Archive · 20 Jul 2026
Thailand drops to 5th largest market for Indian travelers
Thailand used to be the second most popular place for Indians to travel to, but it has now dropped to the fifth spot.
This happened because Thailand changed its visa rules, which confused travelers and made them cancel or postpone their trips.
The government wanted to fix problems with people staying too long or working illegally, but the changes caused a big drop in the number of flights and seats available.
Even though Thailand later changed the rules back, the damage was already done, and other countries like Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and the UK became more popular.
Airlines also started offering more flights to places like Italy, the Netherlands, Indonesia, and Japan to make up for the loss.
Thailand dropped from 2nd to 5th largest overseas market for Indian travelers due to visa policy changes.
Scheduled seat capacity between India and Thailand declined by 29% year-on-year to 218,428 seats in July.
Thailand's visa policy flip-flop caused confusion and a sharp pullback in airline capacity.
Saudi Arabia became India’s second-largest international aviation market in July, driven by a surge in Umrah travel.
The United Kingdom improved its ranking to fourth place with a 27% year-on-year increase in seat capacity.
- Who
- Indian travelers and Thai government
- What
- Thailand's drop in rank as a travel destination for Indians due to visa policy changes
- When
- July 2024
- Where
- Thailand and India
- Why
- Visa policy flip-flop and subsequent decline in travel demand
Tourism Industry Concerns
Government Policy
Visa Policy Impact
Tourism Industry Concerns
The visa policy flip-flop caused confusion and a decline in bookings, significantly impacting the tourism industry.
Government Policy
The government aimed to address concerns over overstays and illegal employment by changing the visa policy.
- Current Rank
- 5th
- Previous Rank
- 2nd
- Seat Capacity Decline
- 29% year-on-year
- New Visa Policy
- 30-day visa-free entry
- Saudi Arabia's Seat Capacity
- 307,751 seats in July
- UAE Seat Capacity
- 1.10 million seats in July
- Singapore Seat Capacity
- 229,659 seats in July
- UK Seat Capacity
- 218,697 seats in July