Airfares from Bangkok are already reaching crazy levels. ASEAN NOW

File photo for reference only

 

ANALYSIS | by Michael Bridge

 

With the government's announcement canceling the requirement for the Thailand Pass, hotel quarantine and pre-travel Covid-19 tests, Thailand is expecting a surge in air traffic.

 

"Travel will see a strong resurgence because conditions [for entry] will return to almost pre-Covid normality' said a CAAT director.

 

Signs of recovery emerged in the first quarter of this year, when Thailand saw a total of 11.26 million passengers, up 2.5 million from the previous quarter.

 

There were 108,987 flights throughout Thailand in the first quarter, up 21,277 from the previous quarter, according to CAAT.

 

It is anticipated that Thailand's aviation market is likely to be "the most active" in Asia along with Singapore which have also followed the relaxation of entry regulations.

 

Domestic air travel is also recovering well thanks to relaxed rules, high vaccination rates, and the reduced severity of Omicron, he added.

 

However, the growing demand for air travel is being offset by fallout from the war between Russia and Ukraine, the CAAT chief said. 

 

The rising cost of fuel is adding to airlines' costs and would likely force them to raise airfares in the second quarter of this year.

 

Crazy Price Rises

 

Well, his predictions seem to be coming true, as the urge to travel by a global population coming out of the pandemic and lockdowns is gaining momentum.

 

This coupled with the fuel hikes have made airlines look at the budgets and schedules and inevitably we the passengers must pay more.

 

Only a few months ago it was possible to book a return ticket from Bangkok to London Gatwick for THB19,000 return with Scoot, the Singapore-owned budget airline.

 

Now if you wish to book a return ticket with Scoot for travel in July the fare quoted online is THB31,400.

 

Hardly a budget rate anymore!

 

According to online booking system Kayak the cheapest flights out of London to Bangkok were flying with Thai Airways and ITA Airways at THB44,663. https://www.kayak.co.th/flights/

 

And the total trip each way with various stops is 25 hours, not exactly relaxing, more like an endurance test.

In the past, I have flown with Qatar Airways to London via Doha for around Thb25,000.

 

On their website the lowest return fare offered in July was THB56,340.

 

Fares in Vietnam rise by the hour

 

Airfares have risen in the last several months, with customers reporting hikes within hours, as summer travel demand booms after two years of Covid-19.

 

A media representative for budget airline Vietjet said fuel accounts for around 40 percent of operating costs. When fuel prices crossed $100 per barrel, airlines' operating costs increased by 50 percent, she added.

International airfares have risen by 25-30 percent, with the HCMC-South Korea and HCMC-San Francisco routes recording prices of VND10-13 million and VND41-45 million, respectively.

The US fares up by 50%

More Americans are also taking to the skies this summer than there are available plane seats, driving up ticket prices as airlines grapple with surging fuel costs, staffing challenges and smaller fleets.

Airfares at American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines — the three largest domestic carriers — shot up nearly 50% for the week ending May 23 compared to a year ago, according to an analysis by Cowen, a financial services firm.

It is also expensive to go by road for domestic trips, with petrol at an all time high, so perhaps the answer is to head for the railway stations.

If you like an adventure, I suppose you could have flown to Hanoi and got a train to Kunming and then taken the trans-Siberian express to Moscow and trains to London.

One problem here….the trains are not running through Russia for obvious reasons.

So maybe you will need to book a slow boat to Europe instead.