United eyes White Lotus destination in latest flight expansion

The airline announced three new flights to smaller destinations in Southeast Asia.

Apr 2, 2025 - 15:54

United eyes White Lotus destination in latest flight expansion

While Thailand is currently under the spotlight created by the smash HBO hit "White Lotus", Southeast Asia in general has been seeing growing tourist demand for years.

Over 35 million international tourists came to Thailand in 2024 while Vietnam saw 17.6 million arrivals; both countries have been seeing their tourist numbers grow year after year since the covid-19 pandemic while in Vietnam's case they increased by a head-spinning 39.5% from 2023 to 2024.

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Thailand, Vietnam and Australia: These are United's new 2026 destinations

Going off of this increased traveler demand, United Airlines (UAL) just announced two new daily flights to Thailand's Bangkok and Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City.

Known in the industry as "fifth freedom" flights, the airline's existing routes from Los Angeles and San Francisco to Hong Kong will then go on to the new destinations; when booking, travelers can choose to either get off at Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) or go on further.

United has also introduced similar routes to Mongolia's through Tokyo's Ulaanbaatar and Taiwan's Kaohsiung through Narita International Airport (NRT) in October 2024.

The new flights to Thailand and Vietnam will become available on Oct. 26. When it comes to direct flights, the Chicago-based airline will also increase its Philippines service by a second daily route between San Francisco and Manila and launch its first direct flight between San Francisco and Adelaide, Australia on Dec. 11.

'Access to see and explore the world': United on new routes

The smaller city in South Australia expands United's service to larger capitals like Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. The upped Manila frequency, meanwhile, expands on a new route to the Cebu region popular with tourists that United added on to its U.S. flights to Tokyo in July 2024.

United's SVP of Global Network Planning and Alliances Patrick Quayle positioned this expansion as the airline offering better "access to see and explore the world, whether it's for relaxation, adventure or business."

Vietnam is another country that United Airlines eyed for its route network expansion.
Image source: Shutterstock

Tickets for both routes are already available to book on United's website, while the Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh flights will be added at a later date. The aircraft on which the new routes will run has also not yet been announced.

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The new routes bring United's Pacific network to a total of 32 different cities; the airline claims this is more than any other U.S.-based airline.

"Customers visiting can enjoy notable sites like The Saigon Opera House and Saigon Notre-Dame Basilica, scooter through rice field paths, try amazing Vietnamese flavors from open-air pho stalls and local street vendors, enjoy the bursting microbrewery scene, and much more," United writes of the new Ho Chi Minh flight.

United has announced a similar spate of flights to exotic and faraway destinations like Greenland's Nuuk, Spain's Bilbao and Portugal's Madeira Island in May 2024. All are seasonal flights that run during the periods when tourists are most likely to take them — many were launched due to specific traveler demand for either a direct or fifth freedom flight to smaller destinations that would have otherwise been accessible only by train or transfer to a regional airline.