Thai Airways (TG) is the flag carrier of Thailand, as well as the kingdom’s largest domestic and international airline. From its hub at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK), TG serves destinations from Europe to Australia, as well as across Thailand and throughout the rest of Asia. I flew Thai Airways often when I lived in Bangkok, and am excited to share insights gained over nearly two decades of travel in this area of the world.
Cabin class, seats & legroom
Thai Airways operates most international flights in a two-class configuration, featuring business class and economy class, while select domestic routes also feature business class. Beyond this, a limited number of international aircraft have first-class cabins.
Royal Silk Class
With the exception of regional routes within Southeast Asia, all Thai Airways international flights feature business class, which is branded as Royal Silk Class. The product the airline offers is anything but consistent, however.
While A350 aircraft and refurbished 777-300ERs feature 'staggered' seats in a 1-2-1 configuration, Thai’s 787-9 fleet features 1-2-1 seats in a 'reverse-herringbone' arrangement. If you’re flying on the 787-8, an Airbus A330 or older 777-300ER planes, meanwhile, you’ll be seated in an angled-flat bed configured as 2-2-2.
Adding to the complication is the fact that Thai Airways is famous for last-minute aircraft swaps, which usually switch out a newer aircraft for an older one. This has become so common that among the #avgeek crowd, 'getting TG’d' has actually become a meme!
The good news is that regardless of the seating situation, Thai’s Royal Silk Class catering is wonderful, featuring two full meals on longer flights to Europe and Australia, and one on services to Japan, Taiwan, China, Korea and more distant airports in Southeast Asia.
You’ll typically get a choice between a Thai option like gaeng kiaw wan gai (green curry with chicken) or larb (spicy pork or chicken salad), and a Western option like steak or chicken. Trust me when I say that you should always choose the Thai option!
Service onboard Thai is also exquisite, especially in Royal Silk. Many Thai cabin crew have more than a decade of experience, and manage to be both professional and efficient, as well as kind and personable. I also love their traditional Thai uniforms, which comprise beautiful silk dresses for women and bold, colourful suit jackets for men.
Domestic/regional business class
If you’re flying on one of Thai’s A320 aircraft, which fly most domestic routes and short regional services to Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar, 'business class' is akin to what you find in Europe.
Namely, economy class with the middle seat blocked off. In my opinion, this is not worth the extra expense, unless it’s a connecting flight purchased in conjunction with a long-haul flight and is 'included' anyway.
Premium economy
Although Thai Airways does not currently offer premium economy, the carrier announced in late 2024 that it would begin offering premium economy on select long-haul routes, starting in 2025. Keep an eye on Thai’s website to see if any flights you plan to take will offer this cabin class.
Extra legroom
Thai doesn’t monetise extra legroom seats as if they’re a separate cabin, as some other airlines do. However, you can pay extra to select bulkhead or exit row seats in advance, or slightly less to select normal legroom seats located towards the front of the cabin. I typically select the latter, as the most important thing for me is getting off the plane quickly.
Economy
Thai’s economy class tends to be more pleasant than economy class on other carriers, for a few reasons. One of them is aesthetic. I love the bright orange, pink, and purple colours seen throughout the cabin. Although these have deeper meanings as they relate to Thai culture, I find they also create a soothing and inviting atmosphere for passengers.
In-flight meals also tend to be better than average on Thai, even in economy. This is because Thai flavours, especially the spicy notes in curries and soups, tend to remain potent even at high-altitude.
Royal First Class
Once a fixture on the majority of Thai’s long-haul aircraft, Royal First Class is now only available onboard select variants of the 777-300ER sub-fleet. Featuring private suites in a 1-2-1 configuration and opulent add-ons like caviar and exclusive-vintage champagne, Royal First is a delight if you have the funds for it and are lucky enough to be on a flight that offers it.
Pre-flight experience
Here’s everything you need to know about the airport experience when flying with Thai Airways.
