Thailand’s Phuket and Krabi welcomed TUI charter flights from Norway

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) recently welcomed TUI Nordic’s first winter 2021/2022 charter flights to Phuket and Krabi, as part of the tour operator’s series of charter flights from the Nordic countries scheduled during late November 2021 to late April 2022.

TAT said in a press release that the first flight operated by TUI from Copenhagen arrived in Phuket in late November 2021 with 296 passengers from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, making it the first-ever charter flight to land in Thailand after the country’s reopening.

Meanwhile, the first flight from Oslo, Norway, arrived in Krabi on 18 December 2021, bringing 294 passengers, and also making it the first-ever charter flight from the Nordic market to land in Krabi.

Mr. Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, Deputy Governor for International Marketing – Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas, said, “These flights mark the start of the partnership between TAT and TUI Nordic in promoting the reopening of Thailand to international tourism under the new normal.”

TAT is partnering with TUI Nordic in arranging 11 charter flights per week to Phuket and Krabi from cities in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden in winter 2021/2022.

Mr. Chattan said, “These flights are expected to bring an estimated 50,000 travelers from the Nordic market to Thailand’s main tourist destinations in the Andaman coast, particularly Phuket, Krabi, and Phang-Nga. This marks an important step on the road to recovery for Thailand’s tourism after two years of the pandemic.”

These charter flights are pre-arranged; therefore, passengers who have already received their Thailand Pass QR code will be allowed to enter Thailand. However, starting from 22 December 2021, the Thailand Pass will be closed for all new TEST & GO and Sandbox applications, except the Phuket Sandbox (more details, here).

In 2019 or before the COVID-19 pandemic, Thailand recorded 694,976 Nordic tourists consisting of 279,451 from Sweden, 159,526 from Denmark, 130,509 from Norway, and 125,490 from Finland. The numbers make the Nordic market Thailand’s fifth largest market in Europe, after Russia, the UK, Germany, and France. Nordic tourists were estimated to spend on average 80,000 Baht per person and stayed for an average of 17 days.

As well as TUI Nordic, TAT is working with other tourism partners, including tour operators and airlines to promote direct flights to key Thai cities, while introducing several promotions to stimulate interest in both repeat and new visitors to maintain Thailand’s position as a top tourist destination for travelers from the Nordic region.