Bus service between Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi launched

"Since more low-cost airlines will use Don Mueang as their base, BMTA will prepare for the increasing number of passengers between the two airports," said BMTA Deputy Director for Bus Operation Department Narade Boonpiam. At present the No.555 bus, which has a terminus station at Talat Rangsit, passes Don Mueang at Vibhavadi Rangsit Road before taking the motorway at Rama XI entrance to Suvarnabhumi. Starting on Aug 1, the bus will stop inside Don Mueang to drop passengers at the arrival hall on the ground floor of Terminal 1, said Mr Narade. BMTA has an agreement with the Airports of Thailand (AoT) to facilitate passengers who want to get off at Don Mueang for connecting flights. For the return leg, passengers can also get the bus at Terminal 1 to go to Suvarnabhumi. BMTA has about 15 buses for the service which operates daily during 4am-10pm. The estimated travel time is 90 minutes, excluding waiting time for the bus which might be 15-30 minutes depending on traffic. Unfortunately, the bus isn't designed for passengers with large luggage. BMTA operates the service with a normal yellow air-conditioned bus. It plans to increase the number of buses to 20 within the next 30 days. An alternative for passengers commuting between the two airports is to take the privately-run No.554 bus plying the Talat Rangsit-Don Muang-Ram Intra expressway-Suvarnabhumi Airport route. However, AoT does not allow the 554 and 555 buses to pick up passengers directly at the arrival hall of Suvarnabhumi. They can only send passengers. Those who want to get the public bus to Don Mueang must take an airport shuttle bus which takes about 20 minutes between the airport terminal and the bus station. The estimated waiting time for a shuttle bus is 10 minutes. The total travel time for a passenger who wants to take a public bus from Suvarnabhumi to Don Mueang is about two hours, excluding traffic. According to AoT, passengers also have an alternative by hopping on a public van available at Gate 8 on the first floor from 6am-6pm. However, the van will not get inside Don Mueang airport. It only stops at the bus stop at the opposite side. Mice app for Pattaya Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) has introduced a mobile app to promote meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (Mice) in Pattaya. Called D-Mice@Pattaya, the app features content concerning hotel facilities and a search service. It categorises hotels in Pattaya into six themes _ adventure, history, green, experiential, CSR and luxury. A click on each theme will present a list of hotels, meeting facilities, suitable times to hold meetings and also promotions. TCEB also plans to introduce the D-Mice app for Chiang Mai. To download the app, visit www.meetinginthailand.com/mobile/download. Airlines update - AirAsia X has introduced Samsung Galaxy Tab as its new inflight entertainment. The service is available on flights from Kuala Lumpur to 11 destinations including major cities in Australia, Japan, Korea, China and Taiwan. Through the new tool, passengers will be able to watch movies and TV programmes as well as enjoy music, games and digital magazine content. The service fee is about 350 baht per trip. "The Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 will be a great change to our previous portable e-player. It is also considerably lighter than our previous e-player which cost efficiently reduces the weight on board our flights," said AirAsia X CEO Azran Osman-Rani. A long-life battery for up to 10 hours is also available for rent onboard, he added. - Indonesian low-cost carrier Mandala Airlines will launch its third international route from Jakarta to Bangkok next month. It will offer daily flight by using an Airbus A320 fleet. Mandala Airlines was founded in 1969 by the Indonesian military and privatised in 2006. However, the service was halted in January 2011 due to a huge debt. After business restructuring, Mandala Airlines resumed flights in April this year and has Singapore's Tiger Airways as a new shareholder who also shares its business model of operation. At present, Mandala Airlines offers services from Jakarta to Medan in north Sumatra, Medan-Singapore and Jakarta-Kuala Lumpur The service to Bangkok will start on Aug 10. - Etihad Airways will launch daily flights to Ho Chi Minh next year. The new flights will serve the growing demand from Vietnam's rapidly expanding economy and will suport commercial ties between Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and in particular Abu Dhabi, according to the airline. UAE investment in Vietnam now stands at more than US$3 billion and two-way trade revenue is approximately $1.3 billion. Flights between Abu Dhabi and Ho Chi Minh City will begin in October 2013 and will be served by a two-class A330-200 aircraft. It will offer a total 3,668 seats per week. Ho Chi Minh will be the airline's sixth destination after Bangkok, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila and Singapore. Hotels update - Marriott International has introduced the "Li Yu" welcome programme to customise room amenities and services for Chinese travellers. Li Yu means "Serve with Courtesy" in Mandarin and the programme will start from guest's reservation to check-out service. For example, the hotel reservation confirmation letter or email will be printed in Chinese characters. When checking in, there will be Mandarin-speaking staff while Chinese cuisine and delicacies will be featured as standard items in restaurants as well as on in-room dining menus. TV will also have Chinese-language programmes while a choice of Chinese newspapers and in-room Chinese tea will be available. In addition, rooms and floor numbers with 6 or 8 will be reserved for Chinese guests as these are considered auspicious. Marriott International's Li Yu programme will be available at all JW Marriott, Renaissance, Marriott and Courtyard hotels in Asia early next year. - Outrigger Hotels and Resorts has acquired Laguna Beach Resort in Bang Tao Bay in Phuket. The hotel features 252 rooms, meeting facilities, tennis courts, a spa and Water Park including waterfalls, a water slide, jacuzzi, swimming pools and a scuba pool. The resort is now closed for a major renovation and will open early next year, according to Outrigger Enterprises Group Asia-Pacific Managing Director Darren Edmonstone. The Laguna Beach Resort is one of nine hotels within the 1,000-acre Laguna Phuket integrated resort which offers a 3km sandy beach, golf club, spas, restaurants as well as a shopping centre and large lagoons. - Banyan Tree Lang Co will open in Vietnam on Nov 1. The hotel will be the first Banyan Tree in the country. It is located on Canh Duong beach which is known as the most beautiful beach in Thua Thien Hue province and about 60km from Hue. The five-star resort will feature 32 lagoon villas with a size at 131m2 each and 17 beach villas with 124 m2 in size. Each villa has one bedroom and a plunge pool. Other facilities include a fitness centre, a spa, a golf club, a meeting room for 12 people and restaurants. The project investment is US$200 million (around 9 billion baht). From bangkokpost