Thai Smiles. Photo / Supplied
Neil Evans flies Bangkok to Vientiane, in Laos, with Thai Smiles WE570.
Plane: An Airbus A320-200. Thai Smile is a low-cost regional subsidiary of Thai Airways. They only operate A320s, with 20 in the fleet.
Class:Economy.
Seat: 37H.
Price: You can get return Economy Class tickets for this route from $289.
How full: About half full mainly Thai, Chinese and Lao people with just a few Europeans.
Time: Left on time for a short 1hr 10m flight.
Food and drink: I was surprised to be served with a full lunch comprising a tuna salad (I removed the evil coriander) and a delicious coconut dessert with juice, water and coffee/tea. The meal came in plastic containers in a cardboard box wrapped up nicely in a cloth like a small picnic hamper.
Service: Prompt, efficient and with a Thai smile.
Entertainment: Just an airline magazine written in Thai and English.
Toilets: Didn't need to check but may have needed to if I had eaten the coriander.
Airport experience: Simple check in at Bangkok airport which is easy to navigate. Security required even open sandals to be removed. Despite not beeping through the scanner I was still scanned with a wand. Nice to see a familiar "Coffee Club" franchise near the gate. Had to be bussed from gate to aircraft but no problems with that. Vientiane has a small but new airport, but forget about the shopping here. The visa on arrival is a little confusing as signage is unclear. Fill out the form they give you on the plane but also pick up the form on a table in the arrivals area and then pay US$30 and have a passport photo with you for a visa on arrival.
Bottom line: Would certainly fly again with Thai Smiles.
