Suvarnabhumi International Airport
Flights to Suvarnabhumi Airport
First of all, most people think that Suvarnabhumi International Airport is located in Bangkok but it’s actually not. In fact, the airport is located in Samut Prakarn province which is about 30 kilometers away from Bangkok city center.
However, since Suvarnbhumi Airport is the biggest airport in Thailand and it is the main Bangkok airport, so that is why Suvarnabhumi Airport code is BKK. And it’s also known as Bangkok Airport.
Before the Covid-19 outbreak, the average flight to Suvarnabhumi International Airport was about 1,000 flights a day, which is around 180,000 passengers a day and it could be up to 210,000 a day in high season. This means Suvarnabhumi Airport dealt with a huge number of passengers, around 60 million a year.
How to get from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Bangkok City Center
Currently, there are two main public transport options to get from Suvarnabhumi Airport to central Bangkok and vice versa: Airport Taxi and Airport Rail Link (ARL).
However, before we get to the details, I want to clarify things to you first.
Bangkok has two airports:
- Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) is mainly used for international flights but still has many domestic flights as well. It’s also known as Bangkok Airport.
- Don Mueng Airport (DMK) is mainly used for domestic flights.
Click here to see the Map of Thailand Airports
Option 1: Airport Taxi
It is the most convenient way because it will bring you straight to your hotel. Taxi service is available on the 1st floor that you have to queue up and pay extra for 50 baht surcharge to the taxi driver.
Suvarnabhumi Airport tries to manage and ensure metered taxis will charge you fairly. The queue ticket provides taxi information, for example, driver name & ID, car type, plate number, and contact number of the Ministry of Transport.
Therefore, keep that ticket to yourself, DO NOT give it to the taxi driver. However, in order to confirm this is your queue, you have to show that ticket to the driver. Just show it, but do not hand it.
You can estimate the cost of Taxi metered by traveling distance here in this post “Taxi Fare in Bangkok Thailand”
New Regulation for Bangkok metered taxis
(announced on 17th Nov 2020)
The Transport Ministry has recently announced a particular fee that only applied to metered taxis from/to Bangkok’s two airports (Suvarnabhumi Aiport and Don Mueang Airport).
Passengers that travel to those airports are now subject to a luggage charge. Taxi drivers are allowed to charge passengers between 20-100 baht extra per luggage.
Under the new regulations, below is the charge conditions:
- Charge up to 20 baht for every additional luggage after the first two carry-on luggage.
- Charge up to 20 baht for every luggage that exceeds 26 inches (58 cm) in length, width, or height.
- Charge up to 100 baht for every luggage that exceeds 50 inches (127 cm) in length, width, or height.
- Charge up to 100 baht per piece of sports equipment, such as golf bags, bicycles, surfboards, and musical equipment that exceeds 50 inches (127 cm) in length, width, or height.
However, wheelchairs and other mobility aids are not considered luggage, so the passengers won’t get charged. The first two carry-on luggage mean small bags that less than 26 inches in dimension, such as small backpacks, laptop bags, or handbags, are also free of charge.
In my opinion, the word “up to” (which I translate directly from what it’s stated in the Thai version) makes the rate unclear. For example, taxis might charge you 30, 70 or 100 baht for a large bag.
So, I think you should agree with taxi drivers first on how much the driver will charge extra for your bags to avoid a dispute, or you might consider using Grab instead.
(GrabTaxi pick-up point from Suvarnabhumi Airport is on Floor 4 outer lane, whereas GrabCar is on Floor 4, door 1-10)
In summary, from 2021 onwards, if you travel from/to Suvarnabhumi Airport or Don Mueang Airport by metered taxi, you have to pay: metered + 50 baht surcharge + extra luggage fees.
Option 2: Airport Rail Link (ARL)
Airport Rail Link or ARL is located on the basement of Suvarnabhumi Airport. The train leaves every 12-15 mins and operates from 5:30 AM to 12:00 AM. The train takes about 30 minutes from the first station to the terminus and costs 45 baht.
Phaya Thai station is the terminus, which is an interchange to BTS Skytrain. However, if you want to transfer to MRT Subway, you can get off at Makkasan Interchange Station and walk about 300 meters to the MRT Phetchaburi Station.
Airport Rail Link seems to be the best way to get from and to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport
Some said Bangkok is one of the world’s most congested cities. That is absolutely correct. When I got off work around 6 PM and drove back home, which is in the same direction as heading to Suvarnabhumi Airport, it normally took me 1.5 – 2 hours and could be up to 3 hours on a rainy day. On a bad day, severe traffic could cause you to miss your flight.
Therefore, I recommend using Airport Rail Link (ARL) for traveling back and forth to Suvarnabhumi Airport, especially during Bangkok rush hours (6:30 AM – 8:30 AM and 5:30 PM – 8:30 PM). Using ARL is time and cost-efficient but the only downside is ARL doesn’t offer 24 hours service.
Airport Taxi is still a decent choice because it’s convenient, especially if you have a lot of stuff. However, before you take a taxi, I recommend that you check the traffic on Google Maps.
Car Rental at Suvarnabhumi Airport?
Yes, definitely available. And there are so many choices such as Avis, Chic Car Rent, Budget, Hertz, Sixt, Thai Rent A Car, Thrifty, ASAP, etc.
Therefore, you can search and compare deals on each brand. I normally use Rentalcars.com as it connects to the biggest brands in car hire.
How big is Suvarnabhumi Airport?
Suvarnabhumi Airport is one of the biggest airports in the world. It has a total area of 563,000 sqm. or roughly equal to 3,000 football fields.
With its size, Suvarnabhumi Airport was designed to handle 45 million passengers a year. But as mentioned earlier, there are 60 million people arrive at the airport every year.
Therefore, of course, we have an improvement plan. The second-phase expansion of the airport is expected to be complete in late 2023, increasing its capacity to 60 million passengers per year.
In addition, the electric train project’s extension to connect with Suvarnabhumi Airport is under construction. It is expected to be completed in 2023 as well. The new electric train line will help passengers to back and forth to the airport more conveniently.