Zeus

From a comfort perspective, I prefer the 777. In economy(what I use), the 380 has narrower aisles. Plus on the 380 first floor, there is a noticeable space between most window seats and the bulkhead - which makes it next to impossible to lean against it with a pillow. Once you get past those differences they are largely the same. However, comfort is more dependent on the airline that outfitted the plane vs the plane itself. With one major difference - the A380 carries a lot more passengers(about 500 on CZ vs 320-350 for the 777). That impacts deplaning and immigration. Economy is usually last off the plane for both the 777& the 380, but with more passengers on the 380 there tend to be more in front of you at the arriving airport. This is the biggest difference to me. If you are in the rear of economy in a 380 there are several hundred in front of you. It is easy to say sit in front, but the seats fill up in the front faster, and I prefer an aisle or window in the rear to a middle seat up front. Given a choice I will take the 777. Zeus

OK so now that I have taken the trip, I figured I would do a quick review of my experience and China Southern (CZ). Most importantly, all four flights (LAX-CAN, CAN-BKK, BKK-CAN, CAN-LAX) were on time or even departed a bit early. This was a pleasant surprise as when I spot checked the flights before I left, the CAN-LAX leg was always running late in August. Perhaps the jet stream lined up better with the flight path better, as we got in to LAX 40 minutes early. Having on time flights is the number one pro that I could ask for. All airlines have late flights, however I was fortunate enough not to have one on this trip. Another nice thing was that in Guangzhou (CAN) for the transit between flights, there was no security re-inspection of the items I was carrying. Just a check to see that you had an onward boarding pass. On previous trips there was a re-inspection in both Tokyo and Beijing, sometimes the lines made you wait 30-60 minutes. To not have to go through this step was a bonus. Other Pros: -Great price. At $568 RT, that about $17/hr for flight times. You can't beat that much. - Great schedule leaving LAX in the evening (11:50pm) and arriving in BKK in the morning (10:50 am) with minimal layovers worked perfect for me. I could not ask for a better schedule. - The flight attendants were good looking, thin, and spoke pretty good English. They even wore a badge that said "English". I did not see any one without the badge, so most spoke the language. - The IFE was great, with approx 100 English movies, most recently released. Good to pass a long flight. - 2 hot meals on the long flight and even one on the 2.5 hr flights between CAN-BKK. The food was nothing special,but OK for economy airline food. I ate most of what they gave me. Cons: - I was not impressed with the A380 economy section. It was similar to any other wide body plane economy section, however the aisles felt narrower than normal. On the outbound flight I got my seat reassigned to an Exit row. The extra legroom was great. However the exit rows have the IFE monitors and trays in the arm rest, reducing the seat width by about 4". So while I fit, there was no room for side-to-side movement (and I am thin). I would still take the legroom with the narrow seat, but others would hate this seat. Standard seats were about what i expected. One item to note is that the economy window seats have a 4" gap between the seat and the side of the plane so you cant sleep with a pillow on the side of the plane like most other planes. - Also the increased number of passengers in the A380 always made the immigration lines longer, as economy is always off last. I think it took 30 min just to get off of the plane, as I was usually in the middle of the economy section. - The drink glasses are tiny. Any drink is always gone before the food arrives, leaving you eating without a drink. I would recommend getting a beer - then they give you a can. - Service outside of the scheduled meals at the beginning and end of the flight, is non existent. If you want water or anything to drink, you had to press your call button or walk up to the galley. At a minimum ( as other airlines do) they should serve water 2-3 times in between the meals. Most people got up to get extra drinks. - You cannot use your cellphone in any mode (even airplane). This wasn't a big deal for me, but others around me did not like being told not to use their phones. So while the flights were nothing special, it got me there, on time, at a great price. I would take this flight again for the great fare and the great schedule times. Zeus

I got LAX -BKK for $568 on China Southern and did a separate thread on it. They fly a A380 out of LAX and has a short 2-3 hr layover in CAN. It has an 11 am arrival, which is great for me. It will be my first time in a A380, so I look forward to it. We will see how it all goes. But at the end of the day it is getting me to Pattaya at a decent price. I did Air China last year at about the same time. While the flights were on time, the layovers were too long (5 & 8 hrs), but the price was great at $447(but you can't get that this year). Zeus

