flights

  • Thailand

    Thailand News Today | Burmese border #&#!!!, Charges for Penguin, 9 dead in floods | Dec 4

    Thailand News Today, coming to you from the relatively dry Phuket, compared to the horrible flooding in parts of southern Thailand. 5 shot and in critical condition after gang clash in Phitsanulok 5 people have been shot and critically wounded in what police believe to be a turf war between 2 rival gangs in Phitsanulok, Central Thailand. Police say gang…

  • Thailand

    Thailand News Today | Thai Airways corruption, Southern floods, Border Covid outbreak | Dec 3

    Thursday’s edition of Thailand News Today, including the latest in the local cases popping up in Northern Thailand. Thailand’s most watched English language news. 20 more people suspected of being involved in corruption at Thai Airways 20 people are now under suspicion of corruption and mismanagement within Thai Airways as accountants unravel the massive losses for the airline, spanning a…

  • Tourism

    Thailand will remain closed to general tourism until at least the 2nd quarter of 2021 – Minister

    Kiss any resemblance of general tourism to Thailand goodbye, at least until march next year, at the earliest. That’s the outlook for Thailand’s beleaguered tourism industry from the usually optimistic Minster for Sports and Tourism, Pipat Ratchakitprakan. So, apart from the STV and the modified 60 day Tourist Visa, and a few other options – all involving quarantine and a…

  • Thailand

    Thailand News Today | Digital Travel Pass, Chiang Mai outbreak, Alcohol ban | November 30

    Monday’s edition of Thailand News Today. An international Digital Travel Pass could be the magic bullet to restart global tourism A new international Travel Pass, a sort of digital health certificate, may be the way forward for countries to re-open their borders and international airlines to get their planes back into the air. The International Air Transport Association says the…

  • Coronavirus (Covid-19)

    An international Digital Travel Pass could be the magic bullet to restart global tourism

    A new international Travel Pass, a sort of digital health certificate, may be the way forward for countries to re-open their borders and international airlines to get their planes back into the air. The International Air Transport Association says the ‘digital’ certificate will support the safe reopening of borders. As Covid-19 testing and the results becomes more reliable and nuanced,…

  • Thailand

    Thailand News Today | Dinosaurs in BKK, BOT tackles Baht, Special K isn’t special | November 23

    Start of the week, a busy day of news around Thailand with Tim Newton. Bank of Thailand takes action to curb Thai baht’s strength The Bank of Thailand is moving forward measures, originally meant to begin early 2021, but most of which will now take effect from end of this month. The end result is that the new rules will…

  • Coronavirus (Covid-19)

    The Thai tourism new normal, learning to live with the pandemic

    OPINION by Julian Spindler Thailand’s world-class tourism industry, one of the twin drivers of our economy, is in a deep, coronavirus-induced coma, close to death. No life support is currently available. Pandemic paranoia has gripped the nation, freezing our bio-security risk management in full containment mode, meaning zero tolerance for local Covid-19 transmission. The socio-economic, and some might add political, impacts…

  • Tourism

    Latest traveller trends and top recovering destinations – TripAdvisor

    TripAdvisor and Phocuswright have jointly released the findings of a comprehensive research paper into the shifting trends in global travel demand and traveller behaviour, as they chart the industry’s road to a recovery, of sorts, in the wake of the ongoing global pandemic. The report, 2020 – A Year in Travel: Charting the Travel Industry’s Path to Recovery, analyses TripAdvisor’s first-party…

  • Tourism

    We must establish travel bubbles – Thai tourism operators demand action

    There has been a surge of domestic tourism in Thailand. But even that ‘surge’ is underwhelming when compared to the previous international traffic, 27% of it from China, in the ‘good old days’. Last year there were nearly 40 million overseas arrivals. Even places like Phuket and Khao Lak, usually starting to fill up with international travellers for the traditional…

  • Transport

    Boeing’s 737 MAX takes its next step to re-enter commercial service

    The US Federal Aviation Administration has approved the next step for the beleaguered Boeing 737 MAX to resume commercial flights after a 20 month grounding. But the factors that partly contributed to the plane’s grounding have not been addressed leaving the plane reliant on software to control its flying characteristics. The plane, a fourth generation makeover of 50 year old…

  • Hot News

    Qatar Airways set to return to Phuket

    Qatar Airways is set to return to Phuket by offering limited flights after the coronavirus pandemic halted services to the resort island. in March this year The middle eastern airline says it is planning a weekly flight between Doha and Phuket from December 4 and is seeking permission from Thai authorities to increase the number of flights between the 2…

