AirAsia Review: What It’s Really Like Flying Asia’s Budget Airline

We’ve flown AirAsia multiple times throughout Southeast Asia, including in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. AirAsia is one of the region’s most popular budget airlines, offering affordable flights across the continent. Our most recent AirAsia flights were in Thailand, flying from Bangkok (DMK) to Phuket (HKT) and back again, so we’re using these flights as our main examples in this AirAsia review while also sharing what we’ve learned from our other AirAsia flights.

From the booking experience to how strict they are with luggage, we’re sharing what you can expect when flying AirAsia!

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AirAsia Review At A Glance

Best for	Budget travel around Southeast Asia
Would we fly again?	Yes, especially for short flights
Family-friendly?	Yes, we flew them with our young daughter
What’s included?	1 cabin bag + 1 personal item, 7kg combined
Worth paying extra for	Seat selection when traveling as a family

Our Experience Flying AirAsia in Thailand

After a wonderful three days in Bangkok, it was time for our week in Phuket! Since we were coming from Ayutthaya, we decided to fly out of Don Mueang Airport (DMK) instead of Bangkok’s main Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) since it was closer to us and also seemed to offer more affordable flights.

DMK is primarily served by low-cost regional carriers whereas BKK is served by the bigger international carriers. When searching flights from DMK to Phuket, it came down to three airlines: AirAsia, Nok Air, and Lion Air. We ultimately went with AirAsia as they had the most affordable flights we could find that worked best with our schedule.

For our return trip, we flew to BKK since that was the airport we were flying home from.

Booking AirAsia

We booked our flights two months in advance directly on the AirAsia website. Since we were traveling during one of Thailand’s busiest periods (Songkran), we wanted to ensure we booked sooner rather than later.

The flight prices kept increasing as the date approached. Even two months in advance, the prices were much higher than usual. To save money, we went with the less desirable flight times (very early morning and late in the day).

Booking was straightforward on the website. AirAsia’s website is modern and easy to navigate. As always, I paid with my favourite American Express Travel Credit Card (referral link) to ensure we were covered by insurance if anything went wrong.

The thing to note about booking AirAsia flights is that the fares don’t include any extras, and that’s how the prices are so inexpensive. The only thing that is included is one carry-on bag plus a personal item weighing no more than 7kg combined.

Add-ons

Seat selection, food and drinks, heavier carry-on luggage, checked baggage, priority boarding – these all cost extra.

You can pick and choose any add-ons you want, or you can bundle them for a discount. The price for each add-on varies depending on the flight. Check our exact flight details below to see the breakdown of how much we paid for each.

All these add-ons definitely add up. For example, we paid an extra 1380 THB for a few extras on our Bangkok to Phuket flight, on top of our tickets which were 3009 THB for the three of us.

AirAsia Baggage Allowance

Carry-on

As mentioned above, the included carry-on baggage allowance is two bags with a combined maximum weight of 7kg. The cabin bag must not exceed 56cm x 36cm x 23cm and the small personal bag must not exceed 40cm x 30cm x 10cm.

AirAsia is known to be quite strict with their carry-on policy. They will often weigh your bags and strictly enforce the weight and size restrictions. If your bag exceeds the maximum, they will likely force you to pay extra to check it, and the fee is significantly higher than if you purchase extra baggage in advance.

We did not want to risk it. If you actually weigh your carry-on bags, it is very, very easy to go over 7kg between one carry-on and a purse.

When we flew AirAsia in Malaysia, we experienced first-hand how strict they can be. The airline staff stopped Ryan to weigh and measure his bag before boarding. We hadn’t purchased a carry-on add-on for that flight, but luckily we had weighed his bag beforehand to ensure it was not over the limit.

On our Thailand flights, we made sure to purchase one “Xtra Carry-on” in advance so that we wouldn’t have any issue carrying all our camera equipment onboard. Since we purchased the Xtra Carry-on, they placed a special tag on Ryan’s carry-on bag when we checked in so that when we boarded the plane, they let the bag through no problem without stopping us.

