Start here: Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus — join, earn, redeem and status

Step 1: What Royal Orchid Plus is and who it suits

You will learn: what the programme is, who may hold an account, and whose travel it fits.

Membership in Royal Orchid Plus is subject to the Program Conditions, which THAI may revise at any time [1]. The programme is open to any person 2 years of age or older who has a mailing address in a country that has not prohibited participation in frequent flyer programmes, and corporations or other legal entities cannot be enrolled as members [1]. THAI has the sole right to interpret and apply Program Rules, and the terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Thailand [1].

It suits individual travellers flying THAI and Star Alliance carriers, because miles can be earned on all scheduled THAI and Star Alliance flights except on code-share flights with aircraft not operated by THAI or a Star Alliance airline [2]. On airlines that have a joint agreement with THAI, mileage may be accrued on certain flights only [2].

Go deeper: Start here: airline miles for how mileage currencies work in general, and the THAI (TG) programme reference for the airline itself.

Step 2: How to join

You will learn: where the enrolment form lives and which details must match your passport.

To participate, an applicant submits a completed enrolment form at www.thaiairways.com or the THAI Mobile Application, indicating acceptance of the Terms and Conditions [1]. Only one person can be enrolled per Royal Orchid Plus account, and membership is listed under the participant's full name in English including title, if applicable in the member's passport [1].

Profile updates require personal documentation such as a citizen ID or passport, and a name change requires the legal name-change certificate attached with the current passport [1]. Retroactive credit on THAI or participating airline partners is not given for flights taken prior to enrolment [1]. All membership cards are available in digital format and can be downloaded via the THAI Mobile Application [1].

Go deeper: the Royal Orchid Plus programme hub collects every Flyerfolio page on the programme, grouped by task.

Step 3: How earning works

You will learn: how a flight turns into miles, what does not earn, and how long the miles last.

It is the responsibility of each member to state or enter their membership number at the point of reservation and to present the membership card at check-in, and THAI reserves the right to deny mileage claims when membership information has not been included or presented as required [2]. Credit is based on the distance between origin and destination as determined by THAI and/or Star Alliance airlines, and where connecting flights require a change of flight number, credit is given for each segment [2]. Mileage is accrued only by the member who travels, regardless of who pays for the ticket [2].

On THAI, mileage is determined by the fare paid and the class of service flown: actual miles flown are earned in all classes plus applicable class of service bonus miles, at 100% to 110% in Economy Class, 110% in Premium Economy Class, 125% to 150% in Royal Silk Class and 200% to 250% in Royal First Class [2]. On international THAI flights on discounted Economy Class fares, G booking class earns 50% of actual miles flown, K, S and V booking classes earn 75% and W booking class earns 25%, while L class is not eligible for mileage accrual [2]. For THAI-operated flights of less than 500 miles in distance, a minimum of 500 miles is earned in all eligible booking classes [2].

No mileage is accrued on unused, forfeited, refunded, Award, free, charter flight, no value, agency or industry, denied boarding, infant fare, unpublished fare or non-revenue tickets [2]. Miles are accumulated solely by the enrolled member and cannot be combined with or transferred to other Star Alliance or partner loyalty programme accounts, and double dipping mileage credit with other programmes is not allowed [2]. Boarding passes, electronic ticket payment and other payment receipts should be retained until mileage has been credited [2].

Mileage that is not automatically credited can be claimed online, or through the Members Service Centre or any THAI ticketing office worldwide, within 180 days of the activity date [2]. Miles are valid for 3 years: miles accrued in each quarter of a given year and not redeemed expire at the end of the corresponding quarter three years thereafter, and expiring miles not redeemed by the last day of that quarter are void and deleted from the account [1].

Go deeper: the Royal Orchid Plus partner earning guide, How to earn miles, and the mileage expiry calculator for dating a balance by quarter.

Step 4: How to use miles

You will learn: when miles leave the account, what can change on an Award, and how long the ticket lasts.

