CheshireTom

Rhoel, They have been in merger talks for almost a year (since the BA/KLM talks broke down). What has happened is that the boards of the two airlines have approved a deal (effectively means Air France is buying KLM) under one corporate umbrella but retaining their individual identities and, for the Dutch, Schipol as an international hub. Alitalia tried to get in on the deal and may be invited into the family at a later date. SAS and Swiss are in pretty much the same financial position as KLM was so I wouldn't be surprised if they go the same way (Swiss has already come under the protective wing of BA and oneworld - BA got the Swiss LHR slots as part of the deal). I can't see that the AF deal will affect KLM passengers too much - other than that they will probably have to put up with them being on strike every other Bank Holiday! Tom

Derek/Alan, Thanks for the heads-up. Tom

lloydie, The offer has nothing to do with big operators unable to fill their allocations. It is for an additional service EVA is introducing on a Wed and is valid only for travel out on that particular flight. Try the 3rd or 10th Dec and you should have more luck. The problem is going to be getting a return if you stay over Xmas. Regards, Tom

Travelmood has a sale on at the moment. Departures up to 15 Dec and 25-31 Dec at 399 quid incl 3 nights accommodation and all taxes travelling with EVA. I would imagine the seats will go quickly. :-/ Tom http://www.travelmood.com/site/hotdeals/pa...and/Bangkok.asp The page will appear showing a Qatar deal; scroll down a bit for the EVA deal.

Flash2034, I said, "I think SQ only fly eastabout (via Europe) from East Coast USA." SQ23 (EWR via AMS) and SQ 25 (JFK via FRA) are the flights from NYC - both via Europe. I understand LA is west coast USA. Regards, Tom

Doug, Emrates normally run at about £80 cheaper than that, and do so up until the high season in Dec. It appears that none of next years prices have been adjusted, or that they have taken a big hike. I would be prepared to wait until Jan to see what comes up. It would be worth checking with your agent what Emirates considers its high season for the summer school hols. Most airlines go for about 15 Jul-31 Aug but some go as early as 1 Jul. Regards, Tom

BigDUSA, I think SQ only fly eastabout (via Europe) from East Coast USA. It's about 19-20 hours travelling time EWR-SIN with layovers in FRA (from JFK) or AMS (from EWR). Still worth it at the price though. Tom

vanilla73, If you don't go via Samui you'll be missing out on 30-40 mins in what is probably the most beautiful airport in the world. It's worth the trip just for that. Tom

vanilla73, Bangkok Airways does Pattaya (U Tapao) - Phuket and v.v. Flights are via Samui with a 40 min stop. Total travelling time is around two and a half hours. The schedule is at http://203.154.168.55/birts/schedule.aspx Tom

doolish, The seat configuration is worth noting if flying MAN-BKK with Emirates as well. They are regularly replacing the scheduled airbus with a high-density 777 (10 abreast) for the MAN-DXB leg (DXB-BKK is already a 777). Even BA dropped that seat configuration from its Caribbean flights some time ago. Tom

Papalazarou, Travelmood (flynow.com) appear to be offering the same sort of deal with Malaysian (and Singapore). Other than that, the cheapies seem to be few and far between for some reason. If I was in your shoes, I would get a seat on hold for a couple of days with Singapore/Malaysian as a fall-back whilst you have a look around. Regards, Tom

louyi, When are you travelling? I've been scraping around for business class flights with them ex MAN in mid-March but seem to be hitting a brick wall at the moment. I'd appreciate if you can let us know what the flight was like since they now do the quickest door-to-door (home to hotel) for us guys in the North West. Regards, Tom

Turbo, It is 0207 436 9001. Regards, Tom

Crackpot, C'mon ..... spill the beans! What agents don't charge single supplements? Regards, Tom

Gus, My apologies if my post was misleading - it was based on my experience in a double at the Amari Orchid Lodge i.e. TGs were OK if registered (accompanied you at check-in) and I assumed this was the case across the group. Other than that, the hotel is in a great location for nightlife, shopping and, most importantly, the skytrain. Regards, Tom

