Photo courtesy of Akyra Hotels

The numbers prove it: Global tourists still love Thailand. Over 52 million passengers arrived or departed at the Kingdom’s six international airports in the first half of 2024, a 20.28 percent year-on-year increase as Thailand’s tourism resurgence keeps gaining momentum.

Of those passengers, 32.05 million were international, mainly from Asia, Europe, and the United States, according to Suriya Juangroongruangkit, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport.

Suriya cited the impressive statistics at the 45th-anniversary celebration of Airports of Thailand (AOT), the public company that manages the six international airports. The festivities were held at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center in Bangkok.

The numbers provide solid evidence that Thailand’s tourism is steadily and relentlessly regaining its strength after having been shut down during the pandemic. The Kingdom has long been lauded as a tourism success story, and more tourists visit Thailand each year than any other Southeast Asian destination.

The six AOT airports handle 95 percent of the Kingdom’s domestic and international flights, the Deputy Prime Minister said. The airports are in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket, all of which are leading tourist destinations.

The visitors using those airports contribute significantly to Thailand’s economy, spending over $63 billion in the Kingdom annually. Tourism is an essential pillar of the Thai economy, accounting for over 10 percent of growth directly and nearly 20 percent indirectly through related industries.

Just as significantly, the rise in traffic is fueling the government’s goal of establishing Thailand as an international aviation hub. Aside from investing in expanding and upgrading virtually all of its international air facilities, the government and private sector are also jointly building an aviation and aerospace industrial estate.

The aviation industrial park in the Eastern Economic Corridor advanced development zone will also have a maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility for local and international airlines.