Too few guests in the country Thailand wants to attract tourists with free flights

Thailand wants to attract foreign guests to the country with free domestic flights. Up to 200,000 tourists could benefit - the aim is to increase revenue and also promote lesser-known regions.

Thailand is digging deep into its pockets to revive its ailing tourism sector. As reported by the platform "The Farang", the Ministry of Tourism and Sports is planning to launch a major campaign in which foreign guests can receive free domestic flights.

The program, called "Buy International, Free Thailand Domestic Flights", provides for travelers with an international ticket to receive a free return domestic ticket with six airlines. In addition to Thai Airways - which also connects Zurich with Bangkok - the airlines involved include Thai AirAsia, Bangkok Airways and Thai Vietjet.

The campaign is scheduled to run between September and November, but still has to be approved by the cabinet. A budget of around 700 million baht, the equivalent of 17.3 million Swiss francs, is planned. The government estimates that each ticket will cost around 87 francs.

Japan has also already offered flights

The authorities hope that the campaign will have several effects: On the one hand, the tourism sector's income should increase - according to the ministry, around 8.8 billion baht (218 million francs) could be generated. On the other hand, visitors should also travel to regions outside the well-known hotspots such as Bangkok and Phuket.

The model is not new: Japan has also offered international guests free tickets for domestic flights before. However, it is questionable whether this short-term measure will boost Thailand's tourism in the long term.

The decline in visitor numbers - down seven percent since the beginning of the year - is mainly due to the absence of Chinese visitors. Added to this is the uncertainty surrounding the postponed introduction of a new tourism tax, which is now not due until 2026.