  • Phuket

    Qatar Airways to offer biweekly flights from Phuket to Doha

    Things are starting to take off at the Phuket International Airport. Qatar Airways will resume bi-weekly flights from Phuket to Doha starting on December 4. The move is a major step forward after a halt of international travel to the island due to Covid-19 lockdown measures. Last week, an empty Emirates Airlines flight landed in Phuket. Although it wasn’t carrying…

  • Thailand

    Flights grounded, Thai Airways pilot becomes Grab driver

    Some pilots are spending more time on the ground these days due to the pandemic-induced travel restrictions. One Thai Airways pilot is using his time away from the air to get to know the traffic on the ground as a Grab driver. “The sky is closed,” pilot Mahesak Wongpa wrote on Facebook in a post sharing his story about becoming a…

  • Visa

    Getting Back to Thailand, the latest information about ASQs and STVs | VIDEO

    Whilst some restrictions have been eased, there has been a doubling down on other restrictions for travel back to Thailand at this stage. Here’s all the latest information about the Social Tourist Visa (STV), ASQ (Alternative State Quarantine), golf courses. And then there’s the Thai baht which is causing problems as well. The situation is very fluid but we do…

  • Thailand

    When next in Thailand, don’t do these things – VIDEO

    Most of the time you’re spoiled for choice with things to do in Thailand. It’s what makes the country so popular for overseas visitors, and as a place to live. But there are a few things that may be worth avoiding, despite being available, during your time in the Land of Smiles. Here’s The Thaiger’s Top 10 list of potential…

  • Thailand

    Thai Airways to auction off 34 used passenger aircrafts

    Anyone want to buy an airplane? In the midst of tackling bankruptcy, Thai Airways is auctioning off 34 old passenger aircrafts. The aircrafts are around 12 to nearly 30 years old and are sold on an “as-is, where is” condition. The airline has been strapped for cash. As part of a debt rehabilitation plan, nearly 5,000 employees – a fourth…

  • Phuket

    Empty Emirates plane lands in Phuket, first international flight since lockdown

    An empty Emirates Airlines plane landed at the Phuket International Airport, the first international arrival at the airport since the Covid-19 lockdown was put in place 7 months ago. While no passengers were onboard the aircraft, flight EK376 was welcomed by a “water cannon salute” and landed while PM Prayut Chan-o-cha was visiting the airport, according to a Facebook post…

  • Thailand

    Thai Airways offers ‘semi-commercial’ flights to 7 international destinations

    After a major slowdown in both international and domestic travel due to coronavirus travel restrictions, Thai Airways is now offering flights to and from 7 international destinations over the next 2 months, according to the airline’s chief executive Wiwat Piyawirot. These flights are “semi-commercial.” Wiwat says return flights are intended for Thais returning home from overseas, those with families in…

  • Transport

    Bangkok Airways offers unlimited flights through new membership program

    Bangkok Airways is now offering unlimited domestic flights through a new membership program. The airline launched the new Elite Card for 100,000 baht, allowing unlimited travel throughout 2021. Those interested can apply for the card from now until November 30. Tickets for flights from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 can be booked starting on December 16. Air Asia…

  • Transport

    Nearly 5,000 Thai Airways staff to deplane in voluntary resignations

    Officially, 4,977 staff at Thai Airways have applied for different stages of its Mutual Separation Plan for the survival of the airline. In other words they’ve been politely asked to resign. The airline employs about 20,000 people. The beleaguered national carrier has endured a decade of substantial losses, endless headlines about systemic corruption, padded senior staff contracts and executive perks.…

  • Transport

    Suvarnabhumi’s new terminal ready for 2022

    The extension of the Suvarnabhumi terminal will be operational by the start of 2022, according to Thai transport minister Saksayam Chidchop. The new Satellite Terminal 1 at Suvarnabhumi International Airport will increase the total capacity of Thailand’s largest airport terminal by 15 million passengers a year, allowing the total airport capacity to cope with traffic up to 90 million per…

  • Tourism

    From tourist heroes to zero – how the world’s former tourist magnets are coping

    If over-tourism became the buzzword in the travel industry in 2019, the opposite applies in 2020 when most of the world’s most popular tourist magnets are now facing a genuine economic crisis, forced on them by government closures and a risk-averse travel public, most of whom are prevented from travel beyond their own borders. We visit Dubrovnik, Santorini, Ibiza, Barcelona,…