bumblebee Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 For most of us the flight to Los is quite a time consuming experience. So what's the minimum amount of time you feel you need to spend there to make the flight worthwhile. For me it would have to be 2 weeks, anything less would seem like a waste and I'd probably not bother going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sustra Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 i found a special price with Oman Air from Milan to bangkok at 418 euros in June...( and just 2 hours of waiting in Muscat..) so did not think twice...took my credit card out of my pocket and booked immediately...just 8 nights... i think it worths...at least for me as i cannot leave my job during summer time more then 1 week... i do not consider the flight a consuming experience...i consider a consuming experience make everything i wish in just 8 days...but i'll try.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
globetrotter Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Considering how brutal my flight home was yesterday and the cost of it,1 month would be the minimum 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duke007 Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Ive done a couple of 10 night trips and the least Ive done is a 6 night trip, my good mate Katoeylover has done quite a few 4 night trips but he's a business or first class flyer If there was a very good reason and it was going to be worth it then perhaps I could narrow it down to a week as a bare minimum, other than that then 10 nights There was one guy called Jellybean on the TLF forum who flew out from the UK to spend ONE night in Bangkok to see his girlfriend and then flew back home to the UK the next day ( yes you heard right ONE night ), his dedication to her was worth it to him in the end as they did eventually get married in bonny Scotland after a lot of hassle of getting a Visa for her Maybe this should have been Jellybean's song at the wedding https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjTnue-Jf3s 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xyzzy Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 I use to say one month was the minimum when flying coach. In business class it really doesn't matter because I don't dread the flight and I don't arrive home, or in Thailand, feeling like crap. So if money was no object and I could stay only a week that would be OK. FWIW I'm a pretty bad traveler. I can not sleep in cattle class and am trashed at the end of the journey in either direction. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sustra Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 i guess this is the international anthem for all the travellers to Thailand....legendary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ciobha Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 The shortest trip I have had was 10 days back in November '09, and that near killed me, ffs. As others have mentioned, the difference between flying cattle class and either business or first makes a huge difference. Now for me I will always aim for a minimum 17 nights. I really don't know how our American brethren do it, first the travel time must be ball breaking, and I also believe we in Europe have a much better annual holiday allowance than our friends stateside. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
globetrotter Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Plus I just wouldn't want to have to run around to places to feel like I actually did anything in such a short amount of time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiamSam Posted April 4, 2014 Share Posted April 4, 2014 Well, I have done 3 night visits at least 3 times. Now how desperate is that for a LOS fix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duke007 Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 I would say that is pretty desperate Sam Im with ciobha on this, I dont envy our American and Canadian cousins one little bit because that is a proper "long haul" in my book so I count my blessings that I can get Flights on the new Emirates A380's on all of my outward and return legs (4 in total) from the UK to the LOS, even in "cattle class" its very spacious & comfortable imho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bumblebee Posted April 5, 2014 Author Share Posted April 5, 2014 My recent journey home worked out at 32 hours door to door. That was a one off but I get the impression that for the guys from North America that is normal-ish. Now to do that both ways would be a killer, especially on the way to Los. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
globetrotter Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 The way there is a long haul buy bearable because you arrive in LOS , its the going home flight that really really sucks as after all those hours being cramped up and not sleeping on your overnight flight you can look forward to the boys at immigration ripping your backpack apart looking for drugs or other stuff that might be on a hard drive or sd card after hearing where you have been, and then after all that you have damp pissy weather and going back to work to look forward to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bumblebee Posted April 5, 2014 Author Share Posted April 5, 2014 It seems you guys from North America get a raw deal re. immigration. When I came through immigration during the week, it was a casual glace at my passport, "welcome home" and then a stress free stroll through the Green nothing to declare and out to enjoy the air con climate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rxpharm Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 BB, it depends on the luck of the draw when going through immigration, but in addition to that they "profile" single guys returning from SE Asia holidays. If you've been there multiple times, if you're 20-40, odds are that you may get singled out for extra attention. I've been lucky in that I've been searched just once on return home in my many years of travel to SE Asia. They've also changed the system - in many of the larger centres, like Vancouver or Toronto, there is an electronic declaration process for returning citizens. It will randomly select someone for further follow up, by marking your receipt. If you don't give satisfactory answers in the follow up process, then a search entails. Of course if a customs/immigration officer feels you are "suspicious" they can always select you out as well, regardless of your unmarked receipt. As for a minimum time - it would have to be at least 2 weeks, preferably 3 if traveling from North America. I'm lucky not being tall makes it easier to travel economy. I can also sleep with the aid of an inflatable neck pillow, ear plugs and a sleep mask - all essential items for a long haul flight (8 hrs or more). Getting even 4-5 hours of sleep on a flight makes a big difference in jet lag. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
