A poster on GB’s forum recently requested information for short trips to Hong Kong and Taipei. I made a couple of posts. Since I don’t agree with multiple postings on different Boards, the threads are available here for anyone with any interest.

 

Hong Kong (9^th post)

http://gaybuttonthai.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4272&start=0#p42406

 

Taipei

http://gaybuttonthai.com/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=4272&start=10#p42444

Bad news for those wishing comfortable and inexpensive business class travel between BKK and Taipei. From late March, KLM is stopping its daily 747-400 flight. Thereafter it will fly non-stop between Amsterdam and Taipei. At just over Bt. 14,000, the Taipei flight was a bargain.

KLM’s withdrawal of its BKK/Taipei route is one of the last of those cheap flights offered by European airlines on what were extension legs of their Europe/BKK flights. Within the last half dozen years, Finnair to HKG and Singapore, Air France to Hanoi, and SAS to Singapore have all been axed. The only one left seems to be Lufthansa to Kuala Lumpur.

 

One slight consolation is that the Middle Eastern airlines have started to step in with prices lower than the full-service Asian carriers. Emirates has its daily A380 to HKG, and Qatar now has services to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh with is award winning business class. – although the low cost carriers obviously remain the cheapest source of flights.

 

Having taken the KLM Taipei flight several times, its economy class was usually very full - with passengers mostly originating in BKK - whilst business class would often be less than 50%. Air Asia cancelled its Taipei BKK/Taipei route last year. Perhaps it will now re-open it – though being no fan of Air Asia, I hope another carrier takes it up!