, but clean and cabin crew well presented and worked hard during the flight serving reasonably priced basic fayre. Fellow passengers considerate by not reclining their seats for the 1 hour journey, although the seat pitch was no worse than many economy flights. Overall, I was very happy with the flights and the service provided, and the fantastic price was a bonus.

Thai Air Asia review - by John Herbert

9 January 2007

Phuket to BKK. These guys only allow you 15Kgs hold luggage allowance and charge 80 Baht per kilo for excess. Take note if you arrived with a heavier bag they do change, but they have a very generous baggage size allowance for cabin baggage and allowed me to move kit from one bag to the other. As painful and ridiculous as this sounds !

Thai Air Asia review - by Gary Lowcock

12 December 2006

Krabi – Bangkok. The best thing about this flight was that it was cheap – less than half the price of the Thai flight. On arriving at check in I was advised that the flight was delayed by 2.5 hours and that refreshments would be provided in about an hour. On the plus side the very pleasant check in girl advised me that she would let me off any excess luggage charge (I was about 8 kilos over) on account of the flight being late, which was the least I would have expected, but it was perfectly fair of her to make the point and she did it in a very charming manner. The refreshments involved something warm, noodle based and inedible accompanied by a cold can of pop. (I love noodles and Thai food but this was truly awful.) When the plane eventually arrived turnaround was completed very quickly. Boarding wasn’t quite the scrum I had imagined it would be with no allocated seating. The plane was clean and the in flight crew quite dapper and smiley enough. Seating was very cramped but no worse than European charter flights. Inflight catering had to be paid for but was cheap for a European and did not even appear too over priced by local standards. Would I use again? Yes for the price, but based on my own experience and other reviews I would be wary when needing to make onward connections. And if my expected flight time was over 90 minutes I’d be elbowing my way to the front of the queue to get the exit seats!

Thai Air Asia review - by Simon Loh

5 July 2006

SIN-BKK, BKK-XMN and return, all on B733 aircraft. Check-in at BKK bound for XMN was disturbed by a sudden power failure for 45mins. At XMN after completed check-in procedure at the counter, my luggage was on its way into the tunnel via yet another x-ray machine, and was told to open up for full inspection behind the counter, that happens to quite a number of passengers too. Totally unnecessary after all passengers had already passed thru the 1st x-ray before they could check-in. The officer told me they are from 'different dept', how inconvenience was that! A satisfied end to my flight from BKK-SIN, way ahead of schedule, after the first 3 flights were all delayed, the worst being more than an hour. No problem with check-in staff, FAs on board are young and friendly, a few individuals perform greatly. All flights goes pretty uneventful, and aircraft turnaround time is quick. SIN-BKK sector is value for money compared to other low cost carriers, although cabin comfort FD may loose out, and its actual arrival & departure time is quite inconsistent. Hopefully new Airbus aircrafts could be introduced to its international flight soon.

Thai Air Asia review - by M Sriboonrung

24 May 2006

Bangkok-Singapore. Both flights were delayed for almost 3 hours! The 733 aircraft was very old on both legs. Food and beverages sell onboard are very expensive. The price isn't as cheap as they advertise on the media and after you have booked the ticket, you can't change your itinerary. Seats uncomfortable with a narrow legroom but the FAs were friendly.

Thai Air Asia review - by Michael Wilkinson

6 February 2006

Singapore - Bangkok with Thai Air Asia. Compared to other airlines on this route, the price was unbelievably low. Check-in was a painless process that took just 5 minutes. Flight was delayed by 30 minutes by the late arrival of the aircraft, but it's amazing just how quick they turn around aircraft after arrival. No sooner were the passengers off the arrival flight, then we were boarding! Flight was comfortable as the aircraft was only about 60% full which meant a row of 3 seats. For a 2:20 flight, you really don't need any food, but it was available for purchase from the friendly Air Asia crew. Overall, a good flight at an exceptional price.

Thai Air Asia review - by Rostyslav Zinyak

25 October 2005

PEN-BKK. Service was rather good, starting from check-in when officer kindly allowed us (me and my wife) to take some extra weight baggage to the cabin (as we had to take connecting flight from BKK to European destination and did not wish to cross Thai border - immigration and customs). Flight attendants (as well as in any of Asian airlines) were very nice, polite and helpful. But, notwithstanding I would like to claim for only two things which are inconvenient for European travellers. Lack of separate check-in in transfer area (particularly in BKK) - this forces passengers who arrive from Europe or USA on traditional carriers to pass through immigration and customs at airport (and pay for Thailand entry visa and departure tax) for staying in Thailand for just one hour or two or even less - this leads to additional costs which eliminate the advantage of Air Asia price compared with Thai Airways or Malaysia Airlines. Inability to pay with USD or EUR onboard the flight as well as by credit card. Only local currencies are acceptable. I understand that Air Asia is focusing mainly on local travellers but it also loses unearned revenues from Europeans (as I wanted to buy some snack and I could not do that as I had only USD with me). But overall, it was rather good service under reasonable price (two times lower than TG price).

Thai Air Asia review - by Xuess Wee

14 October 2005

SGP-BKK. The plane was an old Boeing 737. Small plane and yellowing of the interior is quite evident. Only 3 crews served the entire flight. About three-quarter full. Boarding was a little chaotic but no major shoving or pushing involved. Flight was uneventful. Bought a bottle of green tea for 50 Baht.

Thai Air Asia review - by G Chew

13 October 2005

Macau to Bangkok and return a week later. Checkin in Macau opened two hours before hand, but the staff English skills weren't too good - it seemed like a bit of a free- for-all, with passengers shoving and pushing. Macau was nice, and as soon as an EVA Air B744 left, we had the entire terminal to ourselves. Boarding was on time, but upon boarding, the staff were chatting and laughing in the galley instead of greeting the passengers. The flight wasn't fully booked, and so I had the entire front row to myself. On the three hour flight the staff were quite friendly and effcient. The food and drinks being sold on board were reasonable value, especially compared to the likes of easyJet and Ryanair. Upon arrival we disembarked at an airbridge, but then had to walk to the far end of the terminal to get our luggage - also, the queues from immigration were long. Returning a week later was very similar expect that we had to be bussed out to the aircraft which was parked by the domestic terminal. Inflight service was ok, and flights were on time again. Luggage was waiting on the carosel by the time I got through immigration. I would recommend Thai AirAsia; and if you book early enough, you can get really good fares.

IMPORTANT NOTE

Comments and opinions contained in these pages do not represent the views of Skytrax. All features contain unsolicited input from site visitors, and we seek to exercise the minimum level of editorial control and censorship to ensure the widest debate and platform for customer opinions. We will not publish submissions that contain abusive language. We cannot guarantee to publish all opinions submitted.

ADD YOUR COMMENTS HERE

  These Review pages are designed to offer guidance and assistance to other travellers, and we ask respondents to use an "informative" style of comment and share any travel tips for the airline  in question.

  Your First Name (or initial) and Family Name, and E-mail address MUST be supplied.

  When submitting comments, please DO NOT insert paragraphs.

  Please check you use Upper and Lower case only - submissions made all in CAPITALS will NOT be accepted.

  Comment submissions that require extensive text editing CANNOT be published.