First Manchester to Bangkok flight depart

The inaugural flight connecting Manchester Airport to Bangkok departed 26 November, connecting the North of England with the world’s most visited city for the first time.

The new service operated by Norse Atlantic Airways means hundreds of thousands of passengers from the North will benefit from direct flights to the Thai capital. Last year 230,000 people from Manchester Airport’s catchment area travelled to Thailand’s capital – either on connecting flights or from a London airport.

With 32.4 million visitors in 2024, Bangkok was the world’s most-visited city according to the Global Tourism Forum. Its popularity is driven by its rich culture, nightlife and good value for money – as well as being a good starting or end point for travelling around the wider region. The city is also growing in importance globally for business travel, thanks to Thailand’s local strengths in manufacturing.

Manchester Airport Commercial Director Stephen Turner said:

“We’ve been working hard to secure a route to Bangkok for some time so it was a huge moment to see the inaugural flight of our new service with Norse Atlantic Airways take off last night.

“Bangkok is one of those real bucket-list destinations for so many people because it’s such a vibrant and exciting place – that’s why so many people go there every year making it the world’s most visited city.

“And now people in the region can do that directly from Manchester Airport – the UK’s global gateway in the North.

“It also opens our region up for people coming here from Thailand – from our amazing cities and stunning scenery to our cultural scene and our football clubs, which we know are very popular among Thai fans.”

The Norse Atlantic Airways inaugural Bangkok flight departed from Manchester Airport’s brand new £1.3 billion Terminal 2, which is almost complete after a 10-year transformation programme. All Manchester Airport’s airlines except Ryanair now operate from the new terminal.

The new service will run weekly through the winter until March 2026 when tourist demand begins to decline for the summer monsoon season.