Thailand considers giving away domestic tickets

BANGKOK, 21 August 2025: Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports has proposed a new campaign to offer free domestic flights to 200,000 foreign tourists, but it faces criticism from some tourism associations that claim it would better serve the country’s economic interests if the project ran during the low season, May to September 2026.

First reported by the Bangkok Post, the initiative is tagged “Buy International, Free Thailand Domestic Flights.” It targets tourists who book tickets directly with the airline or via major online booking sites to Bangkok.

They can pick up a free flight beyond Bangkok to designated domestic destinations. By default, the international ticket will need to be purchased from an airline that also serves domestic destinations in the country or has a codeshare agreement with a foreign airline serving Bangkok to offer connections to domestic destinations. Usually, the codeshare applies to flights to major domestic destinations such as Phuket, Krabi and Chiang Mai, which are not by any stretch of the imagination “lesser known destinations.”

Scheduled to start in September (less than two weeks away), the proposed project should have been approved and released to travellers much earlier. Most travellers planning a trip to Thailand in September have already bought their international and domestic flights if they are planning to visit multiple destinations in Thailand.

Here are the campaign’s key details

Target: 200,000 foreign tourists.

Campaign Period: The programme is scheduled to run for three months, from September to November.

Mechanism: Foreigners who book an international flight to Thailand directly with an airline or an online travel agent would be able to claim a free round-trip domestic flight ticket.

Participating Airlines: The scheme would involve six Thai carriers: Thai Airways International, Thai AirAsia, Bangkok Airways, Nok Air, Thai Lion Air, and Thai Vietjet.

Government Subsidy: The government plans to subsidise the tickets with a budget of THB700 million, providing THB1,750 per one-way ticket (or THB3,500 for a round trip) for each tourist.

Objective: The ministry aims to generate THB8.8 billion in revenue through the campaign, to boost tourism nationwide. (The taxpayer will ultimately fund the subsidy fare).

As of now, the proposal still requires cabinet approval. The idea claims to incentivise travellers to visit less-visited provinces, aligning with the country’s broader “Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism and Sports Year 2025” campaign. The proposal is part of a broader campaign, which the Thai Cabinet officially endorsed in May 2025, to elevate “Thailand as a world-class destination to attract over 39 million international visitors.”