Japan's visa exemption for Thais woos low cost airline business

[webfact]

Japan's visa exemption for Thais woos low cost airline business



BANGKOK: -- Japan's visa exemption for Thai visitors has become a windfall for airline business in the country.

Now at least a budget airline has grabbed this opportunity to add more routes and flights to cater to the growing Thai visitors after the visa woo.

Not only are the airlines aiming to answer the increasing number of Thais traveling to Japan, they are vying to attract more Japanese tourists to come to Thailand as well.

Japanese exempted visa for short-term Thai travellers since July last year. This has prompted airline business to adapt themselves to keep pace with the trend.

The latest airline not to miss the bandwagon is Thai AirAsia X, a Thai affiliate of the Malaysia-based budget airline.

Thai Air Asia X is linking Don Mueang airport with Narita International Airport, east of Tokyo, and Kansai International Airport in Osaka, western Japan.

The airline’s launch of inaugural flights to Tokyo and Osaka, early this month, catching attentions from the Japanese media, because it is the first low cost carrier to offer services connecting Thailand with Narita or Kansai.

The airline aims to attract customers by selling tickets for 30 to 50 percent less than the major airlines.

Thai AirAsia X chief executive Nadda Buranasiri said the airline set to focus more on penetrating the Japanese market, by using Bangkok as the main point to receive Japanese visitors before spreading them out to other tourists destinations within the country.

The company believes this could help to stimulate domestic tourism.

The executive said Japanese also like to travel to see the cultures and natural beauties of places.

They will then return to the hotel to enjoy the eating, relaxation, spa, and shopping in the city area before returning home, and “We would like to be one of the parts to help build that kind of habits among Japanese tourists,” the executive said said.

Thai ambassador to Japan Mr Singhthong Labpisetphan also foresaw that Japan is, at the same time, trying to draw in more Thai visitors to the country.

This was apparent in traveling of executives of each city on roadshow to Thailand to promote and present their respective city’s potential, he said.

He said AirAsia X should use this opportunity to open more flights to Japan to, at the same time, attract more Japanese tourists to Thailand.

He went on saying most Japanese would opt to travel abroad during the months of July and August, which is the summer holidays in Japan.

Although the number of Japanese visiting Thailand during the summer wasn’t high, he believed it would increase, particularly by year’s end.

Thailand Tourism Organisation in Tokyo chief said Thai tourism has surpassed its lowest point and must get back on track in promoting about the country to hike the number of Japanese tourists to Thailand.

Thailand still has various attractive qualities that would maintain Thailand’s charm within the eyes of Japanese visitors. As every country in need of generating income from tourism sector is promoting its strongest points of natural beauties, national food and extraordinary shopping locations, Thailand has all the attractions mentioned.

But now it rests with cooperation from everyone to draw back foreign tourists to the country, he said.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/japans-visa-exemption-thais-woos-low-cost-airline-business/


-- Thai PBS 2014-09-10

[terryp]

lets hope they have upped their iodine intake before going....as many will be tourists in the fall out area ...just as the people planning on travelling to the Olympics

Japan is the last place i would visit (after Liberia that is)

[Thai at Heart]

Funny how these things 'woo' Thai consumers, but TAT "lures" foreign tourists.

[NongKhaiKid]

Funny how these things 'woo' Thai consumers, but TAT "lures" foreign tourists.

Maybe all in their English language dept have Masters Degrees in the language and have simply overlooked the fact that one of the usages of the word can be negative. Luckily that won't influence the tourists queuing up to flock here.

[taony]

I am looking at the Air Asia site now, there is a promotion to Osaka. Its about 9,000 before all the junk they add on at the end. I just don't get the scheduling on a lot of these low cost carriers though. Maybe they are paying for off peak landing slots or something? I never seem to manage to get a short get away to fall in place bc of the scheduling. Why do I want to leave Bangkok late in the afternoon, 4:30 and then land in Osaka, where it will be very expensive for a hotel room, at midnight? The plane itself then takes off around an hour twenty minutes later, just after 1AM back to Bangkok. I'd rather leave Bangkok early in the morning, so if I have to take a day off, its worth it plus I get some time there after arrival. Then if the plane leaves in the afternoon Osaka time, I can get back to Bangkok at a decent hour and go to work the next day.

