It seems like the 22hr flight is just a bit too much. Don't know if I will go nuts being on a plane so long. Don't want to pay a fortune for non-stop. Has anyone flown from Seattle to Bangkok? Please tell me your experiences and offer any advice in general. I'm getting overwhelmed with the planning stuff.

Well, Thai Air doesn't fly from Sea Tac because it doesn't. [comment deleted]

If you're feeling overwhelmed by travel planning, then enlist the help of a travel agent who will help you sort out all the options.

A 22 hour trip isn't that bad. Every single Australian who makes it to Europe survives longer trips than that. It's boring and annoying and a pain in the neck, but hey, we do it. The thought of doing it is a lot worse than actually doing it. And trust me - on a trip that long you'll be thankful for every stopover you have!

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I've never flown overseas alone as an adult so I'm a total novice as far as knowing much about the various airlines and really pretty much anything that has to do with travel abroad. I truly want to know if anyone knows why Thai Air doesn't fly from Sea-Tac. I've looked on a couple of online places for flights so far and it looks like only China Air and Delta fly out of Sea Tac.

I can't explain exactly why they do not fly but maybe I can give some insight regarding routes.

Routes are determined by governments and airlines bid on the routes. So there are limits to the routes. In addition, air carriers look to keep down costs so a carriers will only want routes that they know they can fill.

There is no direct route from Seattle-Bangkok because it is too far to fly non-stop. A plane can not make that distance without needing to refuel. It is only recently that Boeing created a plane that can go directly from LA to Singapore. That was a major breakthrough. Bangkok is even further.

To get to Bangkok, you have to fly first to a location in Asia such as Tokyo, Taipai or Singapore and then switch planes. There does not look to be a direct flight from the US. Usually the route to these locations are owned by airlines associated with the country or a US carrier. Because the flights are limited, the cost may be higher. It just depends upon the traffic, amount of interest, etc.

Thai used to have a route but I think it was probably too costly for them and there was not a large enough demand so they dropped the route. I looked at Expedia and I see the China and Delta as the lowest options. I did also see EVA, Korea Air, United, etc. All also having flights that changed in Asia.

You will have to change somewhere. You will need to decide what are the highest priorities for you on choosing a flight, cost, length of flight, carrier, city you change planes, arrival time.

I also strongly recommend that you check with a travel agent. They can sometimes find you an option that doesn't come up on web searched. For example, I'm going to Australia in September. Qantas doesn't fly out of Seattle so I know I have to fly somewhere else to get either Qantas or another carrier to Sydney. I thought I'd have to go to LA and then transfer to a 13 hour flight to Sydney. I called my travel agent (Elizabeth Holmes Travel) and they found a flight instead from Seattle to Honolulu and then to Sydney on Hawaiian Air. It turned out to be more convenient and less expensive than what the flights I assumed I would take through LA.

Wow! Thank you so much Marta! This is exactly the kind of information I was seeking. You've led me to more of an understanding of it all and I appreciate it. I have never used a travel agent before - would you mind sharing with me what the costs involved are? Cost is an issue and I don't want to pay more than what I would on Expedia. Also, would you mind sharing the information for your travel agent since you aren't too far from me?
Thank you again!

I use Elizabeth Holmes Travel. They are located in Fremont. I don't have a specific agent since I only purchase air tickets through them. The agent that answers the phone will take care of your booking and give you an immediate quote on the airfare. I usually do web research using Expedia or Orbitz to know what my options and prices are before calling.

I paid $60 per ticket for them to process my tickets. This fee may vary depending upon the agency they use to get the tickets. They have access to consolidators in addition to airline systems and other suppliers.

My total price usually is usually close to or less than what I would get from Expedia. To me the biggest advantage is they know what are the best ways to travel from Seattle so they can find you a flight that is a good option.

When you get a quote, make certain it includes all taxes and ask if there are any additional costs. Also, it is important to know the cancellation fees. Often the lowest fares come with steep costs if you need to change or cancel.

It can be scary when you do your first international trip alone. It is a big expense and a lot of new experiences. Fortunately the web is a great resource and you can prepare for the trip.

Thanks for taking the time to give me your words of wisdom! I will definately check out that travel agency.
BTW - I checked out your africa photo's on your siggy quickly (want to take more time to really look at everything) and wow! Absolutely breathtaking! The elephants - words cannot describe. Thank you for sharing those photo's. Just beautiful!

You are so welcome. And thank you so much for the compliments. Africa was a wonderful experience and I am so glad I can share it.

Good luck on your trip planning.

quote:

Originally posted by Marta:
There is no direct route from Seattle-Bangkok because it is too far to fly non-stop. A plane can not make that distance without needing to refuel. It is only recently that Boeing created a plane that can go directly from LA to Singapore. That was a major breakthrough. Bangkok is even further.

The above is incorrect. Thai Airways flys two nonstops from USA to BKK - one from JFK and one from LAX. These are flights that take about 16-17 hours. I have flown both. Seattle is a shorter great circle route than either LAX or JFK.
What is a great circle route you ask? It is the shortest distance between two point on a sphere.This means the flight from JFK does not go east or west but north-south (over the north pole). The LAX fight goes mostly northwest-southeast (in fact passing SEA) - not quite into the polar regions but very far north near Alaska and thence to Japan, Korea, Philippines China.
Thai Air makes its decisions (as any airline) based on sound business practices. There would not be enough traffic IMHO that warrants a Thai flight out of Seattle. As Marta also points out air routes are subject to international agreements between countries.

As far as cost the USA-Thailand flights are about $1050 in coach (with advance booking). A good option is to fly to LAX from Seattle on a discount airline then take Thai Air. The other option as you are finding out is fly connecting flights from SEA to for example Japan, Korea or China and then to BKK. BTW you will spend over 17 hours of actual flying time on these connecting flights because you are not close to a great circle on those connecting flights.
Another BTW - Bangkok is closer to locations in the USA (8,260 miles from Lax) than Singapore(8,771 miles from Lax) (because of the great circle routing).
Here is a chart of the world's longest non-stop regularly scheduled flights.
It's a loooooooooooooooong trip!
I think Australian flights are not listed because they stop to refuel making them direct flights but not nonstop flights.

Thanks! I think better get an atlas. I really do appreciate the clarification. I saw that Thai had a LA flight but missed getting information about the flight.

See Cassie, that's another good reason to use a travel agent. You just might get incorrect information on the web.

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Thank you both very much for broadening my horizons! Everything about travel fascinates me. It's all about the journey!
I will have to look into that option of flying to LA then taking Thai Air.
And thanks for the link. Interesting!