What time should we arrive at the airport for a noon flight from Thailand with Thai passports?

Mar 31, 2023
2 years ago
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
Flying out of Thailand with family on Sunday 12.00 pm, what time do we need to be at airport? I've heard something about 4 hours before, which could be difficult as we live in Hua Hin. We all have Thai passports, if this makes a difference.
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TLDR : Answer Summary
For a noon flight from Thailand, arriving at least 3 hours prior is generally advisable, especially when traveling with family. Comments from users highlighted experiences suggesting that arriving 3 to 4 hours early can be beneficial for international flights, considering check-in times and potential queues. Passengers with Thai passports may experience faster processing at immigration.
Jim ******
FFS, just look at your booking conditions!

The amount of inane questions that are being asked on this site that a simple Google search would answer is totally undermining the very REASON for the site!
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
Apt name
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
1 hour would have been enough! We used the automatic gates with our Thai passports, very convenient. Here what a friend posted -
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9216?s=46&t=gGVvahy7JZlAjanJQixSAA&fbclid=IwAR1nBMVOlYgU0pPsfsrOCcZPUdCENwA1SP16gjThpK6RhZQydIitlXMrzUI
Paul *******
@Johnny *****
That report was from February. I left the country about a week ago and while the check in area looked busy, it didn't take that long. I was able to use the priority lane and was through in minutes. I peered down to the arrivals hall while waiting for my flight and noticed it was completely empty.

So I think the high season rush is definitely coming to an end.
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
Thanks for the comments everyone. One more thing, what are the benefits for online check in? I haven't flown internationally for many years so a bit out of touch with the procedure.
Mitchell *******
If you have to check luggage, sometimes it doesn't matter.
Paul *******
@Johnny *****
You skip the main queue.
Kuan ******
I usually arrive between 3-4 hours for my flight because u can never know about Thai road conditions or if u leave anything behind or the queue conditions at airport.

Having said that I note that your flight is at noon on Sunday so if I am you I will do a 3 hour before flight especially if you are bringing along the whole family.

But I m one who likes to relax n not rush to flights so a longer buffer suits me
Terry *********
This was just after check in.
Terry *********
Be safe and get there in plenty of time.
Paul *******
To be safe I suggest at least 8-10 hours before.
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
Thank you for the information
Sam ********
Maybe leave HH at 06:00, and reserve a Fast Track pass to get through immigration quickly?
Mitchell *******
I would get there at 9am at the latest. If the specific airline has multiple flights leaving within 2 hours of each other, then it can get busy at check in. The line up can go from 3 people to 30 in 15 minutes.
Paul *******
@Mitchell ******
The checkin counters don't even open until 3 hours before departure. Let's not be ridiculous here. 2-2.5 hours before is perfectly fine.
Mitchell *******
@Paul ******
, depends. I have checked in for a flight over 3 hours before. The girls were at the counter, so I went up, and they checked me in. I had lounge access, so I could use that time to relax.

But you are right, usually they open 3 hours before, if they don't have flights before yours.
Paul *******
@Mitchell ******
With lounge access, there's definitely an incentive to arrive early.
Mitchell *******
Some airports, it is only 2 hours.
Klaus *********
Which airport?

Arrived and departed on international flights at Don Muang two days ago and there was no waiting time in either direction.
Paul *******
@Klaus ********
Don Muang isn't that busy at the moment.
Mark *********
We flew today with ThainAir/ Air Canada to Tokyo and then Vancouver. Our plane leftv at 7:30 am. We got to the airport just before 5. There was a big lineup at checkin. After that we breezed thru Security and had a good 1.5 hrs to spare. In summary 3 hours would give you a comfortable pace.
Paul *******
@Mark ********
Why didn't you checkin online?
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Paul ******
If you check in online, does that mean you don't have to queue up at the check in? I haven't flown for years.
Paul *******
@Johnny *****
No, you can usually skip the long counter and just go to bag drop
Johnny ******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Paul ******
where do you get the boarding pass?
Paul *******
@Johnny *****
Either you print it online, at a machine (many airports and some airlines don't even have manned check-in counters anymore) or at the bag drop counter.
Mark *********
@Paul ******
We did checkin online, but it would only accept checkin from Thailand to Tokyo and not from Tokyo to Canada. Therefore in order to get Boarding Passes for both and get baggage on the plane, we had to line-up and recheck in to get to Tokyo and to Canada. Such is life!
Paul *******
@Mark ********
That's strange. I would have thought you would receive the other boarding pass at transit in Tokyo.