[JeremyBowskill]

Don't care about radiation, don't care about timing. It's my favorite country in the world and look forward to taking advantage of this myself.

[jpeg]

I am looking at the Air Asia site now, there is a promotion to Osaka. Its about 9,000 before all the junk they add on at the end. I just don't get the scheduling on a lot of these low cost carriers though. Maybe they are paying for off peak landing slots or something? I never seem to manage to get a short get away to fall in place bc of the scheduling. Why do I want to leave Bangkok late in the afternoon, 4:30 and then land in Osaka, where it will be very expensive for a hotel room, at midnight? The plane itself then takes off around an hour twenty minutes later, just after 1AM back to Bangkok. I'd rather leave Bangkok early in the morning, so if I have to take a day off, its worth it plus I get some time there after arrival. Then if the plane leaves in the afternoon Osaka time, I can get back to Bangkok at a decent hour and go to work the next day.

That's why it's a 'promotion'. Duh

[taony]

No, its their only flight, regardless of the price. Duh.

[useronthenet]

Most european citizens can get 3 months visa exemption to Japan, something Thailand should take note of.

[Konini]

lets hope they have upped their iodine intake before going....as many will be tourists in the fall out area ...just as the people planning on travelling to the Olympics

Japan is the last place i would visit (after Liberia that is)

We had a few days in Tokyo about 20 years ago and loved it. Thinking about going again next summer and get a rail ticket and travel a bit.

As for the fall out area, if the Big Fella upstairs has you name on the clipboard for today, there's nothing you can do about it. Enjoy life until your name comes up on the clipboard.

[Konini]

I am looking at the Air Asia site now, there is a promotion to Osaka. Its about 9,000 before all the junk they add on at the end. I just don't get the scheduling on a lot of these low cost carriers though. Maybe they are paying for off peak landing slots or something? I never seem to manage to get a short get away to fall in place bc of the scheduling. Why do I want to leave Bangkok late in the afternoon, 4:30 and then land in Osaka, where it will be very expensive for a hotel room, at midnight? The plane itself then takes off around an hour twenty minutes later, just after 1AM back to Bangkok. I'd rather leave Bangkok early in the morning, so if I have to take a day off, its worth it plus I get some time there after arrival. Then if the plane leaves in the afternoon Osaka time, I can get back to Bangkok at a decent hour and go to work the next day.

We're going to Saigon in November. Air Asia had this big Mega Sale on, I priced it up, added one suitcase between us no other extras. Then looked at Vietnam Air. Full service airline, cost about $4.50 more. I know how easy it is to think that the budget airlines will always be cheaper, but it's certainly worth checking out full service using something like SkyScanner or going directly to the website of local airlines and pricing (and signing up for the newsletters).

There's an excellent thread on ThaiVisa which people notify everyone following it when the newsletters they subscribe to have outstanding special offers. I've saved a good bit of money by reading the posts as they come in, jumping to attention, going to the website in question and pricing flights for the dates I want.

I also use MTT Pattaya who is (or was, not sure) a sponsor on Thai Visa. Guy is a really good bloke and can sometimes get even better prices than I can online.

The way I look at it is providing it's not going to cost me extra, someone may as well benefit from the commission rather than me paying the airline directly.

[Konini]

Just checked again, Air Asia comes in at 3,870 return with one checked bag, Vietjet comes in cheaper at 3,270 (appears to include one checked bag up to 15kg, but quite unclear unless you to through the stage of putting in your name, address and passport number). Vietnam Air comes in at US$204 which is 6,572 - I've missed out on the special promotion, with that fare being marginally more expensive than Air Asia. When you see a really cheap fare, you need to bag it before it disappears.

I just can't wait for the direct flights from Chiang Mai - it's going to cost marginally less for a (domestic) return CNX-BKK!

[Chao Lao Beach]

Most european citizens can get 3 months visa exemption to Japan, something Thailand should take note of.

You mean, Thailand giving 90 days like most countries ?