Inflight Review Posted on

What to Expect When Flying Domestically in Thailand.

From low cost to full service airlines, who's the best to fly with in Thailand?

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INTRODUCTION

Recently I took a trip around Thailand to explore and review the local airlines and their inflight services. Thailand is buzzing with a variety of airlines, from budget-friendly to full-service, including Thai Airways, Bangkok Airways, Thai AirAsia, Nok Air, Thai Lion Air, and Thai VietJet Air.

For the purposes of this review, I flew with each airline except for Thai Lion Air. I’ll explain later why I didn’t include them. Each review covers various aspects of the inflight experience, including comfort, service, and food quality.

While you’re welcome to dive into the individual reviews, I have to say that my all-time favorite was Bangkok Airways. Let’s see why.

FULL SERVICE AIRLINES

Thailand’s full-service airlines include the national carrier, Thai Airways, and its competitor, Bangkok Airways, which began operations in 1989.

Both airlines provide complimentary inflight catering on domestic flights. However, while both offer excellent inflight service, the culinary experiences are miles apart.

THAI AIRWAYS

Thai offers the ‘Anytime Treats’ bag, which includes a sandwich or pastry depending on the time of day, a refresher towel, and a bottle of water.

An in-flight meal tray with a water bottle, a packaged bun, a refreshing tissue packet, and a paper bag labeled "Anytime Treats" on an airplane seat tray table showcases Thai Airways meals.
A close-up of a hand holding a packaged bun filled with a cream filling. In the background, there is a paper bag with a geometric logo design and a partially visible water bottle—reminiscent of the thoughtful presentation found in Thai Airways meals.

Once these are delivered to passengers, the crew offers tea and coffee.

While the meals are adequate given the flight time (just over one hour), Thai Airways’ offerings fall short compared to Bangkok Airways, which provides hot meals and complimentary lounge access for everyone in economy class.

BANGOK AIRWAYS

Bangkok Airways provides complimentary catering on all flights including short hops to Koh Samui that are just 45 minutes long!

Airplane meal on a tray table, featuring a container with rice and chicken, a plastic fork and spoon, a cup, a bottle of water, and a dessert with pink frosting and red sprinkles.
An empty row of blue fabric airplane seats with white headrest covers, near the windows.
The Bangkok Airways logo on a blue geometric patterned wall.

This level of service feels delightfully old-school, and I hope the airline continues to maintain it. You can read the entire review here.

LOW COST AIRLINES

THAI LION AIR

A subsidiary of Lion Air, the second largest low-cost airline in Southeast Asia and the largest in Indonesia, doesn’t offer complimentary meals.

Instead, you can pre-order meals only on international flights from Thailand to Tokyo and Taipei.

Menu for pre-purchase hot meals on a flight from Bangkok Don Muang to Tokyo Narita, showing three meal options with Chicken Teriyaki, Baked Mushroom Rice, and Drinking Water, each priced at 320.
Menu for pre-purchase hot meals on specific routes starting May 15, 2024. Options include Chicken Teriyaki with Japanese Rice or Baked Mushroom Rice with Stir-Fried Vegetables, both with water.

Their onboard menu for domestic flights mainly consists of snacks and pot noodles.

Menu for Lion Sky Cafe showing snack options such as Pringles Potato Crisps and Cashew Nuts, and light meal options including instant noodles and chicken floss sandwiches, with prices in Thai baht.

I opted not to waste a flight just to sample some pot noodles that I could easily buy at any 7-Eleven. Instead, I focused on airlines that offered a more comprehensive dining experience.

NOK AIR

Nok Air is a low-cost airline, but it also offers more inclusive fare types that include meals, free advance seat selection, priority boarding, and even lounge access.

For those opting for a cheaper fare, hot meals can be purchased onboard or pre-ordered starting from USD $5.00. The meal options change regularly, featuring dishes like Pad Thai and Chicken Tikka Masala.

Instead of pre-ordering a meal, I opted for the Nok Max fare, which included all the trimmings.

