Phuket lays on Suvarnabhumi bus service for stranded sandbox tourists

[Soidog]

1 hour ago, vlad said:

Will the bus passengers be given a tuck box or will they have to pay En route for a bit of grub and water, any washing facilities or will you be arriving in Swampy smelling like a Soi Dog and still wearing the same gear you left Phuket in. 

Hey, feelings man! Smelling like a Soi dog indeed

[NB1986]

Thailand is losing its credibility amongst the top tourist destinations, you cannot allow people from other provinces that are not tested and quarantined as tourists come to Phuket. Unfortunately Thailand is not safe destination right now. 

[Alavan]

2 hours ago, Martin said:

I read elsewhere that the bus will leave Phuket at 5am, arriving at Suvarnibhumi airport at 9pm. If that's true it's just another crazy decision. Chances are the passengers will have to kip on airport seats for the night, or face the problem of trying to book a nights stay in a nearby hotel. But how to do that?

Again it's just designed as a money grab. A passenger would need to have paid for the hotel night in Phuket and check out very early. Then likely pay for another night's stay in Bangkok. Could have avoided that if the bus left in the evening, arriving Bangkok in the morning. 

What a s**tbox. 

I think one of the busiest flights was the Thai flight HKTBKK at 2040 as that gave a good connection to most flights to Europe around midnight.
Bur 12-14 hours on a bus is no fun.

[Nipral]

Moronic sort-of-military-government organisation ! Fortunately Phuket is deserted, and the buses will

stay where they are !

[PapayaBokBok]

Escape from the Sandbox!

 

Edited August 4, 2021 by PapayaBokBok

[Leo]

Basically, "You shouldn't have gone to Phuket in the first place".

[Brooks]

16 hours ago, Alavan said:

I think one of the busiest flights was the Thai flight HKTBKK at 2040 as that gave a good connection to most flights to Europe around midnight.
Bur 12-14 hours on a bus is no fun.

I took this bus on July 25.  It was a long, but pleasant trip.  Departed at 5:00am and arrived at airport at 7:30 pm.  Had 4 stops to eat and stretch.  Passengers limited so ample space.  The cost was 1500 Bahts.

[Anhlam78]

So these so called Sandbox tourist, that will go to Bangkok Survunibhumi Airport and do what? 

Are they actual foreign tourist or just Thai returnees? 

My money is on the obvious. Sandbox tourist leave normal way of Phuket to their home countries. Returnees on bus to their home country to Survunibhumi Airport. 

When will the normal thai people and expats stand up and be heard. 

ROMPER ROOM, CAPTAIN KANGEROO OR EVEN THE THREE STOOGES TAKE A BACK SEAT TO THIS MODERN DAY LEADERSHIP. 

[Benroon]

Wait until later today when the U.K. puts Thailand on the red list and all U.K. tourists will have 72 hours max to get back to the U.K. or face £1750 quarantine each !! 

More buses please (Thai airways have also shamefully put their prices up for this weekend in anticipation) 

[vlad]

If Thai Airways have put there fare's up, it just go's to show how greed is high on the list instead of damage limitation to this struggling national carrier and it sends a bad message that they can all rip people off.

[Benroon]

2 hours ago, Benroon said:

Wait until later today when the U.K. puts Thailand on the red list and all U.K. tourists will have 72 hours max to get back to the U.K. or face £1750 quarantine each !! 

More buses please (Thai airways have also shamefully put their prices up for this weekend in anticipation) 

Well, Thailand has escaped the red list despite meeting the UK criteria for going Red !! Thrilled to see it as I need to get back for a short while. Oh and the UK government has just put the scandalous £1750 quarantine fee UP to £2,285 !

Are the thais now having to dish out backhanders ? 

 

[Soidog]

6 hours ago, Brooks said:

I took this bus on July 25.  It was a long, but pleasant trip.  Departed at 5:00am and arrived at airport at 7:30 pm.  Had 4 stops to eat and stretch.  Passengers limited so ample space.  The cost was 1500 Bahts.

I guess no worse than a flight from Europe to Thailand in terms of hours. Seats probably more comfortable than economy class and you get to stop and get out of the bus. The rub is that all the time you are on the bus, you know you could have done it in a little over an hour. On a plane, you have no quicker alternative. 

[JamesR]

This is the reason I am not there now, because the situation can change at anytime.

