The magical and tropical Thailand, located in Southeast Asia, is a wonderful place to visit whether for a vacation on the sea, adventures in the jungles, A gastronomic experience or knowledge of the magical culture. Thailand shares a border with Myanmar in the north, Laos and Cambodia in the east, the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia in the south, and in the east the Andaman Sea, which makes it beyond a diverse site in itself, a base for those going on further trips in Southeast Asia. Relative to most countries in the Southeast Asian region, Thailand is considered cheap, comfortable and very friendly for tourists, and as a result it is visited by about 35 million tourists a year.
Due to the size of Thailand and the amount of tourism in it, it has 7 international airports, scattered close to the favorite sites in Thailand, and 13 additional airports for domestic flights to make it easier for those who do not like long trips on winding roads in buses. Since Thailand is large, and has different climatic zones, it is convenient to fly to it all year round, in accordance of course with the weather for the specific destination you choose.
Please note that all prices written here are a general average, and can change at any time.
Bangkok – Suvarnabhumi Airport
Thailand's main airport (labeled BKK) located in Bangkok. Don't be alarmed, except for the Thais, no one can pronounce its name, so they simply call it the main airport (although there is another international airport in Bangkok, Don Maeung, but its name is already easier to pronounce...). It is the largest airport in Southeast Asia, consisting of three terminals, with four floors, many restaurants, many shops and many tourist information centers. Because of its enormous size and diversity, it is important to take into account that if you chose to walk around the airport, it may take you more than 30 minutes to get from one end to the other (and although it has good and enlightening signage in English as well, it is very easy to get lost).
Most of the flights from Israel arrive at this airport and the price is around 700 US dollars for a round trip from January to March. In April (because of Passover) the prices go up to the 800 dollar area. From May to June the prices drop slightly, again to an average of 700 dollars. In July and August (due to the summer vacation) the prices jump and can reach up to 900 dollars on average, and from September to December the prices drop again to the 700 dollar area.
El Al operates Direct flights to BKK Which are usually also the cheapest from Israel, but other companies such as Turkish Airlines, Royal Jordanian, Air India, Air France, Aeroflot and many others fly there with one stop, usually in the capital city of the company's country. It is important to take this into account, because if you fly with an airline that originates in Europe, you will make your journey a lot longer, so it is better to choose airlines whose stopover is made east of Israel.
Suvarnabhumi Airport is about 40 minutes from the city center Bangkok. You can go between the terminal where you are and the terminals where the trains / buses / taxis are located by a free shuttle bus that leaves every 20 minutes and travels between the terminals. The cheapest, but not necessarily the most convenient, way to get out of the airport is with the help of local buses at a cost of 35 Thai baht. The air train that leaves the airport will cost you around 45 baht, and is also the fastest option at all times of the day, if you don't have too much gear, it's the most efficient way to get from the airport to the city center. The most expensive way, but of course also the most convenient is in taxis. The pleasure of putting the bags in the taxi and arriving at the doorstep Your hotel It will cost you around 400 baht + 50 baht to the airport. This is not a cheap option compared to the other two options, but when you compare a baht to a shekel (on average 9 baht per shekel) it is not a particularly expensive option. It is important to remember that Bangkok is a very densely populated city, so it is also subject to many traffic jams in the morning (when you go to work) and in the afternoon (when you return from work), so a taxi or bus ride at the wrong hours can take you 40 hours instead of XNUMX minutes.
Don Mueang Airport in Bangkok
Don Maeung (branded as DMK) was once Thailand's main airport, but since the construction of the new airport, Don Maeung has become primarily an airport for low-cost airlines and domestic flights. Don Mauing has 3 terminals, but the third one is not used at all.
From Israel it is almost impossible to find direct flights to this airport, and the flights with stops you will find will usually be much more expensive than the flights to BKK. The airport is mainly used by low cost Asian companies such as Air Asia, Scoot, etc. If you want to continue from Thailand to a destination in the region, it is worth checking the flight options from there, sometimes they are cheaper than BKK. Most domestic flights in Thailand, however, depart from this airport.
Don Mayong is about 13 km from the center of Bangkok, although it sounds close, the two ways of getting from it to the city center are not so fast:
The first option is to take bus line 1A which costs around 90 baht and leaves once an hour between 08:30 and 23:00. The journey is about 40 minutes to the train station, from there you take a subway to the city center that costs around 60 baht and it will take you to the center of Bangkok in 20 minutes.
The more convenient and faster way is of course a taxi. The fare is around 500 baht and the journey can take between 40 minutes and XNUMX hours, depending on the traffic situation.
Happily for you, if you fly from Israel to BKK and then continue on an internal flight departing from Don Mueang, or vice versa, there is a free shuttle between the two airports! If you are in Don Maweng you can find the shuttle outside door #6. The driver will ask you for your boarding pass and immediately you can sit and relax for 50 minutes to two hours (again, depending on the traffic situation) until you reach door 3 on the second floor of BKK (which means if you Doing the same in the opposite direction, go to door 3 on the second floor of BKK to find the shuttle).