globetrotter Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Whatever their criteria , twice in the last 2 years..... fucking annoying !! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eroticadventurer Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 Nothing less than 2 weeks would be my criteria. From South Africa via Qatar a 30 hour haul is the norm.......only my 3rd trip so still have no problem with the flying time.loads of food....drink and in flight entertainment plus the anticipation of what's to come on the way over and the memories on the way home have made it all more than wortwhile.My 1st trip back invoved 7 hours at Qatar Airport.... midnight to 7 am very few people about which resulted in the airconditioning making it ice cold for which I was not prepared.......not a good night. When I came back this time I was accompanied by a Thai LB I had met in South Africa which made the trip a lot more bearable.... 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiamSam Posted April 5, 2014 Share Posted April 5, 2014 My travel to LOS originates in the east of Canada. The trip ranges from 22 to 32 hours depending on connections which are either Vancouver or Toronto in Canada and Hong Kong or Tokyo in Asia. It's a long trip for sure but due to my travel status I'm usually able to bump up to business class which makes the whole experience more bearable. Guys from the west coast of Canada or the US have it a little bit easier. I've also flown from Europe to LOS and it felt like a hop, skip, and a jump compared to originating out of North America. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RocketSquirrel Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 3 weeks minimum. Prefer 8 if possible :) Average travel time is about 23 hours. I find that I have no jet lag troubles going, but I am "toast" for 1-2 weeks on the return. So, I must factor in recovery time. It amazes me how quickly these holidays seem to go. If I lived "only" 12 hours away, I would try to visit more often and for shorter times. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xyzzy Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 I usually have about 22 hours in the air plus two connecting airports. So depending on the lay over time 26-30 hours. United has started flying from Denver to Narita so it is now possible for me to skip one connection on the west coast. But I haven't used that flight yet. United just jacked way up the number of FF miles needed to book a trip. Immigration is an intersting thing in the US. I started coming to LOS in 2006 (three time that year) and three trips to Costa Rica. They use to inspect my baggage two out of three times. But it's been probably four years now since my baggage was inspected. I keep thinking I'm due to get hassled but so far so good. I never bring back anything I shouldn't anyway. I flew business class last trip with lay flat seats and one's own cubical/pod area. What a difference! I ate, watched a move and then went to sleep. My only problem with sleep was I was enjoying the flight/movies so much I didn't sleep enough. Huge difference from cattle class. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTel Posted April 6, 2014 Share Posted April 6, 2014 One Month is the minimum stay for me, It usually works out approx 24 hours door to door on the travelling time and I must say I find it more tiring these days and takes me at least 3 days to get over the tiredness on the return journey. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JustSumGai Posted April 7, 2014 Share Posted April 7, 2014 average is 30 hours. This last trip I could not get a lift to the airport so I went there around 1am. Place was EMPTY! Big nice marble floor livingroom. Opened up the puter and went online till check in around 5am or so. My airport is one of FEW that ACTUALLY have free wifi. But usually 2 hours early for stupid TSA, then hour and a half to Atlanta, 2 hour layover maybe, then 14 hours to Naritya, 2 hour layover, 6 to Bangkok and an hour or two thru Imm. NOW, as the years go by my age seems to make this a bit more grueling but I've developed an ability to if not SLEEP, to go mostly unconcious. No matter what, iit's crap quality rest but as someone said, it DOES help. Flight there ain't so bad, I will come back to life after check in with a shower and some good street food and revelling in the feeling of being back in Wonderland. The trip BACK tho, IS a bugger even tho as the trip number rises I am glad to get home to my own bed and stuff and stores where they actually carry what you want. BUT !!! if there has been a freeze I'm in for a week of getting water off the guy next door and STILL flushing with bowls of water. THIS year, we had many bad freezes. PVC up under a 150 yr oldhouse (up on brick piers) FREEZES and cracks, sometimes explosivly it seems, lots of it was llying shattered on the ground. I'll be going with PEX next time but it still ain't fun goin up under the house. Shower next door too, garage apt. is empty this time. BUT!!!! there was a billing fuckup and the ol guy watchin my mail and bills saw it as leak and had the gas company turn off my gas. Coulda used that, still cold when I got home, went down to just below freezing one night. Oh, and because my wallet got nicked at the Pattaya bus station, bank killed my account. Soooo, I got home, it was cold and miserable, no water, no heat, no account to put money into so I could use my debit card. One year the fan in the freezer froze up cuz I don't keep the house heated, kicked a breaker and well...you ever seen the inside of a fridge after it's had no power for a couple months? It was a warm winter that year too. SoooOOoOooo....I'm won't even bother going for less than a month or TWO. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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