STRANDED tourists were propping up occupation rates on Phuket today as the blockades at Bangkok's major airports created mayhem for in-bound and out-bound passengers.

The president of the Phuket Federation of Hotels, Vijit Dasantad, said rates of 80-90 percent occupancy at resorts before the Bangkok blockades had plummetted in terms of future bookings.

Rescue flights were being organised by the big airlines to carry home stranded nationals from Australia, France and other countries.

One Australian news outlet reported 'Airport Rage by trapped tourists' and added 'Fists fly as trapped tourists turn nasty.'

''I've never seen anything like it,'' one witness was quoted as saying. ''There were thousands of people pushing, parents yelling, children screaming and groups of people throwing punches at one another.

''Everyone was upset. There were masses of people trying to fit inside this tiny little building. I felt like I was going to be crushed.''

The problem came at U-tapao,a small airport in Rayong, near Bangkok, where flights are moving in and out.

But on Phuket, Khun Vijit reported that one rescue flight, due out yesterday at 8am, was finally cancelled five hours later.

Club Med, the Kata-based international resort brand, sent groups of tourists to the airport four or five times yesterday in an effort to get them out. Each time, the tourists had had to return to the resort.

Club Med executives have told head office not to send more tourists to Thailand.

Diverting 650-700 guests to other Club Med facilities in Bali and Malaysia has been just one tragic outcome for Phuket.

Struggling to find alternative ways on and off the island and in and out of Thailand has become an essential for many travellers.

Two returning Phuketwan journalists undertook a 15-hour bus ride from Phnom Penh in Cambodia to Bangkok, only to find all buses to Phuket were full.

So they joined with five other travellers who were determined to enjoy a holiday in Phuket and paid 12,000 baht for a mini-bus and a 12-hour journey to the island.

Along they way they passed many other mini-buses and Bangkok taxis making the same journey.

Passengers taking this independent run-for-it should be prepared for long delays at land border crossings, followed by the potential for continued stranding in a country outside Thailand.

One alarming note: the Phuketwan journey driver, having carried passengers to Had Yai the previous day then returned to Bangkok, headed straight back from Phuket to Bangkok overnight Sunday without sleep.

Phuket taxis and mini-vans are expected to be carrying passengers to Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, or to towns along the borders, in the same way.

Escape is not easy.

Those who get out of Thailand will then have to compete with others for rare seats on flights that are already fully booked.

The monetary benefit from the Bangkok blockade will be delivered to hotels in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, and any airline that has room for escaping Phuket tourists.

The Australian Embassy in Bangkok has opened a 24-hour hotline specifically to help stranded Australians. The number is: 02 344 6300.

Phuket airport has set up a special bus ticket counter for coach trips to Bangkok. About 155 passengers caught four buses out of Phuket airport for the 12-hour, 885km journey to Bangkok on Friday. The price of a bus ticket is 800 baht.

The airport is also operating travel hotlines: 076 351595, 076 351593, 076 351561, 076 351152.

The Phuket City bus station on Phang Nga Road is also doing a brisk trade in Bangkok-bound buses. Air-conditioned buses to the capital leave about every hour.



Thai and foreign airlines are continuing to add or reroute flights through Phuket, U-Tapao near Bangkok, Chiang Mai and other airports to assist domestic and international travellers. Here are the latest announcements.

Thai Airways ticketing office in Bangkok open 8am-5pm. Tel: 02 356 1111 or 02 545 4000. The airline is continually adding new/rerouted flights. THAI also announced it will extend ticket validation, travel related documents as well as the Royal Orchid Plus mileage redemption period.

Dragonair will operate an additional flight from Phuket to Hong Kong on December 1. Dragonair also doubled the capacity of its scheduled flights to and from Phuket from November 28 to December 2 by using A330 aircraft instead of the usual A320. Ticketing office Tel: 02 263 0367.

Finnair transported nearly 300 stranded Finnair passengers overland from Bangkok to Phuket, then flew them out from Phuket to Helsinki on Friday night (November 28). A total of four flights from Phuket in the coming days are planned.

SilkAir added Phuket-Singapore flights for Saturday and Sunday specifically for stranded passengers that were transported from Bangkok.

Bangkok Airways and AirAsia have been adding Phuket routes daily to cope with the closures, but are only posting cancelled flight details on their websites. Best to check with agents or the airlines in person or by phone for updates.

Firefly, a subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, announced it is running extra flights connecting Subang Airport, Kuala Lumpur, to Phuket and Koh Samui, in addition to its current four times weekly Penang-Phuket return flights and eight weekly flights between Koh Samui and Penang/Subang. Four extra afternoon flights are running on Sunday, November 30: Subang-Koh Samui, Koh Samui-Subang, Subang-Phuket and Phuket-Subang.

Qantas is working with the Australian Government in seeking approval for an A330-300 with a capacity of 300 passengers to depart from Phuket to Singapore on Monday night, Australian Associated Press reports. Qantas and British Airways ticket holders will get first priority for seats, followed by other Australian nationals.

Air France-KLM announced that it will run two flights out of Phuket. The first will fly from Phuket to Amsterdam Monday and a second one will leave for Paris late Tuesday, the airline said in a statement.



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Photo Album Thousands of tourists cannot reach Phuket today as Suvarnabhumi airport's closure has forced inbound flights to cancel. Resorts offer 70 percent discounts for stranded passengers.
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