I was in Phuket last year for seven months from January until the end of August.

I think it started off where we could move around the island as long as we wore masks, that was OK.

Then there was a curfew which I think was 11pm until 4am (something like that).

Beaches closed.

Then the closing of bars etc and no alcohol sales so it was a quick drive to Makro to buy ten cases of beer.

Then when we were closed down to our own areas so I could not get to Makro about 3 kms away and was funnily enough stopped from leaving my area by an English policeman, so I had to turn back and use the very crowded Tesco express as no one else could leave the area. Dangerous as we were all packed together. 

The local airport was closed but luckily we were given free visa extensions of about three months at a time.

I developed an eye infection and had to queue up and get a special pass to go the the hospital outside of my area.

I drove though Patong sometime around July, it was completely deserted with most things closed, past Katha and Karon beaches, past Rawai beach and I think I saw about five farangs during the whole 50km drive.

So I have cancelled my plans to return to Phuket at the moment as it will get worse seeing as there are hardly any vaccines to distribute to make Thailand safe.

We are completely free now in England and have been for weeks, it is summer and warm so why would I want to go and put myself in 'jail' in Phuket at the moment?

 

[BJoe]

Travel to a locked down Bangkok. All interested in the “successful” Phuket Sand hoax should take note.

[TigerJoe]

Who came up with the I in Suvarnabhumi?

it's Suvarnabhum. Without the I .

[gummy]

58 minutes ago, TigerJoe said:

Who came up with the I in Suvarnabhumi?

it's Suvarnabhum. Without the I .

Perhaps they did and know how to spell their airports name correctly whereas you don't appear to. Or is their own website now misspelling it ?

https://suvarnabhumi.airportthai.co.th/

[King Cotton]

1 hour ago, TigerJoe said:

it's Suvarnabhum. Without the I .

Yes? . . . try telling Wiki that

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suvarnabhumi_Airport

There is a Suvarnabhum restaurant though.

 

[gummy]

4 minutes ago, King Cotton said:

Yes? . . . try telling Wiki that

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suvarnabhumi_Airport

There is a Suvarnabhum restaurant though.

But it is about the bus service to the airport not to the restaurant 

( Sorry couldn't resists it )

[Stonker]

On 8/5/2021 at 9:09 AM, Brooks said:

I took this bus on July 25.  It was a long, but pleasant trip.  Departed at 5:00am and arrived at airport at 7:30 pm.  Had 4 stops to eat and stretch.  Passengers limited so ample space.  The cost was 1500 Bahts.

So was it worth coming?

 

(serious question )

[Stonker]

19 hours ago, BJoe said:

Travel to a locked down Bangkok. All interested in the “successful” Phuket Sand hoax should take note.

No, it's specifically travel to Suvarnabhumi for an outward flight only, not an escape from Phuket.

[EdwardV]

41 minutes ago, Stonker said:

No, it's specifically travel to Suvarnabhumi for an outward flight only, not an escape from Phuket.

I think that is actually worse. 

[Leeshard]

“…..sandbox visitors who had plans to visit elsewhere in Thailand after their 14 days on Phuket now find themselves stuck.”  Yes they do but this bus to Suvarnabhumi doesn’t help them. They’re still stuck. There are no public interprovincial services to anywhere else in Thailand and even if they hired a car and drove to another province they’d have to quarantine for another 14 days upon arrival since they’d be coming from a ‘deep red’ maximum infection zone. Phuket is no longer a springboard for those wanting to visit other parts of Thailand which reduces it attractiveness very considerably.

[Jannot]

I don't see how this helps people who want to go elsewhere in Thailand. It looks like they want to trap people in Puket and not give acess to rest of Thailand.. I agree with keeping people safe and need certain restrictions however this stinks of something else.

[gummy]

48 minutes ago, Jannot said:

I don't see how this helps people who want to go elsewhere in Thailand. It looks like they want to trap people in Puket and not give acess to rest of Thailand.. I agree with keeping people safe and need certain restrictions however this stinks of something else.

Yes its called money

[ratzig]

On 8/5/2021 at 9:09 AM, Brooks said:

I took this bus on July 25.  It was a long, but pleasant trip.  Departed at 5:00am and arrived at airport at 7:30 pm.  Had 4 stops to eat and stretch.  Passengers limited so ample space.  The cost was 1500 Bahts.

Was it a 3 seater row or 4 seater row, VIP bus?