Starting January 1, Thailand will implement its electronic visa system (e-visa) for Indian travelers. However, while the 60-day visa exemption for Indian tourists will remain in effect, the e-visa would be for stays exceeding 60 days.
Clarifying the visa exemption, the Thai embassy in Delhi confirmed, “The 60-day visa exemption for tourism and short business purposes for Indian ordinary passport holders remains effective until further announcement.”
The e-visa system will replace the regular visa process. On the e-visa website, the Thai ministry of foreign affairs states that the e-visa applicants would not need to submit their passports and supporting documents at the Thai Embassy anymore. It aims to process e-visa applications within 14 working days.
Thailand Visa Waiver: Last month, Thailand extended its visa waiver for Indians until further notice. Under the visa waiver, travelers will be able to stay for 60 days in Thailand during their visit, with the option to extend their stay by 30 days.
Till October this year, over 1.7 million Indians traveled to Thailand, surpassing its year-end goal. India was the third-largest source market, according to data from the Tourism Authority of Thailand, accounting for nearly 6% of its 28.8 million visitors.
Thailand tourism governor Thapanede Kiatphaibool said India is a high-spending market. The country is expecting INR 185 billion ($2.2 billion) in tourism receipts from India this year.
In order to capitalize on the surge of Indian tourists, three major airlines in Thailand have also announced new direct flights to India. Thai AirAsia X is commencing direct flights between Bangkok and Delhi, while Thai Lion Air is starting direct flights to Chennai and Kolkata. Thai Vietjet has also announced its plans to commence daily direct flights between Bangkok and Mumbai on December 22.
Air India Announces Service Upgrades
Full-service airline Air India will deploy its upgraded aircraft on key routes to Southeast Asia and Europe, the airline announced on Monday. This will complement Air India’s A350 and B777 aircraft with upgraded cabin interiors deployed on multiple U.S. and UK routes earlier this year. The airline is also set to optimize its international flight schedules.
Air India will deploy its retrofitted A320neo on all flights between Delhi and Bangkok next month. It will also increase its frequency to four flights a day from three on the route. It will deploy Vistara’s B787-9 and A321neo aircraft on the Delhi-Frankfurt, Mumbai-Frankfurt, Delhi-Singapore, and Mumbai-Singapore routes.
The airline is also shuffling its international schedule to improve international connectivity through India.
Air India also said that it will soon roll out a generative AI-driven ticket booking feature. The feature uses text and visual interactions interchangeably. It aims to fasten a guest’s journey through the booking flows.
India’s Tourism Sector to Double in 10 Years
The tourism sector in India is expected to double in value to $523 billion over the next decade, according to Julia Simpson, president and CEO of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC). In an interview with news agency PTI, Simpson added, “The travel and tourism sector employs 45 million people in India. In 10 years, the tourism sector in India will be providing jobs to 63 million people.”
However, she highlighted that India accounts for the third-highest greenhouse gas emissions in the tourism sector after the U.S. and China. “If you look at the impact of tourism in terms of the greenhouse gas emissions, it represents about 5% of all greenhouse gas emissions in India and that’s probably about 250 billion kilos of carbon dioxide every year.”
But the greenhouse gas emissions are not increasing in proportion to the growth in tourism. This means that India is becoming more efficient in travel and tourism, she noted.
Aviation Minister on Boosting Connectivity in Andhra Pradesh
Indian civil aviation minister K Rammohan Naidu has said he would take the initiative to increase flight operations in Andhra Pradesh’s Rajahmundry airport. The minister was inaugurating IndiGo’s new direct flight between Delhi and Rajahmundry. He said that he will look to add flights from Rajahmundry to Tirupati, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Varanasi, and Shirdi. He further shared that the work on a second terminal at the airport is underway.
The minister said efforts were on to build new airports and upgrade the existing ones. He also noted that earlier this month, direct flights between Rajahmundry and Mumbai were launched.
IndiGo has also launched a new direct flight between Delhi and Darbhanga in Bihar. The airline aims to connect these two destinations to its international network via Delhi.
Greece Eyes Indian Tourists
The tourism ministry of Greece is looking to attract new tourism markets in order to grow its revenue next year. As part of its strategy, Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni said that India is a priority market for the country.
“The number one market that we aim to open in 2025 is India,” Kefalogianni said. The minister added that facilitating visa issuance is important to attract Indian travelers. The government of Greece is looking to open consular services in Mumbai and Bengaluru to support its embassy in Delhi.
The country aims to increase tourist arrivals from India by 15% in 2025. It is also looking at launching direct flights between India and Greece to reach its goal.
Star Air Expands to New Destinations
Regional Indian airline Star Air has announced its expansion to two new destinations within the country: Raipur and Jharsuguda. Beginning January 1, the airline will commence direct flights between Jharsuguda and Hyderabad.
New direct flights between Jharsuguda and Raipur and Jharsuguda and Lucknow will commence in February, the airline said. With this, the airline’s network will expand to 24 destinations.
