Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

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limbu
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by limbu »

I travelled on the coach yesterday. Bought return tickets from the Hua Hin bus station. To Bangkok I chose my seat number at time of purchase. From Suvarnnabhumi to Hua Hin the clerks at the counter at exit door 8 assigned my seat number. I'm unsure if it is possible to change it once assigned. When I've bought tickets online outside Thailand these past few months, it has not been possible to select a seat (as it once was).
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by STEVE G »

pitsch wrote:Is it possible to select the seat number? Last time I got the number 1 which I dont like because I cannot stretch my legs as at the other seats. But fortunately there was a free seat available and I could change.
I don't think there is now but I was in a hurry and I was happy that the process was quicker. I imagine that if you get to the counter at the airport early, they might let you change whatever seat is allocated.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by wpcoe »

No. When they changed systems early this year, we lost the ability to select a seat. I had e-mailed them about that (and the addition of a B50 online booking fee) and got a nice reply saying to send an e-mail with your seat request after you have confirmed the reservation. After doing that three times, and being assigned random seats, I gave up on the e-mail effort. Supposedly, the ability to select your seat is on the "to do" list and will be added in later. Uh huh. Sure.

At the airport, I've been lucky to have a friendly fellow at the desk who let me change my seat assignment if I didn't like the one I had. At Hua Hin and Pattaya, no such luck with the bus dragons.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by Nothappyjan »

Just off the Airport bus from Hua Hin to Airport. Took a shade under 4 hours following a 7.30 am departure.
It was appalling! The Thai hostess, or whatever she was, barked at passengers on boarding, she knew only one word 'seatbelt' and that was the extant of any meaningful interaction. She was plainly unpleasant.
The bus was very, very cold and despite requests to adjust the temperature she chose to ignore the many requests from a number of passengers.
As a guide it is freezing in the first 6 rows, very, very cold in the next 3 rows and cold at the back.
As we approached BKK she turned the TV on in her cabin of sorts. It was some Thai game show which she obviously enjoyed. Unfortunately everybody else on the bus had to 'enjoy' it as well.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by buksida »

Used it yesterday, booked and paid online with no issues - 15.00 departure, arrived just before 18.30 - staff pleasant, bus was full. Still a good and efficient way to get to/from the airport.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by StevePIraq »

Pity about the timings. Latest departure from HH is 6pm not much good when I have a 2am flight.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by migrant »

buksida wrote:Used it yesterday, booked and paid online with no issues - 15.00 departure, arrived just before 18.30 - staff pleasant, bus was full. Still a good and efficient way to get to/from the airport.
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Airport bus to Hua Hin -bad service at the airport counter

Post by hhnewbie »

To make a long story short.....

We booked tickets online in late August for airport bus to HH yesterday. On the email confirmation there were a few remarks at the bottom of the page: No 1. Tickets are not refunable - no problem. No. 4 says "please book tickets at least 1.5 hours apart from ETA and bus departure time to allow time for immigration and baggage collecting....." - no problem, our ETA was 07:15 and booked bus for 09:00, 1 hour and 45 minutes. (The time allowed has since changed to 2 hours as of this morning) No. 6 says " if your flight delays and you booked accordingly to no. 4 above, we will find you seat on the next avaulable bus for 30 Bht......" - Great!

Our flight landed at 08:22, missed the scheduled bus. The guy at the counter won't honor the No. 6 above because according to HIS arrival information our flight was ONTIME at 07:15....puzzled, I went over to the arrival/departure monitor 20 feet away and saw the arrival info was correct with ETA at 07:15 and landed at 08:22, took a picture of the monitor with my phone, went back to the counter...still no go, he insisted our flight arrived ontime at 07:15 according to his info....After 20 minutes with another man at the counter and a call to Bell Travel office in Bangkok with a lady on the other end who kept repeating 1.5 hours and go to counter, I was fed up and ready to just give up and buy two new bloody tickets for the next bus but the man at the counter didn't like my "attitude" and refused to sell me any tickets...he actually waved his hand at me to go away and said "go, go take taxi...go to police"....so I did, to the police, I went.....

