New Bangkok Airport
Now Aiming For July 2006 Opening

Unexpected political hurdles have forced a delay in the opening of Bangkok's new Suvarnabhumi Airport, from September 2005 to July 2006.

However, that is only a minor delay for a project that has been in the planning stages since the 1960s but has come closer than ever to completion under the administration of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The airport will give new impetus to the role of Bangkok and Thailand as an Asian aviation hub. Full-fledged commercial operations will start only after completion of all the tests and securing the necessary licensing and certification approvals from the international aviation regulatory authorities.

Named Suvarnabhumi (meaning "Golden Land") by His Majesty the King, the new airport is expected to be the most modern in Asia. The Thai government has prioritised it as a "national agenda" item of strategic importance to the future economic and transportation development of the country.

Of the 11.6 million arrivals to Thailand in 2004, a total of 8.2 million (or about 70.6%) came through Bangkok. Many of them use the Thai capital as the gateway for taking onward flights to numerous other destinations throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

In the initial stage, Suvarnabhumi Airport will be able to handle up to 45 million passengers annually based on two parallel runways with a total capacity of 76 flights per hour. Upon full completion of all the phases, the airport will have four runways and a capacity of 100 million passengers.

The entire airport will occupy a total area of 8,000 acres, making it five times larger than the present airport at Don Muang. At 563,000 square metres, the passenger terminal will be the world's largest single building structure.

The total investment cost is estimated at 155 billion baht, out of which 125 billion baht is the responsibility of NBIA while the remaining 30 billion baht will come from public and private sector sources.

Loans amounting to 73 billion baht (58.4% of the total investment) have been sourced from Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and another two billion baht (1.67%) from other financial institutions.

Roughly 25 kms. from downtown Bangkok, the expected travel time by road is around 40 minutes. A number of roads are being constructed all around the airport to boost accessibility from various sides and make travel to the new airport easier and quicker.

The Thai cabinet also has approved a 30 billion baht (US$769.23 million) budget for a 28-km. overhead rail link with downtown Bangkok which will cut travelling time to only 15 minutes.

There is also a plan to connect Suvarnabhumi with the existing airport at Don Muang which will continue to be used for charters as well as other forms of aviation.

Bangkok's geographical location at the crossroads of South, Southeast and Northeast Asia has been one of the major reasons for the growth in air transportation.

In the 1970s, when the age of wide-body aircraft ushered in the age of mass transportation, the first point in Southeast Asia to which these large aircraft like the DC-10 and Boeing 747 could fly non-stop from any point in Europe with a full load in both directions all year was Bangkok.

Competing hubs like Singapore and Hong Kong could be reached as well, but with payload restrictions due to the headwinds in the critical winter season.

The fact that Bangkok was more profitable as a route made it a first-choice for selection by many airlines. That was one of the major reasons why tourism took off to such a great extent by opening up massive opportunities for tourism from Europe to Asia as well as from Europe to Australia via Bangkok.

Over the years, the present airport at Don Muang has been expanded in bits and pieces to cater to the growth. However, it is seen to be reaching saturation point in terms of handling capacity as well as availability of space for further expansion. Hence, the Thaksin government decided to push ahead with the development of Suvarnabhumi.

Certainly, Bangkok's urban development will also shift in direction.

The Bangkok International Airport at Don Muang is to the north of Bangkok while Suvarnabhumi is to the West. It is also one of the few airports in the world where the highways to reach it have been built before the airport itself.

Suvarnabhumi Airport will be linked by highways to Pattaya and the entire Eastern Seaboard industrial area, providing a strong multi-modal link with that part of the world.

The deep sea port of Laem Chabang will be only about 100 kms. away. A cruise centre being developed at the port will help Thailand develop cruise-air packages and boost this lucrative form of travel.

The entire area is bursting with valuable resources, natural and cultural assets. Over time, it will attract more hotels, golf courses, shopping malls and other tourist attractions to cater to transit passengers.

Whilst 2005 has been a challenging year for everyone in Thailand's tourism industry, at Starwood Hotels and Resorts, we initially saw a slow down of business to our three Bangkok properties in the first quarter, resulting from reduced through traffic to affected southern beach resorts. However, business picked up for our trio of city hotels and they have performed well this year, whilst our Krabi and Phuket properties have been much slower to return to pre-tsunami business levels. Our recently opened Sheraton Pattaya brings good high-quality accommodation to an area that has been short in 5-star international hotel chains. There will continue to be a lot of interest in Pattaya next year as we see further development of the city and improved accessibility when the new Bangkok airport opens.

We are forecasting our business in 2006 to return to 2004 levels and better, although we expect the first quarter to be somewhat slower than traditionally in the south, as Phuket and Krabi continue to rebuild their business.

Wayne Buckingham
Regional General Manager
Starwood Hotels & Resorts

Chiang Mai is emerging as a new high-end destination. Well-known hotel brands, along with recognition by Travel & Leisure Magazine naming Bangkok and Chiang Mai as the top two Asian cities to visit, have helped increase international exposure.

Internationally branded hotels are opening over 1,400 rooms in Chiang Mai within the next two years. Access is increasing with direct flights from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei and hopefully soon, a return of Hong Kong and Tokyo direct flights with THAI. The Night Safari and the International Horticultural Exposition for His Majesty the King will also stimulate the market in a positive way. The north of Thailand is being seen as a destination in itself, with many people fascinated by the Lanna heritage, the scenic beauty and warmth of its people.

Andrew W. Harrison
General Manager
Four Seasons Resort Chiang Mai