Tempting travellers: Thailand offers free domestic flights with 6 airlines participating
August 21, 2025
In a bid to lure more foreign visitors, Thailand’s tourism ministry is engaging with six Thai airlines to offer visitors free domestic flights.
Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sport is planning to offer free domestic flights to 200,000 tourists (or 400,000 seats) in line with plans to boost tourism in the country’s lesser-known areas. The move follows a slump in arrivals in the country, which saw a 6% decrease in the first seven months of 2025.
Under a campaign titled ‘Buy International, Free Thailand Domestic Flights’, Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong is asking the government to approve a $19.5 million budget.
“We want visitors to see more than just the big cities,” said Sorawong. Explaining that he wanted to encourage tourism beyond major destinations such as Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai, he said the free flights will encourage visits to UNESCO heritage sites and other attractions off the well-trodden tourist trail.
The proposed plan is awaiting cabinet approval. However, officials anticipate the campaign will generate over $240 million in direct tourism spending.
Which airlines are offering free domestic flights in Thailand?
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) will team up with six airlines to facilitate the free flights. Thai Airways International, Bangkok Airways, Thai AirAsia, Nok Air, Thai Lion Air and Thai VietJet Air will all be engaged to help the promotion fly.
Ticket subsidies will be capped at $49 per leg, or $98 for a round trip.
It is thought the scheme could start as early as the end of August, with travellers able to apply for their free flights between September and November.
Is there really such a thing as free flights?
In this case, the short answer is yes. However, not all domestic flights are universally free.
The offer is part of a promotional campaign to encourage tourism across Thailand’s diverse regions. To qualify for the free flights, passengers must have started their journey from outside Thailand.
When booking flights to Thailand through the respective airlines’ websites, partner carriers or online travel agents, eligible international travellers would receive two free domestic flight tickets.
This includes a round trip or one-way, and flights will include a 20 kg baggage allowance.
Thailand is following in the footsteps of Japan
Last year, Japan Airlines (JAL) launched a similar ongoing promotion allowing free domestic flights within Japan for select international travellers.
International passengers who had booked an international round-trip flight with JAL qualified for a free domestic leg if booked in the same reservation.
JAL collaborated with the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) and the Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) to launch its free flights campaign.
However, rather than aiming to boost dwindling tourism numbers, JAL’s campaign is in response to rising tourist numbers and the need to decongest heavily visited cities such as Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
According to JNTO’s 2025 statistics, the country welcomed over 3.1 million international visitors.
Just as in Thailand, the promotion was designed to encourage travel to Japan’s regional, lesser-visited areas. JAL’s network covers over 60 domestic airports, including destinations such as Hokkaido, Okinawa, Niigata and Shikoku.
