With the Russia airspace being closed to European airlines for the foreseeable future, Asian airlines are an excellent alternative for flights from Europe to East Asia.
Gulf carrier Oman Air offers a pretty great fare for flights between Paris and Bangkok for travel in before June 2022. With a stop in Muscat, you can reach Thailand for as little as €422. A checked bag only of up to 30 kg is included in the price, along with full board service on all four flights.
Both the Super Saver and Economy Lite (w/ checked bags) fares are not refundable or offer any free rebooking rules.
Worldwide travel restrictions are in place to slow the spread of Covid-19. We strongly recommend gathering detailed information about the travel and quarantine restrictions that apply to your desired origin and destination.
A good start is the International Air Transport Association (IATA) website. It provides current updates on a country’s immigration policies. Even better, the Covid-19 Travel Regulations Map is one of the most useful tools you can find.
Our availability calendar highlights all round trips at the lowest fare for trips up to 28 days. We have limited the selection to trips with short stopovers (around two hours), as some itineraries require an overnight stay in Muscat. After selecting an out- and inbound flight date, it will forward you to Oman Air’s website. You can also try our flight search, as tickets there are around €30 cheaper.
Oman Air primarily uses Boeing 787 aircraft on all of their routes, with a 3-3-3 seating in economy class. Like all gulf carriers, Oman Air prides himself on maintaining a high standard across all cabin classes.
Search & Book
According to the fare rules, tickets are on sale until March 4, 2022 for departures before June 30, 2022. The minimum stay requirement is 5 days. Furthermore, your stay cannot exceed 6 months.
Google Flights previews available flight dates reliably. We strongly recommend booking directly on Oman Air’s website.
Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?
More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:
Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.
If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.
This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.
Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.
This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.
Information & Tips for Thailand
Thailand is an increasingly popular holiday destination for Europeans – both beach and party tourists get their money’s worth in the South Asian tropical state.
Whether Bangkok, Koh Samui or Phuket, Thailand offers multi-faceted cities and quiet beaches. Also, the country is always easy to reach from Europe. Especially to Bangkok, there is almost always at least a good deal!
Best Time to Visit
While hot summer temperatures prevail the whole year long in tropical Thailand, the best travel time is definitely the winter from November to February. Thanks to the northwest monsoon it doesn’t get warmer than 33 degrees. In summer the temperatures can quickly reach 40 degrees. The rainy season also starts in June and will last until October – high humidity is what you’ll have to prepare for!
Entry & Visa
Most EU citizens do not need a visa for stays up to a length of 30 days. The entry permit can be extended by another 30 days before expiration by local immigration authorities.
Currency
The national currency of Thailand is the Baht (THB) which is divided into Satang. One Euro is about 40 THB.
Finding the Best eSIM Plan
We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Nomad, Airhub, and RedteaGO. To see which plan is best for your travel needs, and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:
The Best eSIM Plans for Thailand 🇹🇭 Compared (Bangkok, Phuket…)
→ All Dealz for Thailand
Cover Picture: Road Trip with Raj on unsplash.com