A better method would have been to fly direct. Air Canada still flies to Bangkok until mid April. It's a seasonal service.
Mark *********
@Paul ******
Nope. Can't check thru to Vancouver w/o new check in. Yes. Great idea. But. Now it is $2,000 return or +$650 from what we paid, I.e. $1350 each return.
Colin **********
Contact your airline and see what time they open the check in desk and plan to be there 30 mins before it opens
Paul *******
@Colin *********
Why not 8 hours before just in case?
Brian ********
I flew to Vietnam on 20 March from BKK. I arrived 4 hours early, as advised by Thai Airway, only to find that check-in opened 3 hours before departure. Check-in and passport control took 30 minutes each, so 1 hour in total to get to the air side. Had I been a Thai passport holder it would have been a lot faster as they had virtually no queues.

My departure time was 11:45 with Viet Air.
Paul *******
@David ****
I see you're not acknowledging anything. Why not arrive 10 hours before departure if you're living in fear of missing your flight? The earlier the better right?
Paul *******
@David ****
It's called smart travel. If you arrive when everyone else does and don't use online checkin, you're setting yourself up for inconvenience and frustration.
David *****
@Paul ******
I see this is a hill you're willing to die on. I will agree to disagree
Paul *******
@David ****
Yeah if you don't do your homework and checkin online. Or you're flying THAI Airways. Other airlines don't face this problem unless it's an Emirates A380.
Paul *******
@Brian *******
What a waste of time. No way I'd arrive 4 hours before departure. Everyone knows the checkin counters don't open until 3 hours before.
David *****
@Paul ******
and yet people line up and you can be number 100 in line...
Paul *******
@David ****
You're better off arriving 2 hours before departure and not having many people in line than 4 hours and waiting an hour to even get looked after.
David *****
@Paul ******
my wife who flew out of there today would disagree
Stuart *********
3 hours ahead would be common for an international flight. Peak times like songkran and such you may want more.
Paul *******
@david Dye not everyone does and those that do can use the bag drop counter.
Paul *******
@Stuart ********
I've never heard of anyone scrambling to catch a flight by arriving 2-3 hours before a flight which is the recommended time. You can do online checkin too. The only airline that has really long checkin lines is THAI Airways as they're the only one with many departures around the same time. Other airlines usually have just one flight at a time.
Stuart *********
@Paul ******
read the visa/tourist forums. You see horror stories of some peoples experiences. Perhaps never happened to you but has happened to others.
Paul *******
@Stuart ********
The check-in counter opens 3 hours before. There's literally nothing that you can do if you arrive more than 3 hours before.

Online check-in or buying a VIP Pass (if available) are methods that can save a lot of time.
David *****
@Paul ******
you still need to drop-off bags
Paul *******
@Stuart ********
Why? The checkin counters don't even open until 3 hours before the flight. What are you going to do before that? Take some pictures of the departure hall?
Stuart *********
@Paul ******
fine. Usually you don’t need so much time but on the odd occasion you do. Would you want to be scrambling to get to the gate on time because there’s 300 people in front of you or take a leisurely stroll through the duty free shops and stuff, catch a coffee or meal or such. Up to you. You can gamble that won’t happen to you. You can assume that no one has ever needed 3 hours to get a flight or you can relax and know you’re going to make it in time. Doesn’t matter to me what way you think. The OP asked a question. I answered. If you think that you are so worldly wise that your answer is better than so be it. I can’t change your opinion.
Paul *******
@Stuart ********
At the prices they charge? No way I'd ever eat at the airport. Most people just head straight for the gate (unless they have lounge access). Besides, with most airlines you'll be getting a meal on the plane. Eating a meal at the airport just makes you bloated.
Stuart *********
@Paul ******
I don’t know if you’ve ever eaten on a plane but I’d prefer to chose my meal choice beforehand rather than suffer what they offer on a plane. I don’t travel first class, nor business so often the choice is shite or not available. Not grumbling about the option just saying a meal beforehand works for me. Each to their own.
Paul *******
@Stuart ********
I eat every meal on the plane and they're mostly perfectly fine. THAI Airways, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, Qantas and many others, they all serve quite good meals. Vietnam Airlines, just so-so but for such a short flight, might as well wait until I'm in Saigon or Hanoi and eat there.

Besides, I've already paid for my meal as part of the flight (they come included in the airfare), so spending US$20 on a sandwich at the airport doesn't appeal to me.

I agree, to each their own, but I've never known anyone to eat at the airport, except with friends staying behind in the public area, which is done more as a gesture of friendship than because you're hungry.
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