What will Phuket’s new high season look like? The winter aviation schedule begins on the last Sunday of October, and no one knows exactly what the months ahead will bring. But one sign is already difficult to ignore: despite higher fares, expensive fuel and geopolitical turbulence, the island is becoming easier to reach.

The latest name on Phuket’s flight map is GullivAir. The Bulgarian carrier will connect Sofia directly with Phuket once a week from 5 November, using a wide-body aircraft through March 2027. Bangkok joins the airline’s Thai network in the same week.

One Bulgarian flight will not make or break a Phuket season. What matters is the company it keeps.

The 2026/27 winter schedule is filling up with additional capacity from both established markets and places rarely seen on Phuket departure boards before. Europe is perhaps the most interesting signal of all.

At the IATA Slot Conference in Bangkok in June, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand listed London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Copenhagen, Cebu and a Chisinau–Phuket–Sharjah routing among the routes supported by winter slot allocations. Two European services are now firmly confirmed: Virgin Atlantic begins London Heathrow–Phuket on 18 October, three times a week, while SAS launches Copenhagen–Phuket on 9 December, operating two to three times weekly.

A slot allocation is not necessarily a ticket on sale. Plans change, aircraft move and some proposed routes never leave the spreadsheet. But airlines do not ask airports for capacity purely for decoration. They do it because somebody, somewhere, sees a market.

Elsewhere, the additions are already much more tangible.

Emirates increased Dubai–Phuket to three flights a day in July, making its Gulf hub an even stronger one-stop connection between Phuket and Europe. S7 launches Novosibirsk–Phuket on 27 October, initially four times a week before adding a fifth weekly service from 7 December. Arkia, meanwhile, has added Tel Aviv–Phuket, giving the Israeli market another direct option alongside El Al.

The Middle East is worth watching for another reason. After a year in which geopolitical headlines repeatedly threatened to disrupt travel, the region has proved remarkably resilient. Riyadh Air launched Riyadh–Bangkok on 3 September, while Saudia continues direct services from Riyadh and Jeddah to Phuket.

And for Phuket, Gulf aviation has never been only about visitors from the Gulf. Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi are among the hubs that make the island accessible from dozens of European cities with a single connection.

Europe, in other words, has not gone anywhere. Getting here may cost more than it did a few years ago, but long-haul demand is still very much alive.

Closer to home, the map is getting denser too. From 1 October, Thai AirAsia plans up to 20 daily Bangkok–Phuket flights across Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi, followed on 25 October by new direct Phuket–Khon Kaen and Phuket–Udon Thani routes, operating up to three and four times weekly respectively.

None of this necessarily means lower fares. Fuel remains expensive, fares are higher and airlines are operating in a world that has become unusually good at producing unpleasant surprises. Yet they are still adding Phuket. That may be the most useful forecast we have.

C9 Hotelworks founder Bill Barnett likes to put the equation very simply: “You cannot stay there if you cannot get there.”

And connectivity remains one of Phuket’s great strengths. From Russia and Europe to the Gulf, Israel and Asia, the number of direct and one-stop options continues to grow.

So what will the 2026/27 high season be like? For now, aircraft, frequencies and new routes are giving us the first answer. And they are pointing towards another very busy Phuket winter.

For current arrival and departure information, visit the official Phuket International Airport flight status page.