As mentioned, Thailand has 7 international airports. We will focus here, apart from the two in Bangkok, on three more international airports that are close to the tourist attractions and are likely to be the ones you will use on your trip to Thailand:
Phuket Airport
Phuket Airport (labeled HKT) is on the island Phuket, which is the largest island in Thailand and is located southwest of Bangkok. It has three terminals from which international flights depart, local flights and special charter flights. It is the second busiest airport in Thailand.
Phuket is very well known for diving, nightlife, shopping and coconuts. Close to Phuket you can also find the famous islands Crabby and Kofipi. If you intend on vacation in Thailand to spend time in these islands, it is recommended to use this airport. Although there are no direct flights from Israel there, and most flights with one stop stop in BKK, but if you buy the flight to Phuket, the price will be the same as the flight to Bangkok, and you will save yourself the headache of scheduling two flights and sometimes even transferring between airports.
It is advisable to come to the islands in the dry season in order to enjoy everything they have to offer with peace of mind, and to avoid storms and stormy weather. December to March are the driest months (especially February) and the most convenient to arrive. It should be taken into account that in these months the prices of flights go up and so do the prices of hotels.
To get to Phuket's famous beaches (Karong, Patong and Kata) from the airport there are several options:
- A local bus to the center of Phuket and from there change to a bus that will take you to the beaches. The whole story takes around two hours and 40 minutes and costs around 100 baht.
- A direct minibus to the beaches costs 180 baht and will prevent you from stopping and changing buses, and will also save you 40 minutes of travel.
- From this airport there is also the option of taking a taxi directly to the beaches, which will save you a lot of time (the journey is about an hour), but will cost around 750 baht.
Chiang Mai Airport
The airport in Chiang Mai (labeled CNX) is in the famous capital of the northern province of the same name. Chiang Mai Known as a very pleasant city, full of green trees and Buddhist temples. In recent years, Chiang Mai has become a central place where many digital nomads establish their base thanks to its calm nature, beautiful nature and all the urban possibilities it offers in parallel. It is also the closest airport to Pai, the small town that has become a must-see for any tourist flying to Thailand.
You will not be able to find a direct flight from Israel to Chiang Mai either, but only one that stops in Bangkok. This time, unlike Phuket, buying a plane ticket in Israel to Chiang Mai will save you transferring your bags and scheduling two flights, but it will certainly not save you money. Flight prices to Chiang Mai from Israel can start from $1,000 in the dry season, and $900 in the rainy season. On the other hand, if you buy a flight to Bangkok, and from there an internal flight to Chiang Mai, you can save around 200 dollars, because the price of flights from Bangkok to Phuket ranges from 70-100 dollars (it should be taken into account that these are low-cost flights, and some do not include a suitcase. The price per suitcase depends on the airline and ranges between 20 and 30 dollars on average).
As mentioned, the dry season is from December to March and the wet season is from August to September. In the months in between there are rains but not too much. Chiang Mai is pleasant and comfortable even when there are rainy days, and only in the months of August to September the situation becomes quite unbearable for travelers.
Chiang Mai's airport is only about 5 km from the city center, so there are many ways to get to and from it:
- A bus from the airport that comes to the city center costs 20 baht, and is active from 6:00 to 10:30.
- A taxi that costs around 150 baht (you also need to pay another 50 baht to the airport).
- Tuk tuk/rickshaw at a price of about 120 baht (the price can be negotiated).
- A shared taxi that will be shared with other tourists arriving at the same time which costs 40 baht.
In any of the ways you choose, the trip will take about half an hour.
The airport is hidden
Samui Airport (labeled USM) is on Koh Samui which is the largest of several islands located southeast of Bangkok. hidden line Known for scuba diving, night life and beautiful waterfalls. The island is also very close to it Copenhagen, Known At the full moon parties and the yoga centers, and the island of Koh Tao - Thailand's famous diving island.
Samui, like Phuket, has no direct flights from Israel, flights with one stop stop in Bangkok. But here too, like in Phuket, it pays to buy the The flight from Israel to Samui, instead of buying a flight to Bangkok and then another flight to Samui, since flights from Bangkok to Samui cost around $300. When you buy from Israel to Samui you will save yourself about 100 dollars, and especially a lot of mess.
The recommended dry season is between January and September and the wet season is between October and December. It is highly recommended to come to Samui in the dry season, especially in the months of February-April or July-September which are considered excellent months for diving in the area.
To get from the airport to the beaches you cannot take a normal taxi, motorcycle taxi or mini-van. Prices range from 100-500 baht depending on which beach you go to. Prices can be negotiated. Ko Samui is a very small island, but the roads are detours and winding, and as a result the travel on them is very slow. Therefore, traveling from the airport to the other end of the island may take about an hour.
3 more important points to remember about flight prices:
1. Depending on where you are going, the prices will always increase during the most touristic periods, which are the dry months.
2. Flight prices will increase during the Israeli holidays and also during the New Year.
3. Low cost flights and domestic flights usually do not include the price of the suitcase.