Baggage policy and fees
Thai Airways offers a generous baggage policy compared to airlines in Western countries. All passengers are entitled to at least 20 kg (45 lbs) of checked bags, without a specific restriction on the number of bags. Passengers travelling in premium classes or with elite status on Thai or its Star Alliance partners can check even more bags.
As someone who doesn’t check bags very often, my favourite part of Thai’s baggage policy relates to cabin bags. I don’t think I’ve been stopped even once for someone to weigh or inspect the size or weight of my hand luggage, in spite of having flown Thai no less than 100 times over the years.
Check-in
Thai Airways offers airport check-in for all international and domestic passengers in Bangkok, with both staffed desks and kiosks. At outstations, I’ve found that kiosks are usually the name of the game, although I personally almost always check in online.
One exception to this is if I’m flying business or first class and departing from Bangkok. In this case, I’ll go to Thai’s exclusive Royal Orchid check-in area, where there’s a premium, personalised experience that starts any trip off on a luxurious note. This is also just steps from the premium security and immigration queue, which exits directly into the Royal Orchid Lounge.
Lounges
Thai operates several Royal Orchid Lounges at Suvarnabhumi Airport, as well as a single Royal First Lounge. In my opinion, these lounges are somewhat outdated and cannot compete with other Star Alliance lounges at BKK, namely the ones operated by Turkish Airlines (TK) and EVA Airways (BR). TG also has a domestic lounge within domestic concourse A, and at select outstations including Chiang Mai (CNX) and Phuket (HKT).
Onboard experience
Here’s what you can expect onboard a Thai Airways flight.
Wi-Fi & entertainment
Thai Airways officially offers Wi-Fi onboard its A350 aircraft, as well as on the 787-9 and select 777-300ER planes. In practice, however, I find Wi-Fi often doesn’t work, or only works part of the time. I therefore don’t recommend purchasing access.
Seatback entertainment, on the other hand, tends to be a bit better, with Thai offering a better selection of both movies and TV shows than most other Asian airlines.
Do note, however, that while entertainment screens in Royal First and Royal Silk are uniformly huge and high-definition, they’re more variable back in economy. Unless you’re on an A350 or a refurbished 777-300ER, expect a small screen with mediocre definition and questionable responsiveness to touch.
Amenities
TG’s Royal Silk and Royal First class amenity kits, like the cabins and crew uniforms, feature an unmistakably Thai design. On a recent flight, I received one that was a collaboration with Jim Thompson, the most prestigious Thai silk brand, and featured designs that evoke the Thai epic Ramakien.
Loyalty programmes, miles & credit cards
Thai’s loyalty programme is known as Royal Orchid Plus. I have never personally found it to be very useful, even when I lived in Thailand.
Royal Orchid Plus
On the plus side, Royal Orchid Plus (often abbreviated as ROP) still awards points based on miles flown, rather than money spent. You’ll earn a percentage bonus if you’re an elite member of ROP or one of Thai’s Star Alliance partners, or are flying in first or business class on Thai or a partner airline. Cheaper economy fares may earn less than 100% of miles flown.
Redemptions are the reason I prefer to credit to another Star Alliance programme, such as Aeroplan or United MileagePlus, rather than ROP. Whether for flights on Thai or other Star Alliance carriers, redemption rates tend to be higher. Moreover, the award booking interface is clunky.
Credit cards
Like many Asian carriers, Thai Airways offers ROP credit cards only via local banking partners. This means that only citizens and residents of Thailand can hold these cards.
For UK-based travellers, it's probably not worth the effort of transferring points to ROP for travel on Thai Airways. As describes above, unattractive redemption rates and a poorly-designed website make this a questionable choice.
A better option is to transfer other points currencies to the more competitive programmes of one of Thai’s Star Alliance partners.
This KAYAK-commissioned article is presented as-is, for general informational purposes only, and may not be up to date. The opinions contained in the article are original to the author and reflect their authentic experience, which may vary significantly from the experience of others. Find more perspectives in our user reviews below.