Gus, I don't think the Amari Boulevard is guest friendly. You'd be better off over the road at the Landmark if you are looking to take a girl in tow to the hotel. Regards, Tom

Gus, Prices are 4/5 star hotel prices (180 Baht upwards). Most of the girls will start at around 4k LT but the price will depend on how you handle the situation. If price is an issue it is probably not the best place around. On the plus side the girls tend to be better looking and better dressed than, say, Soi 7 Biergarten. Tom

Wan, Lipo is sold in the UK by the main supermarkets. There is also a carbonated version Lipotan Vitality which is obviously marketed to compete with Red Bull. The main differences between the two drinks are that Red Bull is glucose and caffeine based, whereas Lipo contains ginseng and royal jelly. Tom

Crackpot, The figures are from the company's published accounts for the quarter up to 30 June 2003 so I have no reason to doubt the authenticity. ebookers gross sales increased by 67% during the same period reflecting its purchase of Travelbag and Bridge The World at the beginning of the year. It makes complete sense that the back office functions will be integrated and that function will need to expand - bad news for the UK employees unfortunately and reflected in the current round of redundancies at Travelbag. As you are aware the extent of ATOL coverage is determined by the point at which the actual ticket is issued. Many "specials" require immediate payment and ticketing in which case ATOL coverage does not apply from the point at which the ticket is issued - at least that's my understanding and I am happy to be corrected if it is wrong. I agree that ABTA coverage is more relevant when booking a package or a flight plus hotel (as I do if I am staying in Bangkok or up-country) but I am not aware that non-ABTA agents are more expensive than ABTA registered agents. Most, if not all, of the main online agents are ABTA registered so the point is probably mute. Anyway, let me know what price you will be able to do Qatar business and economy from MAN in March and if it is competitive I'll gladly put some business your way. Regards, Tom

Crackpot, The Delhi call centre has over 600 staff compared to 200 in London. The Indian operation is being expanded to cater for 2000+ employees. That makes Delhi the main call centre in my eyes. ABTA gives protection for all those add-ons that we may take for granted on a holiday - transfers, hotels, golf etc. It would seem prudent to use a company with that additional protection when booking a holiday where these arrangements are part of the package, or not? Tom

ed, The Westin is the old Pan Pacific at Soi 19. The Sheraton Grande is almost directly opposite. The Sheraton Grande is guest friendly and is home to Riva's nightclub, the favoured haunt of many higher class tarts. Tom

Crackpot, ebookers currently employs over 600 staff at its Delhi call-centre. From its website, the words of its boss: Key to this was the opening in 2002 of state of the art Business Process Outsourcing centre in India with staff of 350 and capacity for up to 750. The facility means that ebookers can employ highly skilled graduates on competitive local salaries at a fraction of the cost of doing the same in Europe. No other European online travel company owns such an asset. Last month it trebled its available space there and is currently going through redundancies at Travelbag which it bought about six months ago. Why are all of the major tour operators (including ebookers) members of ABTA if it is such a silly thing; apart from anything else it has a Code of Practice by which its members abide - or is it your roundabout way of telling us that your company is not a member of ABTA? :'( Regards, Tom

Dave, They are as good as any until things go wrong. Their call centre is in Delhi which presents a few challenges if your tickets haven't arrived the day before you're due to travel. Tom

Val, I'll take your word for it although both BKK Air Chiang Mai and Phuket flights terminate at BKK domestic and they are both regarded as international airports. What was wrong with the SIN flight? I was seriously considering that as an option now that SARS is not a worry in SIN. Regards, Tom

neilri2001, Lufthansa, Air France and KLM have all been touting cheap business class deals over the last couple of months and all of them are pretty basic products, as you say, no better than China Airlines Premium Economy. Of the cheapies available from UK, the best has got to be Qatar Airways (1,300 quid from MAN in Nov). Brand new A330-600, great crew attitudes, top notch Sogerma sleeper seats (160 degree recline), 55 inch seat pitch, and top of the range entertainment systems. Have a look at their site: http://www.qatarairways.com/InFlight/BusinessClass.htm Regards, Tom