Thai Air Travel
Rewards
For
property investors that purchase second or holiday homes in Thailand, the
growing number of domestic flights offered by budget carriers has made domestic
travelling considerably more convenient and affordable in the last few years.
A
trip from Bangkok to stay in your villa or apartment on famed tropical islands
like Phuket and Samui once involved a 12-hour train or bus journey, but can now
be easily accomplished in a short one-hour flight.
Thai
Air Asia has become one of the Kingdom’s most popular budget carriers and
according to the national press, the airline recently announced plans to
introduce a new loyalty scheme for its passengers.
The
new scheme is an updated version of a loyalty scheme launched by Air Asia in
2011, and is predicted to increase global loyalty membership from 14 million to
23 million by the end of this year as it aims to strengthen Thai Air Asia’s
customer base by providing a clearer picture of which flights members can use
to redeem their points.
According
to Santisuk Klongchaiya, the commercial director of Air Asia, the programme will offer greater value to
customers who want to redeem their points when purchasing Air Asia tickets. A
total of 4,500 points can now be used to redeem a flight of less than one hour,
and passengers with 30,000 points are also eligible to redeem tickets on longer
flights of up to six hours. THB20 (US$0.59) is equivalent to one point, while
THB10 (US$0.30) is equivalent to one point when used towards the purchase of a
premium ticket.
For
property owners on Thailand’d largest island, Phuket, Air Asia offers plenty of
connections domestically and from locations across Asia. Travellers can fly
direct from Phuket to Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and
Singapore, among other destinations.
Meanwhile,
villa owners heading for their properties on Koh Samui increasingly use the
airline’s popular Bangkok to SuratThani flight, which connects them to the
island by boat from the Thai mainland. Air Asia also offers flights from Kuala
Lumpur direct to Surat Thani.