Hi °C | Lo °C British holidaymakers stranded in Thailand are facing several more days of frustration with Bangkok's main airport set to remain closed until at least Monday night.
Hundreds of Britons have been trapped in the country since protesters took over Suvarnabhumi international airport on Tuesday, forcing a halt to all flights.
With 2,000 policemen building a huge cordon around the airport today, Thailand's airport authority said it was extending the closure until at least 6pm on Monday.
The seizure of Bangkok's international and domestic airports has stranded thousands of international tourists.
About 750,000 Brits travel to the country every year, including many independent travellers looking for sun, sea and adventure.
Andy Cooper, director general of the Federation of Tour Operators, said the five or six hundred British tourists stranded in Thailand with tour operators were in a "wait and see situation".
And he said there would be hundreds more independent travellers also stuck in the country.
Mr Cooper said: "Long term, provided there's a period of stability afterwards, the situation won't have a long term effect on the Thai tourist industry.
"But it will probably have a short term effect. It's bound to make people consider their position before they travel."
A spokesman for Abta, the travel association, said: "Hundreds of British tourists are over in Bangkok with our members.
"They are in a better position than people who travelled independently.
"The operators are keeping in contact with them, making sure they are in hotels, and in many cases paying their bills. They are being looked after.
"It's still a volatile situation and we are waiting for the airport to reopen rather than evacuating people.
"We could see the situation change rapidly."
He said people with bookings to fly out to Thailand were being dealt with on a "rolling basis" and could choose to delay their trip, go to an alternative destination or ask for their money back.
A spokeswoman for tour operator Kuoni said they had been looking after about 200 clients in Thailand.
Some had chosen to remain in beach resorts rather than waiting for flights in Bangkok while others had travelled onwards over land.
Protesters calling themselves the People's Alliance for Democracy occupied the airports and the prime minister's office compound late on Tuesday.
They said they will not leave until the government of Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat resigns.
The Federation of Thai Industries estimated the cost of lost trade due to the airport shutdowns at 57 million US dollars to 85 million US dollars a day.
