TAT plans to discuss more Hua Hin flights

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)’s Prachuap Khiri Khan office plans to discuss more flights to and from Hua Hin Airport, as part of an effort to bolster tourism in the region. Currently, the airport only serves Air Asia flights between Hua Hin and Chiang Mai, but the TAT hopes to expand the airport’s reach by adding more destinations.

TAT plans to meet with airlines in the coming weeks to discuss the possibility of a flight between Hua Hin and Phuket, Hua Hin Today reported. The director of TAT’s Prachuap office, Achawan Kongkanan, announced the plans at a meeting at the Amari Hua Hin’s Royal Coast Riviera Club on March 10.

The TAT’s meeting with airlines is scheduled for later this month. It is hoped that the talks will result in an increase in flights to and from Hua Hin Airport in the near future. Phuket has seen a recent jump in tourism in terms of international arrivals and hotel occupancy, and the TAT hopes to capitalise on this by increasing flights to and from Hua Hin.

Achawan also confirmed plans recently announced by the Thai government regarding the introduction of entry fees for international arrivals. Achawan said a 300 baht fee would apply to travellers arriving by air, while those arriving by water and land transport would be charged 150 baht. For air passengers, the fee would be collected when purchasing flight tickets.

The entry fee will go towards providing an accident and insurance fund for foreign tourists, while some of the proceeds will also go to developing tourist attractions and national parks.

Air Asia recently announced that from next month its flight between Hua Hin and Chiang Mai will operate four times per week. From April, flights will operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Prachuap Khiri Khan saw a significant rise in the number of tourists visiting in 2022, with the number of both domestic and international tourists showing a substantial increase.

The data, released by TAT, reveals an almost five-fold increase in the number of tourists visiting the province in 2022, compared to the previous year.

In 2022, 9,747,884 tourists visited Prachuap Khiri Khan, with 9,597,432 being domestic tourists and 150,452 tourists from overseas, according to TAT. This is a significant increase from the 2.6 million tourists who visited the province in 2021.

Prachuap Khiri Khan also got a tourism blast during the long weekend earlier this month. The province generated a revenue of over 548 million baht, according to TAT.