Two tourist police along with an interpreter marched with me back to the bus counter......

At the end
We paid the 60 Bht rebooking fee for the 2 tickets and were on the next bus to Hua Hin....

What amazed me was how they kept insist the flight was ontime when in black and red on the airport flight monitor it showed landing time 1hour+ later than ETA! TIT....
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by wpcoe »

While I've not been the recipient of any severe mistreatment from the Bell Travel folks, I have noticed a decline in their attitude over the years. I'm a frequent traveler between Hua Hin and the Airport. At least every six weeks, and often much more frequently. I've sat at the airport waiting for my bus and watched the staff interact with their customers, and it is disheartening to say the least.

e.g. A frazzled European-looking couple showed up about ten minutes before their bus departure. I assume their flight was late and they had rushed. The talked to the Bell agent and she threw the tickets at them and said (very impolitely) "Bus already here. Go!" and did not even indicate where to go.

That seems to be the "service standard" these days. I long for the old Bell Travel staff and attitude that was friendly, helpful and jovial. Yes, I'm just another old fart living in the past.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by oakdale160 »

Perhaps these people are ashamed of the job that they have. After all they are assisting Farang coming to visit Thai and as we all know, increasingly, there is a feeling that Thai people do not want farang here. So the very least they can do to maintain self-respect is to treat farang like scum.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by BOZ »

Interesting take on the situation Oakdale.... I hear this from many people on this forum that we farang are not welcome or desired in Thailand !?!?!? Frankly I have never in all of my dealings in country, North, South, BKK, Phuket, Pattaya, and HH experienced anything but a true positive attitude from the Thais I have interacted with... From the gardener, pool guy, store employees, restaurants, hotels, resorts, car dealer/repair, motorcycle dealer/service, home improvement and services... I am talking a lot of different people at all levels of society, not once was I made to feel not welcome or appreciated... Sorry to hijack this thread somewhat but curious to where this thought comes from... I This the bus company has just hired a few bad apples that are tarnishing what was a very reputation....
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by Big Boy »

A word of warning to anybody travelling to Hua Hin using this service - book in advance.

We have some friends who were arriving at 5:45 this morning. They were quite shocked/upset when I told them to use the bus rather than me collect them. I explained the bus was a much better method of travel, and I wasn't going to lose a night's sleep to give them an inferior service. I offered to book it for them, but they insisted they would sort it when they arrived. I did warn them that it was European school holidays, and the bus might be full. They knew best.

I've been checking the online booking, and the 7:30 bus was full a couple of days ago. When I went to bed last night, there were still 19 seats on the 8:00 bus. I checked a few minutes ago, and the earliest availability was 13:30.

I've no idea how or when our friends will get to us, but please don't make the same mistake as our friends - book in advance, it's easy, and you know you'll get a ride to Hua Hin after your long journey.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by oakdale160 »

last time I took it I checked in and was told to sit just outside the door, but I like to check things myself so i walked over to where 4 or5 buses were parked an identified the HH bus. About 20m later I saw people boarding the HH bus. I was surrounded by Euros and told them all to go to the bus, perhaps the bus people would have told them later but it looked all very haphazard--Welcome to Thai!
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by Big Boy »

A quick update - our friends managed to book onto the 9:00 bus - still adding an unnecessary 1.5 hours to their journey.
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Re: Airport VIP Bus to and from Hua Hin

Post by Jose »

Guys,

with the airport bus, if you check the website it tells you that certain buses are not available to be booked but they are if you turn up.

Their booking system is crap and if it will not allow you to book on the day on the internet for the early buses.

For example, I am getting the 3pm bus today, the website will not allow it to be booked but it probably has 15 seats free.

The early morning ones and late afternoon buses tend to be the busiest. Am guessing that is when a lot of long haul from europe flights arrive.
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