A snack box containing a pastry and a dessert slice, alongside a bottle of Nestlé Pure Life water and a napkin, is placed on an airplane tray table.
A closed white and green snack box labeled "Gourmet Primo Catering" and "Snack Box" rests on an airplane tray table.
Interior of an airplane showing rows of seats with yellow headrests labeled "viu x Nok Air" and grey seat covers. Passengers' overhead compartments are visible, with some people in the background.
An in-flight menu featuring food and beverage options, including dried mango, fruit salad, yogurt, Pringles, cashew nuts, almonds, and popcorn. Items are priced in Thai Baht.
A modern lounge area features multiple brown leather chairs, small round tables, a yellow accent wall, and overhead lights. Several people sit in the background on white sofas.

My inflight meal was a snack box that consisted of a marble cake and a raisin snail roll, plus water (which can be pre-ordered for USD $5.00).

AIR ASIA THAILAND

Air Asia is the largest low-cost carrier (LCC) in Asia, offering some of the cheapest inflight meals starting at USD $3.00.

By pre-ordering your meals before departure, you can save up to 35%.

The inflight menu is quite extensive, offering a choice of fresh sandwiches and hot meals as well as snacks and other items for sale.

Airplane tray table with a meal consisting of Pad Thai, a sandwich wrap, two bottles of water, a napkin, and plastic cutlery.
An airline meal on a tray table includes a dish with prawns and rice, bread topped with herbs, a packaged dessert, two bottles of water, and a plastic fork and knife set on a napkin.
A glass container holds a dish with eggs topped with herbs and orange garnish. It is accompanied by bread slices, cheese, and mushrooms. Another dish and a water bottle are partially visible.
An in-flight menu page showcasing assorted meals including Mala Hokkaido Noodles, Chicken Teriyaki Rice, and roasted chicken dishes, alongside drinks and prices in Thai Baht.
An open in-flight menu showing various meal options including dishes with rice, sandwiches, desserts, and beverages. The text highlights special offers and meal descriptions with corresponding prices.

For this flight, I ordered a Pad Thai and a chicken and cheese sandwich.

THAI VIETJET AIR

Thai VietJet Air, a subsidiary of Vietnam’s VietJet Air, offers a budget-friendly flying experience, which means amenities like complimentary meals are not included.

However, you can purchase meals, snacks, and drinks onboard or pre-order meals from USD $4.00.

An airplane tray table with a recycled paper bag, a foil-wrapped meal, and a bottle of mineral water.
A tray of airplane food with white rice and a serving of vegetables in sauce, placed on an airplane tray table.
Airplane menu depicting various hot meal options with prices in Thai Baht and USD. The menu includes a combo set of hot meal plus water for 180 THB or 6 USD.
Image of a magazine showing a menu for in-flight desserts and hot drinks. Desserts include cakes and puddings, while hot drinks feature coffee, tea, and Ovaltine. Prices are listed in Thai Baht and USD.
A brown paper bag labeled "Sky Café" holds a wooden spoon, fork, and a wrapped utensil with "Weber Air" branding, positioned on an airplane tray with a seat visible in the background.
An in-flight magazine titled "Sky Café" lies on a foldable tray table, featuring images of various food items, including burgers, sandwiches, and desserts. The release is marked Vol. 1, January 2024.

I pre-ordered the green chicken curry with jasmine rice, which came with a bottle of water and environmentally friendly wooden cutlery.

CONCLUSION

Overall, my clear winner is Bangkok Airways. Their free lounge access and old-school inflight meals create a standout experience. When it comes to the low-cost airlines, they all offer similar products at comparable price points.

For those seeking an all-inclusive option, Nok Air is a great choice, especially with their Nok Max fare, which comes with numerous perks like meals, free advance seat selection, priority boarding, and even lounge access.

However, the inflight meals across the low-cost carriers tend to be quite similar. Air Asia stands out with some of the best-priced meals and a decent range of options.

In the end, all these airlines provide a similar inflight product. If you’re after old-school comfort combined with excellent service, Bangkok Airways is the one to try.