For online Award redemption, miles are deducted from the account after the Award transaction is completed and a ticket is issued [3]. For Awards issued by a THAI ticketing office, miles are deducted within 3 working days of obtaining confirmation of Award reservations or before ticket issue, whichever comes first [3]. If Award tickets are not issued within the ticket time limit, the booking is cancelled and miles are re-credited to the relevant account, less any expired miles [3].

Prior to ticket issue, flight dates, routing (provided Award travel remains in the same zone) and the ticket holder name, member or Nominee, can be changed [3]. After ticketing, travel dates or flight numbers can be changed with a fee, while all other changes require mileage to be re-credited with a fee, less any expired miles, and new reservations requested [3]. Award tickets are valid for 1 year from the date of issue, and once travel has commenced no routing changes or mileage re-credits are permitted [3].

Totally unused and valid Award tickets may be returned for a mileage re-credit subject to service fees, and Award tickets redeemed by miles have no monetary value, so they cannot be exchanged for cash or credit against a credit card account [3]. All applicable taxes and surcharges are the responsibility of the Award ticket holder [3], and any tax liability arising from the redemption of Awards is the sole responsibility of the member [1].

Go deeper: Book Thai Royal Orchid Plus awards, Searching Star Alliance award space, Partner award booking channels and the glossary entry for the award change fee.

Step 5: Status: Silver, Gold and Platinum

You will learn: which tiers exist, what Silver and Gold require, and how Qualifying Miles are counted.

Royal Orchid Plus names Silver, Gold and Platinum membership [4]. The programme conditions publish the attainment criteria for Silver and Gold: Silver status requires 10,000 Qualifying Miles within 12 rolling months or 15,000 Qualifying Miles within 24 rolling months, and Gold status requires 50,000 Qualifying Miles within 12 rolling months or 80,000 Qualifying Miles within 24 rolling months, or 40 international sectors on THAI excluding travel in T, K, S, G, V, W and L booking classes within a 12 rolling month period [1].

Qualifying Miles are actual miles flown, subject to paid fare, on THAI and Star Alliance operated flights, and include applicable class of service Bonus Miles, while all bonus and promotional miles as well as all other partner miles are excluded from membership evaluation [1]. To retain Silver or Gold status, members must earn the specified Qualifying Miles within the current 24-month validity of status, with the same Silver and Gold mileage thresholds applied over either 12-month period or the entire 24-month period, and Gold can also be retained by completing 40 international THAI sectors, excluding T, K, S, G, V, W and L booking classes [1].

On attaining Gold and Platinum membership, the Royal Orchid Plus membership card and related materials arrive by Thailand postal delivery, and all membership cards are available in digital format for download via the THAI Mobile Application [1]. The programme conditions set out attainment criteria for Silver and Gold; Platinum is named as a tier, but no Platinum attainment criteria appear in those conditions [1] [4]. Platinum and Gold members whose status expired or will expire from 1 June to 31 December 2026 have that status extended to 30 June 2027 [4].

Go deeper: the Royal Orchid Plus status guide, the THAI Airways lounge programme page and Airline lounge memberships compared.

Step 6: Your first concrete action

You will learn: the five things to do now, in order, so that no flight goes uncredited.

1. Enrol at thaiairways.com or in the THAI Mobile Application, giving your name in full in English including title exactly as it appears in your passport; only one person can be enrolled per account (Royal Orchid Plus Program Conditions) [1].
2. Add your membership number to every THAI or Star Alliance reservation and present the card at check-in, because flights taken before enrolment cannot be credited [1] [2].
3. Keep boarding passes and payment receipts until the miles post, and claim anything missing within 180 days of the activity date (Mileage Accumulation Rules) [2].
4. Note the quarter in which each batch of miles was earned: those miles expire at the end of the same quarter three years later [1].
5. Before redeeming, read the Award conditions on changes, fees and the 1-year ticket validity (Award Redemption Rules) [3].

Next: read the Royal Orchid Plus status guide to plan a tier, or return to the Royal Orchid Plus programme hub for every Flyerfolio page on the programme.