Airlines put on more flights as tourist demand increases

Airlines are now rushing to reopen and start new routes in the middle of 2024 to stimulate demand for the high season in the fourth quarter.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is eyeing a new Asian tourist target group: the “CIA” market of China, India, and Asean, and is hoping to attract at least 25 million tourists this year and 35 million next year.

Regional airlines are also planning to open routes servicing these destinations.

Regional low-cost airline Thai Lion Air has announced plans to resume six direct flights daily from Bangkok’s Don Mueang airport to Guangzhou, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Xi-an using B737-800 and B737-900ER aircraft. The airline plans to commence flights from Thailand on August 15, followed by flights from China a day later.

Thai Lion Air is also responding to tourist demand by resuming its flights to Tokyo (Narita) from Bangkok (Don Mueang) through Taipei on August 16. The airline will offer five flights per week, with passengers boarding either in Taipei or Tokyo. The promotional ticket prices begin at 3,995 baht per flight.

On July 27, Clay Sun, executive vice president of EVA Airways, announced that the airline had signed a letter of intent with the TAT to promote Thailand as a top tourist destination worldwide through EVA Air's extensive flight networks that cover Asia, North America, Europe, and Australia. EVA Air offers 28 direct flights per week from Bangkok to Taipei, 10 flights to China, eight flights to Japan as well as flights to Seoul, all via Taipei.

Furthermore, the TAT is closely monitoring the Indian airline market, as it has observed that most Indian travellers prefer flying with Indian airlines. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, 10 airlines provided direct flights from 13 Indian cities to Thailand, resulting in around 300 weekly flights and approximately 62,000 passengers. However, following the pandemic, only nine airlines are currently offering180 direct flights per week from 10 Indian cities, totalling 39,000 passengers and an average load factor of 70-75%. A new Indian airline called Akasa Air may commence operations by the end of this year.

According to Nitikorn Komkris, the business development manager of Thai Vietjet, the airline is considering potential flight routes from India due to its rapid economic growth and young tourists. However, there has been a decline in the number of business travellers in the region.

In the Asean market, many airlines are preparing to resume routes. Nok Air, for example, is preparing to start flights to Singapore now that conditions between Thailand and Singapore have almost returned to normal. During the first half of this year, 439,239 tourists from Singapore visited Thailand, ranking ninth among all foreign visitors. The majority of them, around 88%, were fully independent travellers (FIT), while about 90% were repeat visitors, indicating Singaporeans' familiarity with Thai tourism services.

Air Asia also plans to commence flights from Bangkok (Don Mueang) to Cebu, Philippines to cater to demand from Filipino travellers. The TAT has set a target of 300,000 Filipino tourists in 2023 after the first six months of this year saw 196,114 tourists.

A new low-cost airline named MYAirline from Malaysia is considering offering international flights from Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok's two airports once a day. Flights to Suvarnabhumi Airport commenced on June 28 and on July 1 to Don Mueang Airport. The company is also planning to provide services to Phuket, Chiang Mai, Krabi, and Samui, with further details expected this month.

Eight airlines currently offer 256 flights every week between Thailand and Malaysia. In the first six months of this year, 1.90 million Malaysian visitors arrived in Thailand. They are the largest foreign tourist group, totalling 12.66 million visitors.