Our advice: If you’re flying AirAsia, weigh your bags before heading to the airport. The 7kg combined cabin baggage allowance is easy to exceed. If you’re close to the limit, consider purchasing additional baggage in advance rather than risking a charge at the airport.

Checked baggage

In addition to carry-on, we also purchased one 25kg checked bag since no checked bags are included in the basic fare. You can purchase a minimum of 15kg, up to 60kg, in increments of 5kg. You can check as many bags as you like within the weight limit you’ve purchased, but no single bag can weigh more than 32kg.

Baby strollers and wheelchairs can be checked for free.

AirAsia Seats

Seats are randomly assigned during check-in unless you purchase standard seat selection as an add-on. It’s best to purchase it at the time of booking to save money. The seat selection fee is subject to dynamic pricing if you add it on after booking.

If you are traveling as a family with kids, we recommend purchasing seat selection. In our experience, they do not automatically assign families to sit together, even if the tickets are all purchased together.

Children under 12 years old are required to sit with an accompanying adult for safety reasons, so you are pretty much forced to pay for seat selection to ensure your child is seated next to you.

The seats themselves are arranged in a 3 x 3 layout and are what you would expect from a budget airline. Not very spacious but comfy enough for a short flight.

Standard seats have a pitch of 28″ and width of 16-17″. There are also “Hot Seats” which are located in the forward cabin and emergency exits. Hot Seats have slightly more leg room (up to 1″ more than a standard seat or 2″ in the first and emergency exit rows).

AirAsia Service

AirAsia staff, in our experience, have always been quite friendly but don’t provide a whole lot of service. Check-in is mostly self-serve but staff are available to assist if needed.

Cabin crew are smiley and kind, but again, we never interact with them that much since they don’t provide complimentary drinks or snacks.

AirAsia Food and Drinks

As mentioned above, no complimentary snacks or drinks are offered in-flight. However, you can purchase meals online in advance or onboard (at a slightly higher price).

Food and drink are where we personally feel AirAsia excels. We’ve never purchased food onboard since we’ve always been too full, but we always check out the onboard menus and are always so tempted! The food selection is pretty large and everything looks delicious. Prices are very reasonable as well.

We’ve seen what passengers around us have ordered and it always smells and looks delicious. I wish all airlines offered economy class food this good!

For example, for only 140 THB you can get hot meals such as Nasi Lemak, Chicken Rice, Butter Chicken, Vegan Panang Curry, Kua Kling Kai, and more!

Flight Overview: Bangkok (DMK) to Phuket (HKT)

• Flight number: FD 3039
• Aircraft: Airbus A320-200
• Departure Time: 7:50 am
• Flight time: 1 hour 25 minutes
• Our seats: 20A, 20B, 20C
• Base fare price: 1003 THB/person one way (about $39 CAD/$28 USD)
• Add-ons: Seat Selection 117 THB/person ($5 CAD/$3.60 USD), one Xtra Carry-On 342.4 THB ($13 CAD/$9.75 USD), 25kg late checked baggage (would’ve been cheaper if added at time of booking) 684.8 THB ($26 CAD/$19 USD)
• Total for 2 adults & 1 child with add-ons: 4389.3 THB ($185.50 CAD/$134 USD)

Check-in at Don Mueang Airport

We checked in at 5:15am, two and a half hours prior to our flight. Due to our early morning departure, we had spent the night at the airport hotel, Amari Don Muang Airport Hotel, which is conveniently connected directly to the terminal.

Check-in was not too crowded at this time of day. We immediately found an empty kiosk to check ourselves in and print our bag tag. An AirAsia employee came over to check our tickets and bag tags, and gave us a special tag to place on our Xtra Carry-On to indicate we had paid for it.

We dropped our check-in bag at the bag drop and proceeded to security. The whole process was very quick and easy.

Miracle Lounge (T2 Domestic)

Thanks to a seamless check-in experience, we had extra time to spend in the lounge.

