Anyone else booked to go to Thailand with BA?

[JorisBonson]

They've cancelled the route until October 2022 😔

Was painful but finally going through the refund process. We got cocky and booked a resort near Phuket in the last week of March, which of course is non refundable. Have sent a begging email.

I just want to go on honeymoon! We're keeping the annual leave and will try to rebook something nearer the time. We saved Avios for ages for these flights so rebooking isn't so simple.

That’s awful. As you’ve paid with Avios - could you fly with Qatar Airways via Doha to Bangkok? Fly BA to Singapore then connect from there to Bangkok?

Your chances aren't great to get other Avios flights for March but it's worth trying. Have a look at flights to KL, Singapore or HK as then you could pick up a cheap connection with one of the low cost airlines to Thailand.

Or can you use your travel insurance to cover the resort cost?

We could but I am not a good flier so also liked the fact BA flies direct.

They've given no reason behind it, which has annoyed me.

Nothing back from the report yet but yes, insurance / credit card company will be the next stop.

I thought that if they cancelled they'll let you use the Avios on a flight without Avios availability IYSWIM?
Fly to BK then on to Phuket?
Its definitely worth a call to BA before you cancel.

To be honest it was all starting to go a bit tits up anyway - we were travelling about a bit (ending in Phuket) and our internal flights kept getting changed or cancelled, and obviously the covid situation. Probably a blessing in disguise.

Lesson learnt, don't get cocky during a pandemic.

@JorisBonson

We could but I am not a good flier so also liked the fact BA flies direct.

They've given no reason behind it, which has annoyed me.

Nothing back from the report yet but yes, insurance / credit card company will be the next stop.

I think they're reviewing their flight timetable, probably due to the Covid increase. I had a flight booked to San Francisco in Feb and a flight booked to New York in Mar cancelled just a few days ago. Ok, so they were cash bookings so they just moved me to other flights so more straightforward than finding Avios seats.

But the current uncertainty over Covid is why I haven't used Avios to upgrade my flights (there was availability) as I thought it just added an extra complication if flights were cancelled/changed and getting through to BA on the phone is a nightmare at the moment.

To be honest OP, booking something non-refundable was a bit bonkers of you.

@JorisBonson was it the direct flight? I'm due to fly in July and I haven't received notification

@HundredMilesAnHour totally bonkers and a lesson learnt!

@Boohoowhoareyou yep 😔

@JorisBonson oh no Thanks for sharing. I'm sorry it's caused you such an issue. I hope you can resolve it!

Thank you. The resort kindly refunded us - bittersweet because I was so looking forward to staying there.

Won't be booking anything else until the very last minute!

I know you're sad @JorisBonson but that's good news. You can always rebook just don't book somewhere non-refundable next time.

It'll be worth the wait when it finally happens.

I was booked on the direct flights for January. I'd booked through Trailfinders so just asked them for alternative options & am now going to have an indirect flight, couple of hours break halfway through. Not using Avios though, so makes it easier. Still very much looking forward to going.
I've had 2 long - haul trips in the last 3 months and, for the last one, my original holiday was cancelled with under 20 hours' notice, so I rebooked somewhere completely different. Was a pain as I'd made lots of arrangements for 2 niche hobbies which original destination was chosen for. But ended up having a great time doing different things. It ended up becoming a challenge - I was determined to get that bloody holiday!

So if you book thorough a partner airline who would pay the difference? I know its not ideal because its not perhaps a direct flight but if we all wait until things go back to normal we could be waiting a very very long time.