Direct flights from Thailand to vacation spots in the Philippines are possible

PH | Direct flights from Thailand to vacation spots in the Philippines are possible | MANILA – Secretary of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) Jaime Bautista told senators on Tuesday that he will work with the Department of Tourism to set up direct flights from Thailand to the Philippines and back.

During the budget discussion for the DOTr and the agencies that work with it, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri talked about an idea he got from a recent meeting with Tull Traisorat, the Thai ambassador to the Philippines.

“For example, if someone goes to Thailand and wants to go to the Philippines, or if someone goes to the Philippines and wants to go to Thailand, they can do either. People call it a “Paradise Island” location because there are people from Europe and America who want to go to Southeast Asia. “They want to travel as much as possible, and not just to one country,” Zubiri told the group led by Sen. Grace Poe.

“He was saying that it would be great if there was a direct trip from Boracay to Phuket or from Ko Samui to Cebu. In that way, it would be great because people wouldn’t have to go to Manila and then take another flight,” he said.

Bautista said that the idea is possible, especially if planes can be booked outside of Metro Manila, and he promised that he would talk about it with the local airlines.

“We can do that, but we need to work with the companies. The companies are the ones who will really run things. “Of course, they will make sure that they make money,” he said.

Before the pandemic, Zubiri said that Traisorat told him that Thailand was getting between 12 and 14 million tourists a year.

He said, “If the Philippines works this out, you can even get 10 to 20 percent of that, because if they go to Thailand, they might also want to visit the islands of the Philippines.” Think about 20% of 14 million. Zubiri said, “That’s a lot of extra tourists on top of the ones who already come to the Philippines.”

“I think we can figure that out. We might be able to plan something. I can talk to the President about that tonight. We will all be at his birthday party tonight, as you know,” he said.

On Monday, Traisorat met with Zubiri, and the two talked about cultural events that could be held in 2024 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of links between the Philippines and Thailand.

They also talked about ways to improve cooperation, especially in agriculture, tourism, and parliamentary relations through the Philippine-Thai Parliamentary Friendship Association, which was just set up in the Philippine Senate.

Zubiri also invited Thailand to the 31st Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum, which will take place in November. Traisorat promised that a high-level Thai group would be there. (via PNA)