Some things are already happening (for better or worse): Chinese carriers are undercutting the main US carriers (and probably affecting others - ie Thai etc). The decreased flights from Delta mentioned above are a prime casualty. Low cost international flights to west coast US cities from China carriers (Air China, China Southern, China Eastern, China Air, etc) offer fares that US carriers can't compete with and maintain profit margins. There are several reasons for this, but China is winning. I am a prime example of an affected consumer. I flew LAX-BKK on US carriers (typically Delta or United) for the first 15 times I went to BKK paying between $600 - $1000 RT, or using mileage points. However, my last two trips have been on Chinese carriers - Air China ($447 RT), and China Southern ($568 RT). The only disadvantage is that the primary language is not English. However all announcements are eventually translated to English ( it is just not first). I actually like their schedules better, and the price speaks for itself. I like it and am willing to let my $$$ do the talking and give the US carriers the finger :-) Some things that are happening in the US, that hopefully never make it to international flights to BKK: -Charging for baggage. All (except SW) domestic US flights charge $25+, but so far this does not apply to international flights. Probably to stay as competitive to every other carrier that doesn't charge for this. - Discounting for not pre assigning seats. A new attempt to make US domestic travelers pay for pre-assigned seating. Delta does this, and others make you pay more for pre-assigned seating(the lowest fare class you cannot get a seat till the date of the flight). - Some low cost carriers (Spirit, Frontier etc) charge for carryon and everything else they can in order to offer a rock bottom base price. I know the US carriers will get creative on giving less for the lower fares. As a result they will lose business to other international carriers that provide better service and schedules. Zeus

Sad to see it go. It was always a great place for a basic breakfast w/coffee at a low price. I guess they did not make enough baht. I'll have to find a new go-to place. An excuse for trying some more places! Zeus

This will be my first time on China Southern. I really like the schedule (and price). Last year I flew Air China around the same time in September - Better price($447) then, but with huge layovers(8.5hrs & 5.5hrs). This China Southern trip has connection times of 3 hrs outbound and 2 hrs return. Just about right for an international flight. Air China had bad reviews but I had a pretty good experience on my trip last year (except for the expected layovers). My post & review from that trip: http://www.pattayatalk.com/forums/topic/66246-lax-bkk-with-ca-447-all-in/ During that trip I actually saw the China Southern A380 in LAX - It looked new and left on time (pic below). This time I will be on it! China Southern has better reviews than Air China, but I will see how things go. I won't really know till I try it. At the end of the day I will be in Pattaya with extra $$ in my pocket, and I know I will find a use for it! One year is too long to stay away. Fares like this will keep me coming back. Count on a China Southern review when I return. Zeus

I got a great deal on a LAX - BKK flight on China Southern for September flights. US $568 RT. I love the morning arrival time too. It gives me a chance to rest a bit before heading out in the evening. I think there are competititve fares on Air China, but the connection times are not as good. Grab them while you can if you are thinking of traveling in that time frame. Zeus

Just a followup to this post. I flew my inbound legs of this flight and there were no real issues. Both flights were on time, leaving almost exactly when they should have. Now this really surprised me as most of my pre flight research showed that the departure times at Beijing showed that Air china averaged being 30-40 minutes late. I believe they record the actual takeoff time at Beijing rather than the departure time(gate push back). That being said the gate push back was 5 minutes early, There was a decent wait for the takeoff (20 min), which might explain the delays that show up on flight status. Most of the complaints on Air China were not apparent to me on my flights. I was able to communicate fine the flight attendants, even though their English wasn't the best. The LAX-PEK flight had full IFE in the seat back(777 plane). Foot space was a bit restricted on the 777 window seat as there was an IFE box under the seat in front of me. But that could be true of any airline. The PEK-BKK flight (A320) had a bit more legroom than the 777. My biggest complaint was that drinks were served in a VERY small glass. By the time meals got served, any drink was gone. The food in economy was actually pretty good (for airline food). While I wouldn't rave about any of it, they were avg economy meals, nothing horrible, and I ate most items on the tray. The biggest downside was going through the security at PEK. First there was a bit of confusion as to the lines to get in for international transfers (there were signs, but no one directing people). I got there OK but many got into immigration lines instead of going through to the transfer lines. Passing through security at PEK took about an hour and moved slowly. Instead of a dedicated transit security lane, arriving passengers that had connecting flights were directed back into the main security lanes that PEK outbound travelers used. And while it was 68F outside the security area was hot and humid. Everyone was sweating and people who had just been on 10 hr flights don't smell the best (I might have falllen into that category too). Luckily I had plenty of time, but I wouldn't want to be in that line if I had a tight connection. Of course there was the expected 8hr layover, now down to 7 hr with the time in security. I did make a (free) reservation for the "transit" lounge online prior to leaving, but on arrival I could not find it. After asking at information they said it was opposite gate E10(I should have rememebered from the post above by AJ). So I went there and it was called the Business lounge(not the transit lounge). After going up an elevator and showing my reservation and boarding pass to the receptionist, I was in. There were only 3 others there Now this was not the best lounge, but it served my needs. Soft seating with 4 short couches, which were good for sleeping. There were free soft drinks, and small snacks(my fav was the packaged croissants) I moved a pillow from one of the chairs to a couch and slept there for a couple of hours then read a book I had brought. Before I knew it it was almost time for my flight to board so I went down to the gate. The most important things were that the flights were on time and I got to where I was going without issue or delay. The primary goal of any traveler. I hope my return flights go as well. Would I book Air China again? if given the same LAX-BKK RT rate for $447 when I wanted to go to the LOS again....I would do it in a second. However, if offered at a similar fare to other airlines, there are better departure/layover times, and most international airports are preferable to PEK for transfer. So I would opt for the best route. Zeus

