Good news for travelers seeking to make a beeline to Europe. Italian carrier Air Italy (formerly Meridiana) has launched four-times-weekly direct flights between Bangkok and Milan.

Flights will initially run on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, with an additional one to launch on Saturdays starting Oct 28.

The airline’s Airbus A330-200 aircraft will take about 11 hours and 30 minutes to fly between Malpensa Airport in Milan and Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok. From Malpensa, you're any easy connecting flight from Rome, Naples or Catania, but you'll want to stick around at least a little while to explore the Italian fashion capital.  

Most importantly, we found return economy flights from approximately B16,000 in early December—leaving you with an extra B10,000 (or more!) spending money than if you'd gone with Thai Airways.