Airports in Bangkok: Suvarnabhumi (BKK) & Don Mueang (DMK)

Bangkok is one destination which draws in tourists all around the year. Bangkok is fascinating with all the beautiful sights, nightlife and activities that one gets to do here. However, travelling can always be nerve-wracking. Especially if it is your first visit here, you might tend to be unclear about the airports in Bangkok and their distance to the city main points. In order to make your experience a little easy and to provide you with a clear picture of your travel to this teeming metro city, here is the list of airports along with all the details required to make it an easy, convenient and a hassle-free journey.

There are two main airports in Bangkok -

1. Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK)
2. Don Mueang Airport (DMK)

1. Suvarnabhumi International Airport

The airports' name Suvarnabhumi is a traditional name meaning ‘The Golden Land’. The newly opened airport in Bangkok (opened in 2006) is the city's largest airport handling almost all international, long haul flights as well as a large number of domestic flights. It is Thailand’s as well as Asia’s busiest airport taking into consideration the number of tourists visiting Bangkok.

Operating Airlines: British Airways, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific, Delta Air Lines, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Japan Airlines, Air China, Air France, ANA, Bangkok Airways and Lufthansa. It has one domestic arrival zone and two international arrival areas.

Distance and Transport
Distance to Bangkok city: 30 kilometres
1. Highway Link and Rail Route
- Airport rail link: There is a train scheduled every 15 minutes. It takes around 20 minutes to get into the city. It is the fastest mode of transport.
- Taxi: The fair is a little more expensive than the rail link. But there is an additional expressway toll cost which you may have to bear.
2. Shuttle Bus: It takes you to the public bus transportation stop from where you can board a bus to the city. It takes about an hour with this transportation.

Services and Facilities

1. Vat office: A VAT refund office plying 24/7 is open all throughout the day in the departure section to help passengers. For travellers who have purchased goods more than worth 2000 BAHT while holidaying in Bangkok, there is an option of claiming VAT in exchange for the total invoice and Vat refund application. For this, all assistance is available at the airport.

2. Money Exchange, ATM, SIM & WIFI: Bank branches offering foreign currency exchange are also available in the airport. ATM machines of a few banks are also installed at the airport. Free Cell phone SIM cards of the biggest telephone carriers are available on Level 2 of the airport for those who want to make calls and access the internet at a more economical cost.

3. Car rentals: For those holding international driving licenses, car rentals are available to avail cars to any place you like from the airport. This facility is available on level 2 of the terminal for traveller’s convenience.

4. Hotels: For those transiting in Bangkok or need a place to stay during a layover, there is a hotel facility also available at the airport. Two hotels- one Novotel Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport is a luxurious hotel offering a great selection of rooms as well as all the high-end amenities for guests like a spa, swimming pool and more. The other being a small hotel- Louis’ Tavern Transit Hotel which is placed in the international departure area on the fourth floor. If one is staying for six or more hours, then you can buy a room.

5. Food & Beverage: The third and fourth floor of the airport holds a variety of restaurants to dine and drink. There are a lot of eatery joints which will leave you spoilt for choice. And if not here, there are fast food joints stationed near the Airport Rail Link Station.

Last-Minute Shopping

Duty free stores at suvarnabhumi airpot bangkok — Source

In case of last-minute shopping or transit browsing, there are a lot of shops available at this massive airport in Bangkok. There is a huge duty free store area called King Power Duty Free at duty free prices. Branded stores like Bvlgari, Swarovski, Cartier, Hugo Boss and as well as other shopping outlets and boutiques are available here. Liquor and alcohol are also available at the duty-free shop at a much lesser cost than other stores in Bangkok.

Other souvenir stores, accessory shops for both men and women and pharmaceutical stores are also available after the immigration section.

2. Don Mueang International Airport

The oldest running airport in Bangkok closed down with the opening of Suvarnabhumi international airport but it reopened soon after. It is smaller in size as compared to Suvarnabhumi. It was required due to the heavy inflow of tourists into the city. Thus, it serves quite a number of international and domestic flight inputs ever since it opened again.

Operating Airlines: AirAsia, Nok Air, Thai Lion Air are the airlines using Don Mueang on a very regular basis. Most of the low-cost airlines fly into this airport. There is a large volume of domestic inflow of flights. Most of the private jets are stationed and fly into Don Mueang. About fifteen airlines in total use this airport.

Distance and transport
Distance from Bangkok City: 25 kilometres (40-minute drive from the airport)
1. Rail Link: 500 meters away from the airport and is the cheapest option to commute. Taking a train to the city centre station which is Hua Lamphong from Don Mueang Train station takes about an hour to reach. It may be economical but not the best option as the trains are usually very crowded and carrying some luggage along will just add further to the discomfort.
2. Shuttle Bus: Take a shuttle bus to Mo Chit Skytrain Station which takes twenty minutes to reach and then take a train to the central railway station. It would maximum cost a 100 BAHT via bus.
3. Taxi: It is the most expensive as it includes additional expressway costs but it is the easiest option as it takes you directly to your hotel or destination and you would not have to travel with any sort of hassle.

Services and Facilities

1. ATM’S, currency exchange, and SIM card availability: One can find different bank ATM’s for traveller’s convenience. There are foreign exchange booths available as well as SIM cards. These kiosks are available between terminal 7 to 11 and one will be guided by the airport authorities in case of requirements of any of these.

2. Car rentals: Rentals can be picked up from inside the arrival areas in the terminal only by those bearing an international driving license.

3. Shopping: The King power duty-free shop is available at Don Mueang as well. The variety of shops are lesser then Suvarnabhumi. One can also buy liquor, tobacco, and wine from the duty-free shop too.

4. Hotels: There is one hotel which is available in the airport vicinity is the Amari Don Muang Hotel which is connected by an air-conditioned walkway. It is a four-star hotel with great rooms and luxurious amenities like a gym, a swimming pool for the people checking-in.

5. Food and beverages: There are fast food outlets like Burger King, Fuji, Subway and Starbucks, bet you wouldn’t need anything more. These outlets are located inside the terminal and can be accessed at any point in time.

Difference between Suvarnabhumi International Airport and Don Mueang International Airport

Suvarnabhumi International Aiport and Don Mueang International Airport are both international airports in Bangkok. While Suvarnabhumi lies about 32 Kms to the east of Bangkok, Don Mueang is to the north of the capital, just shy of 24 Kms. While both airports handle international and domestic flights, most domestic connections, especially those of low-cost carriers, are handled by Don Mueang.

So all in all, this city can ensure a smooth flow of tourists with good maintenance, refinement and proper connectivity of both the airports in Bangkok to the city hubs. They are definitely a boost to the tourism industry. It’s quite certain that one will not face any trouble travelling to and fro Bangkok.