I've reserved my airport pickup for my September visit. I'll let everyone know how it goes. Looking forward to my first trip back in 2 years.

Yeah that eight hour layover is going to be a bitch. They had an inbound with only 4.5 hr delay, but it got in at midnight. This option has me leaving at midnight,but getting in at 6:30pm. I'll put up with an extra 4 hrs in a layover to get in at a better time (and sooner too!). That really salvages one night in Pattaya. A man has got to have priorities..... BigD was right too.... My fare is now pricing at $100 more after only a few days, so it was an act fast kind of deal. There still are other days/itineraries at $471, which is only a small increase. I'm glad I pulled the trigger on this one when I did. Zeus

Ran across this fare looking for a Sept flight to Thailand.... Air China $447 LAX -BKK. If you search Expedia it comes up as $477 but going directly to their website gets you the $447. The actual fare is only $120, the rest is taxes etc. I haven't seen fares this low since the SARS scare, and they were about the same then. In part this made my decision to return to the LOS much easier. In any case I am in and ready to go in September. The countdown begins..... I know... You get what you pay for and CA has mixed reviews(I read the thread by ballbag on China air - I think he meant Air China) . I will see what my money buys me. In any case, the savings will make up for a bit longer layovers - and I've done worse layovers(13hrs +). I'll try to do a follow up review after my experience. Pros: - Price - I like to think about how I can spend that extra cash. - early morning departure 01:40 am, Perfect for me as I need to work the prior day and it lets me sleep on the plane. - early evening arrival 6:35 pm. Time to get to Pattaya, it really beats arriving after midnight. Cons: - Long layover 8.5 hrs inbound and 5.5 hrs outbound. A bit too long for my taste, but no worries about any delays causing a missed connection. - Transit through PEK - From what I hear not the best airport to spend a layover in. - It is Air China. As I haven't flown them before I am going in with an open mind. Without any experience on this airline, you never know what you are going to get, and all airlines have issues. But I am preparing for the worst and hoping to not have any horror stories. Zeus

I used the free wiFi at Narita. works good. I could check all email, forums, etc. I had 3 hours to burn so it helped spend the time.

Prices dropped for some of the USA flights too. Delta LAX-BKK RT $789, LAS -BKK $854 for OCt - Nov mid week flights. Both are normally in the $1300 range. I am sure other cities are seeing reductions as well. I snagged a flight for late November. I can't wait!

Good site. I bookmarked it as well. Now they just need one that focuses on a local area (like Pattaya or Jomtien)

Thanks Whitney. It is always great to get up to date info from first hand experience. If you don't mind I have a few questions: 1) How were the BKK immigration lines at that arrival time (10:50am). Long wait or did it go smoothly? 2) How was the food that you did get? I don't have high expectations, but would be interested in your impressions. Sounds like a good flight to carry some of your own munchies on. 3) It was good to hear about the "no hassle" transfer in CAN for USA passport holders. Do you have any other impressions about the CAN airport? Cleanliness, restrooms, food, services etc. Thanks again for the reply, Zeus