Upon arrival in Bangkok, I got my bearings and made my way over to the Thai Airways lounge. The airport was a bit hard to navigate at first, but after asking around, I was finally able to locate the security checkpoint upstairs and find the lounge.

 

Thai Airways Royal Silk Lounge and Spa

This lounge was massive and it was one of multiple business and first class lounges at the airport.

 

After exploring all the food options, I decided to help myself to some noodles and a can of Thai beer.

 

After grabbing a bite to eat, I made my way over to the Royal Orchid Spa.

As a business class passenger, I was entitled to a free 30-minute neck/shoulder massage or foot massage. Had I had the pleasure of flying in first class, I could have picked a 1-hour full body massage too.

After a wonderfully relaxing massage, it was almost time to board my flight.

 

Headed to KL

Thai Airways flight 417
BKK [Bangkok] to KUL [Kuala Lumpur]
August 17, 2018
Depart: 4:40 PM
Arrive: 7:50 PM
Duration: 2hr10min
Aircraft: 777-300ER
Seat: 21A

It was only a short flight to Kuala Lumpur, but I would be flying on an internationally configured 777-300ER.

The business class cabin was massive, stretching all the way from the front of the plane to just forward of the wings.

The seats were spacious, but you can tell that they hadn’t been updated in a while. Nonetheless, everything seemed quite clean and I had no issues navigating the IFE, so that was a win in my book.

Once settled in, the crew came by to distribute hot towels and pre-departure drinks.

I decided on a glass of Veuve Clicquot to start this flight off right.

For only a two-hour flight, I was surprised to see such a detailed menu. Much more than you would ordinarily get on a two-hour domestic flight back in the states.

Once we got airborne, I went ahead and checked out the in-flight entertainment.

Pretty much half the airlines I’ve flown use the same Panasonic system with the tethered remote as shown here.

While everything else on the flight was top-notch, the headphones left a bit to be desired. If the flight were any longer, I would have grabbed my Bose headphones out of my bag.

The cabin was only about half full and was dead quiet for the entire flight. This definitely would be a huge plus if the rest of their flights prove to be as quiet as this one.

The crew came by shortly after takeoff to take dinner orders and I then took the time to check out the bathroom and freshen up.

For dinner, I decided to go with the salmon with prawn mousse filling.

The dinner was delicious, but I was glad I also grabbed a snack in the lounge beforehand, as it wasn’t as filling as I’d hoped. Also, I think there was supposed to be a roll or something to go on the empty plate, but nothing ever showed up.

After dinner, I spent the remainder of the flight drinking a glass of Glenmorangie and alternating between gazing out the window and watching the moving map.

Overall, my first flight on Thai was pretty good. It didn’t blow me away, but the seat was comfortable and I made it to Kuala Lumpur safely. There were a few shortcomings, but also a lot of good things about their product, so I will definitely try to book a longer flight on Thai in the future to get a better gauge of their service.

Next, I was off to see Kuala Lumpur!