Even when flying a low-cost carrier like AirAsia, it’s nice to still have access to airport lounges thanks to Priority Pass. We particularly love our American Express Bonvoy Brilliant credit card (referral link) as it provides us with a complimentary Priority Pass that allows two visitors, perfect for our family of three.

The Miracle Lounge in Terminal 2 is open from 5:30am-8pm daily and is located near Gate 51.

We were very pleasantly surprised by this lounge. We arrived right at opening time so it wasn’t very busy.

The food offering was actually better than we expected with lots of Thai options. Seating was comfortable and plentiful.

This lounge is definitely worth a stop if you have time before your domestic AirAsia flight.

Boarding

We headed to the gate about 50 minutes before departure. Boarding was done by zone number and used facial recognition at automated gates.

We were then loaded onto shuttle buses to take us out to the plane where we boarded by stairs.

Flight Experience

The flight left right on time. I was impressed with the cleanliness of the cabin. Our seats were in good condition – no worn leather or broken tray tables, as we sometimes see on other budget carriers.

We had individual air vents above each seat which was nice in the Thailand heat.

Our daughter was disappointed that there were no seat back entertainment systems, but that is to be expected of a low-cost carrier.

The flight went by quickly and we landed on schedule. Upon arrival,we made our way to the luggage belt where our luggage quickly arrived. All in all, it was a pleasant flight.

Flight Overview: Phuket(HKT) to Bangkok (BKK)

Check-in at Phuket Airport

As with our previous flight from Bangkok, our check-in at Phuket Airport was quick and easy. Again we used the self-serve kiosks and were given a tag for our Xtra Carry On. Security was also very quick.

Coral Beach Lounge (Domestic)

The domestic terminal at Phuket Airport has a few lounge options accessible with Priority Pass. We decided on the Coral Beach Lounge as it was closest to our departure gate.

The Coral Beach Lounge is open from 7am to 9pm daily. It’s not a very large lounge, the seating is a bit tight, and there’s no bathroom inside.

The buffet, although cramped and not always restocked, offers a nice selection of tasty Thai dishes and very good specialty coffee.

I was particularly impressed with the themed decor in this lounge and the beautiful dishware.

They even had special kids plates!

Flight Experience

We had just as good of an experience as on our previous Thai AirAsia flight.

Boarding was done by zone number, the cabin was clean and in good condition, and our flight departed and arrived on time.

Overall, another pleasant flight on AirAsia.

Is AirAsia Actually Worth It?

So, is AirAsia actually worth it? For us, the answer is yes. Even after adding seat selection, extra cabin baggage and checked luggage, our Bangkok to Phuket flights were still reasonably priced for our family of three.

However, it’s important to look beyond the advertised base fare when comparing AirAsia with other airlines. Our initial fare for the three of us was only 3009 THB, but after adding the extras we needed, our total came to 4389 THB.

If you’re traveling with just a small amount of luggage and don’t care where you sit, you can keep your AirAsia fare very affordable. For families or travelers with checked bags, the extras can add up quickly. We still think AirAsia offers good value, but we’d recommend comparing the final price after add-ons with other airlines before booking.

Pros and Cons of Flying AirAsia

Pros	Cons
Well-known and established budget airline	Doesn’t have all the extras of a full-service airline
Great network across Southeast Asia	Seats are tight with limited legroom
Lots of flight times offered on popular routes	Almost everything beyond the base fare costs extra
Affordable base fares	Add-ons can become quite pricey
Our flights have always been on-time)	Strict cabin baggage allowance
Great onboard food menu	No complimentary food or drinks

Verdict: Is AirAsia a Good Airline?

Yes, we’d say AirAsia is a great budget-friendly option when flying short-haul routes throughout Southeast Asia. We’ve flown with them multiple times now and would not hesitate to fly them again.

They offer tons of popular routes at affordable prices, and we’ve always found them to be efficient and on time. And while extra charges for add-ons can be annoying, it’s to be expected from a low-cost carrier.

If you’re looking for an affordable way to get around Southeast Asia, we’d definitely recommend AirAsia. Just be sure to check what’s included in the fare and factor in the costs for any extra add-ons you may need.

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