Tourism Authority of Thailand Identified India As Key Source Market; Signed LOI With THAI And THAI Smile

The Tourism Authority of Thailand on Friday signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Thai Airways International (THAI) and THAI Smile Airways (THAI Smile) to promote tourism growth from India, which is identified as a major source market for tourist arrivals in Thailand.

It’s worth noting that over 500,000 Indian tourists are supposed to visit Thailand this year, bringing in over 24 billion baht in revenue.

Mr Napintorn Srisunpang, Vice Minister of Tourism and Sports, said;

“Following the materialisation of the Thai-Indian Air Travel Bubble arrangement and the reopening of commercial flights between India and Thailand, this latest agreement between TAT and THAI and THAI Smile will certainly help accelerate the planned recovery of the Indian market, which is an important source market for visitor arrivals from South Asia to Thailand.”

Mr Suvadhana Sibunruang, THAI Acting Chief Executive Officer, said;

The agreement will see THAI and THAI Smile cooperating with TAT on the recovery marketing efforts and joint promotions as well as offering privileges to travellers on over 30 flights a week between India and Thailand on six round-trip routes;

Thai Airways India Flight Schedule

• Bangkok-New Delhi 14 flights a week (THAI);
• Bangkok-Mumbai 7 flights a week (THAI);
• Bangkok-Chennai 7 flights a week (THAI);
• Bangkok-Bengaluru 7 flights a week (THAI);
• Bangkok-Kolkata 7 flights a week (THAI Smile) starting 11 April 2022;
• Bangkok-Phuket-Mumbai 7 flights a week (THAI Smile) starting 10 April 2022.

THAI plans to add 34 new routes to its summer 2022 network, covering cities in Asia, Australia, and Europe, as well as boosting the frequency of existing flights in response to anticipated demand increases.

Passengers on THAI’s international routes will be able to use THAI Smile’s services to connect to domestic destinations throughout Thailand.

This latest agreement with THAI and THAI Smile is part of TAT’s overall recovery marketing efforts in response to the materialisation of the Thai-Indian Air Travel Bubble agreement, which TAT has been working on since February, in which TAT plans to work with airlines to help enhance Thailand’s image as the preferred destination for Indians looking to travel abroad.

Promote Thailand Tourism In India

TAT is hosting an Amazing Thailand Wedding EXPO 2022 this month to promote Thailand as a wedding and honeymoon destination for the Indian market, with the goal of increasing tourists from the segment.

TAT will also lead Thailand’s participation in India’s major tourist promotion event, the South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE) 2022, which will take place in New Delhi on the 18th and 20th of May.

As efforts by TAT and others to rebuild the Indian market grow, based on the load factor of the current flights operated by THAI and THAI Smile between Thailand and India, it is expected at least 13,000 Indian tourists will visit Thailand per month. This estimate does not include Indian tourists using other airlines.

In 2019, 1,995,516 Indians visited Thailand, contributing 86,372.01 million Baht in tourism revenue. In terms of arrivals, this constituted a 24.85% increase, and in terms of income, a 27.45% increase.