Bangkok, 27 October 2025 – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) warmly welcomed the inaugural flight Z0 791 operated by Norse Atlantic Airways on the London Gatwick–Bangkok route at Suvarnabhumi Airport. This flight marks one of seven new seasonal routes from Europe to Thailand for the 2025/2026 winter season, operating with a frequency of 2–5 flights per week, totaling 99 flights.

From 1 January to 20 October 2025, more than 805,000 British tourists have already visited Thailand, representing a 13.2% increase from the same period last year. The addition of these new routes is expected to push the number of visitors from the United Kingdom to 1.13 million by the end of 2025, generating approximately 70.46 billion baht in tourism revenue — reaffirming Thailand’s status as one of the most beloved destinations among British travelers.

Norse Atlantic Airways Expands Service under TAT’s “Airlines Focus” Strategy

Ms. Suladda Sarutilavan, Director of the TAT Europe Region, stated that the expansion of Norse Atlantic Airways’ routes reflects a key achievement of TAT’s Airlines Focus Strategy for long-haul markets. The inaugural Z0 791 flight between London Gatwick (LGW) and Bangkok (BKK) is one of seven newly launched seasonal European routes scheduled from October–December 2025 through April 2026.

This service will operate from 26 October 2025 to 12 April 2026, with 2–3 flights per week during October–November 2025, increasing to 4–5 flights per week between December 2025 and April 2026, offering a total of 99 flights with a passenger capacity of 338 seats per flight.

Warm Welcome at Suvarnabhumi Airport

The inaugural flight Z0 791 departed from London Gatwick Airport on 26 October 2025 and arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport, Thailand, on 27 October 2025 at 10:25 a.m. TAT, together with executives from Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited (AOT), hosted a warm welcome ceremony and presented souvenirs to arriving passengers — a gesture of Thai hospitality to create a memorable first impression for visitors upon arrival in the Kingdom.

Strong UK Market Performance

The United Kingdom remains one of Thailand’s most important long-haul source markets, consistently ranking among the top 10 visitor-generating countries. Between 1 January and 20 October 2025, 805,155 British tourists visited Thailand, up 13.2% from last year. The average length of stay was 15.93 days, with average spending per trip at approximately 63,000 baht. Notably, 86.91% were repeat visitors.

Forward bookings from the UK market show robust growth — up 10% for October–December 2025 and 13% for January–March 2026 — confirming Thailand’s continued popularity among British travelers, who are drawn by its culture, cuisine, friendly people, and unique travel experiences.

Thailand’s appeal is also reflected in Condé Nast Traveller UK’s 2025 Readers’ Choice Awards, where the country earned top rankings across multiple categories, including five-star hotels, Asia’s best islands, and world-class spas. Thai islands such as Koh Lanta, Koh Chang, Phuket, and Koh Samui were among the top-rated destinations.

Joint Marketing and Promotional Campaigns

In line with this positive momentum, TAT and Norse Atlantic Airways have joined forces to implement promotional and marketing campaigns from September to November 2025 to stimulate demand and drive bookings for late 2025 to early 2026 travel.

Activities include:

   - Social Media Competition offering round-trip air tickets to Thailand.

   - Joint promotional campaigns across Norse Atlantic Airways’ media and social platforms.

   - Advertising and awareness campaigns through Expedia.com (Flight Search Listings and Display Ads) and Skyscanner (Native Inline Ads).

Simultaneously, TAT continues to promote responsible and sustainable tourism along with travel to Hidden Gem destinations, offering visitors meaningful experiences while encouraging regional tourism dispersal.

With these combined efforts, TAT forecasts that at least 1.13 million British visitors will travel to Thailand by the end of 2025, generating 70.46 billion baht in tourism revenue and further strengthening the UK’s position as one of Thailand’s key long-haul markets.

 

 

Source:

www.tatnewsthai.org