I understand that airfares are considerably less expensive if purchased in Thailand.Can I be assured of getting the flights and times I need, probably Thai Air,after I arrive in Thailand? Or should I make reservations from the US? I'll be travelling from Bangkok to Chiang Mai, returning from Chiang Rei and then at a later date, to and from Bangkok and Phuket.

It won't be a problem UNLESS your dates of travel coincide with a national holiday or are during Peak Season when so many other travellers are competing for the same seats. I've been able to get a domestic ticket for a flight within 2 hours of departure with no hassle and no penalty for last-minute purchase. Do some research to determine if you'll be there during any major festivals or holidays.

Your best bet is to book e-tickets on the Thai Air web site. Their internet prices are generally better than purchasing through a Thai travel agent and certainly lower than purchasing through an agent outside of Thailand. Thai only allows you to purchase e-tickets for domestic trips and certain international destinations. The web site is www.thaiairways.com

Except for Budget carriers there is nothing to show tickets are cheaper purchased in Thailand at all. In fact it's often the other way around!
Example: You can buy multiple sector tickets on Thai Airways as a pass but this you 'must' book and pay for outside of Thailand, call your local Thai Airways office for all the details.
Bangkok Airways have discounts that also can only be purchased outside of Thailand. They have offices in USA/German and an agent in the UK.

Thai Air Asia budget airline flights can be purchased from anywhere in the world. Only One-Two-Go flights of Orinet Thai can only be purchased locally but I shouldn't even bother on that one.

Both Thai Airways and Thai Air Asia have fares fixed based on Thai Baht. When you pirchase these overseas you will pay whatever Thai baht the fare is 'in' the currency you use for your charge/credit card.

Only Thai fly from BKK to Chiang Rai. Otherwise if you can 'fix' your dates and are not likely to change then Thai Air Asia will have cheap prices on the Chiang Mai and Phuket routes. Also from June Nok Air launches. You can find a forum for Asia airlines with a lot of talk about these flights and fares on kooloo.com and then go to their travel forum. It's quite handy.

i disagree with what has been said above...i have recently purchased 3 sets of air tickets through a thai travel agent at considerable savings over what i would have paid on the internet or through my local travel agent in the usa....for instance a flight from bkk to bali was about 1/2 of what it was on the internet and directly from thai air's web-site....the two domestic flights were cheaper as well....i used: sea tours--
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Welcome back, Bob. As with everything else in the travel business, it seems like airfares are a moving target so it's best to shop around. My observations are based on experiences in 2000 and 2003 - obviously old news at this point.

everything changes it seems....i have recently found that several types of reservations are now cheaper if made directly with the provider rather than through the internet....this has been both with hotels and air....

thanks craig for the welcome back...i hope to try to post a travel report on the italy site by the end of the weekend...my first attempt....

venice was fabulous, even in the rain and cold...karen saw snow in the air at 3AM one nite