A COUPLE who were left stranded in Thailand after riots broke out in Bangkok had to endure a 12-hour coach journey to the north of the country to catch a flight home.

John and Jennifer Rowley, of Butterton, Newcastle, travelled to Chang Mai to escape the violence and took a plane to Dubai from a military airport.

They were in a convoy of 11 coaches full of holidaymakers, accompanied by a police escort.

Upon arrival in Chang Mai, they waited a further four hours before they could board the specially-organised Emirates flight.

And on Tuesday they finally flew into Manchester Airport – seven days after their scheduled return date.

The Rowleys arrived in Bangkok last week on the last leg of a month-long cruise on the Diamond Princess around the Far East.

Two days later, they were due to fly home, but discovered protesters had stormed the airport and all flights had been cancelled.

Mrs Rowley said: "When we got there we realised we were going to have trouble getting back.

"We were at the airport for five hours, and the protesters had taken over the PA system. All we could hear was chanting, and then a message came on to say everyone needed to get out for their own safety, which caused panic. People were falling over on the moving walkways in the rush.

"We went back to the hotel we had been staying in and managed to book in again. The Thai government paid for the rooms and for our meals.

"My husband and I thought we might have to spend Christmas there."

On Monday, the Rowleys got up at 3am to catch the coach to Chang Mai, which took 12 hours.

They then took a flight to Dubai, where they stayed in a hotel for one night before flying home.

Mrs Rowley added: "The British Embassy visited our hotel in Bangkok each day to give us updates.

"We'd seen the protesters in the city before it was our return date and there were roadblocks everywhere. The protesters weren't aggressive, but it was the noise they were making over the PA system which was so overwhelming.

"The coach trip was the worst part. Twelve hours is a long time to be travelling.

"One of the vehicles in the convoy caught fire along the way and all the passengers had to climb out of the driver's door.

"It was an amazing experience to go through it all and to be caught up in the riots."

Bangkok's main Suvarnabhumi international airport is expected to become fully operational today.