SE asia airline deals

Here are some air travel deals in in and around Vietnam to keep an eye on -

VNBusinessNews.com - Domestic and foreign airlines in Vietnam are rushing to offer lower airfares and cut operating costs in a bid to cope with shrinking air travel demand.

Airlines have been subjected to massive losses since the global economic crisis led companies to curb travel and shipping and customers reconsider their travel plans.

The world’s airlines lost US$6 billion in first half of this year and are set to lose at least $9 billion for the entire 2009, according to the International Air Transport Association.

As an attempt to stimulate air travel, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines early this month launched a 20-day sale promotion for domestic and international tickets. Prices have been lowered by 40 to 70 percent, the biggest ticket sale in the history of the carrier.

The Thanh, a resident in Ho Chi Minh City, was able to book a return air ticket to Thailand next month for only VND2.1 million (US$117.71) (tax included) the same rate offered by budget carrier AirAsia.

More than 100 air tickets were sold within the first morning of the airline’s sale promotion on October 1.

Malaysian flag carrier Malaysia Airlines also halved its return airfares, tax not included, on the route between HCMC and Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur from $284 (plus tax) to $103 (plus tax) each.

Lower fares are also being found on long-distance flights from Vietnam and the U.S and some European destinations.

U.S.-based Northwest Airlines is offering an economy-class round trip between Ho Chi Minh City and Los Angeles for $721 (plus taxes) while South Korea's flag carrier, Korean Air is selling return air ticket on the same route for $980 (tax included).

Malaysia Airlines is promoting economy-class ticket fares of $800 (tax include) for a return flight to Australia and some European destinations, a $200 discount on the regular fares.

Thailand’s national carrier Thai International Airways is also selling tickets to Australia, South Korea, Japan, the U.S. and New Zealand with prices cheaper by $200 each.

Industry insiders said carriers are looking for ways to cut operating costs in hopes that lower air fares would stimulate air travel demand.

Some have resorted to selling tickets online to avoid paying commission to agents, while others changed menus and food containers to reduce catering expenses and the weight of the aircraft.

Low-cost Irish carrier, Ryan Air, even toyed with charging passengers to use aircraft restrooms.

Industry insiders said the sector is not likely to recover until 2011.

Vietnam travel plan -

Do you ever have problems, as I do, in bringing your travel plans to life? Every trip to Vietnam it’s always the visa problem, scoring plane tickets at a reasonable price and a good, inexpensive place to stay in Saigon. Then there are my helpers, everyone wants to help at once but things don’t seem to get done. Though, due to these helpers, I’v always ended up with a visa and a place to stay in Saigon that’s more or less what I wanted. So some might say part of the problem, especially with regard to helpers, is not them but probably with me.

On this up coming trip I’m out ahead of where I'm usually at, because as of today I’ve successfully booked my plane tickets, at what I think was a reasonable price, seat is further back than I would like but still on the aisle and I have a couple months till take off.

The visa thing in the past few years has been taken care of by a friend in Saigon, who would obtain a visa approval letter there and I would just pick up the visa in San Francisco at the Vietnamese consulate. Vietnam is trying to restrict visas to 3 months or less for non business types and I wanted a 6 month one like I’v had in the past. So I’m going to try giving it a shot from here on my own. Visa’s are normally issued as one or three month tourist visa or a 6 month (what they call) a business visa. Now they are trying to make the 6 month a true business visa and so require you to document your business contact, think I figured how to do this without a business, we will see.

Now the room thing, I need some divine intervention with that one. The past couple years I’ve been renting a room just off of Le Thi Rieng St. with great Pho just around the corner and several other good eating spots close in. Room was newer, had a balcony, hot water bathroom with shower stall, daily cleaning most of the time, great job with laundry, dsl and cable TV, all for $350.00 a month. The only real downside was, as in all rented rooms in Vietnam, lack of privacy,along with having to buzz for entrance at night and having a friend sleep over was a very serious issue.

I’ll try to be patient with these issues and will get through this as I have done with my other visits over the past 8 years. I'll keep you posted -

Thailand train accident

TRAIN ACCIDENT
Train derails in Hua Hin, killing at least 7 passengers

A train bounding for Bangkok from Trang derailed in Prachuab Khiri Khan on Monday morning, killing at least seven passengers and injuring many others.

The accident happened at about 4.45am at Khao Tao station in the province's Hua Hin district.

A Nation reporter at the scene said that ten of 15 compartments derailed.
He said that initial investigation showed that at least seven passengers; all women, were killed and about 61 passengers injured. The injured passengers were transferred to hospitals nearby including Pran Buri Hospital.

A doctor said four victims were found outside the compartments while three others were still trapped inside the compartments.
This is the first time that such fatal accident happened in the province.
Reports said that the No 84 train was arriving at Khao Tao station amidst heavy rains.


-- The Nation 2009/10/05

Typhoon Lekima kills 12 in Southeast Asia
4 Oct 2007 06:27:14 GMT

Source: Reuters

KY ANH, Vietnam, Oct 4 (Reuters) - Typhoon Lekima lashed Vietnam and southern China with torrential rains and high winds, killing at least seven people, damaging hundreds of homes and disrupting air, sea and train travel, officials said on Thursday.

The storm, which killed at least five people in the Philippines last weekend, swept into central Vietnam from the sea on Wednesday night, blowing roofs off houses, sinking scores of fishing vessels and grounding flights before moving to Laos.

The typhoon raised rivers to dangerous levels in Ha Tinh and Quang Binh provinces, but the damage caused was not as serious as feared.
"Thanks to good preparatory work the damage from the storm is not large," Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai, supervising the response to the storm, told Reuters TV in Ky Anh in Ha Tinh.

Trees were felled and electricity cut off in the provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh where residents returned to clean up debris after evacuating on Wednesday.

A Vietnamese government report said many areas reported blackouts due to Lekima, the Vietnamese name of a local fruit.

The national weather centre in Hanoi warned residents to take precautions against flash floods and landslides.

It said the centre of the storm passed through Quang Binh, crossed Laos on Wednesday night and advanced into northern Thailand where it weakened into a depression.

Vietnam is hit by up to 10 storms a year, causing millions of dollars in damage and sometimes killing hundreds of people.

Lekima, the fifth storm of 2007, killed 7 people, while 3 others were missing, officials said.

The storm hit China's beach resort of Sanya on Hainan island on Tuesday, trapping tourists and forcing the evacuation of 225,000 people. Vietnamese authorities evacuated tens of thousands of people before the storm hit.

Three cargo vessels capsized while taking shelter at a port in Quang Binh, a Reuters reporter travelling in the region said.
National carrier Vietnam Airlines and Pacific Airlines, the second-largest airliner, cancelled flights to the central cities of Vinh, Hue and Danang on Wednesday.

The southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong and Guangxi were hit with heavy rain and strong winds.

Most shipping and rail services linking Hainan with the mainland resumed late on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency said. (Additional reporting by Nguyen Van Vinh)
Source: Reuters