Ever since it was completed, Bangkok’s City Line Airport Rail Link to Suvarnabhumi Airport has never been popular as it’s no more convenient to take a taxi to the City Line Airport Rail Link with your luggage and then take the train than it is to take a taxi right to Suvarnabhumi Airport. Plus, it’s slow as it stops at 8 stations on the way, so a typical trip from Phaya Thai station in downtown Bangkok to Suvarnabhumi Airport is around 35 minutes. Most times of the day, you can do it faster in a taxi.
In fact, Bangkok’s City Line Airport Rail Link has so few advantages over a taxi, except cost, it’s not surprising it has operated at a loss since it opened
Which is a pity, as it really is a phenomenal piece of engineering and could be a fun way to travel.
That is also why Bangkok’s City Line Airport Rail Link will be cutting fares from September 30th to December 31st, 2012 between 11am and 2pm, in an effort to attract new passengers. Fares from Phaya Thai BTS station to any station including to Suvarnabhumi Airport will be only 20 baht (65 cents) each way (they’re normally 15-45 baht). And that makes it an excellent time to check out the City Line Airport Rail Link, if you haven’t already done so that is.
I’ve actually never taken the City Line Airport Rail Link as I normally take a taxi to Suvarnabhumi. I’ve also wanted to try out Suvarnabhumi’s Food Court for a while now, and haven’t ever gotten around to doing that either. But, with a round-trip train fare of only 40 baht, I’m going to take the train some time in the next couple of weeks so I can see what the trip is like, as well as check out the food at the airport’s food court.
I’ll report back when I do but, if you’re looking for something cheap to do to kill a couple of hours, why not consider taking the City Line to Suvarnabhumi and back sometime in the next three months? Just remember, the cheap 20 baht fare is only available around lunchtime each day.