Sukhothai Airport Guide (THS)

By the bookingMentor Travel Desk · Updated October 22, 2026 · How we research

Sukhothai's airport runs to the rhythm of a handful of Bangkok Airways flights. This guide covers the open-air terminal, the transfer counter and the drive to New Sukhothai and the ruins.

Please note: Flights, hotels near the airport and car hire with driver on this page can be booked directly on bookingMentor. We list places on merit, and bookings never affect what we say about them.

What to expect

Sukhothai Airport (THS) is a privately owned airport in Sawankhalok district, Sukhothai province, built and run by Bangkok Airways. It lies about 27 to 35 km north of New Sukhothai by road and roughly 40 km from Sukhothai Historical Park. Its only route is Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, which makes it a direct way into the old capital for travellers landing in Bangkok on an international flight.

An airport built by an airline

Bangkok Airways started building at Sukhothai in 1992, and the first flight landed on 12 April 1996. The site covers more than 3,000 rai across the subdistricts of Khlong Krachong, Tha Thong and Yan Yao, and the airline uses much of it for projects beyond aviation.

The terminal is the reason people remember the place. In place of a closed hall, the buildings are open-sided Thai pavilions with tiled roofs on heavy pillars, drawing on Sukhothai-era architecture. The design won the Association of Siamese Architects' best architecture prize in 1998. Buddha images in several styles and a shrine to Phra Phrom stand in the grounds.

The organic farm and museum

About 600 rai of the airport land is an organic farm. It began in 1999 as a three-rai rice field and now supplies produce to the airline, the airport and the hotel on site. The farm runs the Khrua Sukho restaurant and an agricultural learning centre. A private museum on the grounds has three sections, devoted to fossils, elephants and petrified wood, with dinosaur fossils and a meteorite among the exhibits, all belonging to Bangkok Airways' founder, Prasert Prasarttong-Osoth.

The 2,100 m runway, opening hours and traffic

A single asphalt runway, 18/36, measures 2,100 m by 45 m. The airfield sits about 55 m above sea level and has Category 5 fire cover. The aerodrome operator works from 06:00 to 20:00 and air traffic control from 06:00 to 18:00, with security on site 24 hours. Flights cluster in short windows, so the airport is quiet for most of the day. The last published annual figures, for 2015, show 57,143 passengers and 1,473 aircraft movements.

Bangkok Airways turboprops to Suvarnabhumi

Bangkok Airways flies ATR turboprops to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, with flights grouped into two daily time slots. Schedules vary by season, between one and two rotations a day in recent timetables. The connection at Suvarnabhumi is the main draw: you can reach Sukhothai from an international arrival without crossing Bangkok, and fly back the same way. Thai AirAsia and Thai Lion Air fly to Phitsanulok, about an hour's drive south-east of New Sukhothai, which is often cheaper.

Check-in pavilion, lounge and transfer counter

Facilities are modest: a check-in pavilion, a passenger lounge open to all Bangkok Airways travellers whatever their fare, and a transfer counter in arrivals that sells the minivan shuttle into town. Snacks and drinks are available in the lounge, but there is no food court, so eat properly before you set off. First aid is provided at the airport. Banks, the post office and the Tourism Authority of Thailand office are in town. The Sukhothai Heritage Resort is about 1.2 km from the terminal for anyone with an early flight.

The 13th-century capital and its historical park

Sukhothai became a royal capital in the 13th century. In 1239 two brothers, Pho Khun Bangklanghao and Pho Khun Phameung, took the city from Mon control, and Bangklanghao ruled as Sri Indraditya, founding the Phra Ruang dynasty. The historical park covers about 70 km² with 193 ruins, including the remains of the royal palace and 26 temples inside the walls. Wat Mahathat, built between 1292 and 1347, is the most important. UNESCO inscribed the Historic Town of Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns, which also includes Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet, as a World Heritage Site on 12 December 1991.

Booking transport for the return trip

Arrive about an hour before departure, and book the minivan or a car for the return trip in advance, because there is no taxi rank or bus to call on at short notice.

Landside and airside

At THS, landside is the open pavilion area with the check-in counters and the arrivals transfer counter; airside is the departure area and Bangkok Airways lounge after security. Both are small and you can see your aircraft from most seats.