Senior Player

Nope. This "new wave developing in the country of origin" is the same highly transmissible Omicron variant that's barely caused a ripple elsewhere in the world and is currently on the wane. So I don't believe @smedly's statement was that rash.

Why would anyone take an "enjoyable trip" to China—sounds like an oxymoron? Their Zero-Covid policy is not reaping any benefits or rewards apart from crashing their own economy. No thank you. The same reason I'm not booking a flight to Thailand right now is the same reason I'm not hopping on a jet plane to China—both countries have yet to learn to live with Covid. And yes, Covid (as in the recent Omicron strains that are currently ripping through China) is on the wane throughout the rest of the world. Of course, there will be more subvariants that come along, such as the new Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 from South Africa. And, since you asked, the medical experts believe that more than 90% of South Africans are estimated to have natural immunity against Covid which could limit the pressure on hospitals in the near future, so don't worry about South Africa. And that's the thing worth remembering, most countries now have a robust protection against this severe disease, apart from the ones that went for Zero-Covid (or so it would seem). Just ask Xi Jinping. Though, I DO endorse your belief (or hope) that the Thai Pass will be got-rid-of by September or October. Let's hope common sense finally prevails.

Immaterial. Britain scrapped its remaining two-tier international travel restrictions on 18th March, and Thailand has not. The bone of contention is that Thailand is just getting around to "considering" dropping its restrictions for its own citizens when there's no anatomical difference between Thais and "Farangs" when it comes to catching Covid. Scrap this nonsense now for all, for the sake of all the people in Thailand depending on tourists and related businesses. Now is as good a time as ever for Thailand to review its regulations and reduce the mind-numbing photocopies, uploads, and red tape associated with every run of the mill task of getting into Thailand and holidaying there.

As many of you have already pointed out, there's the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants from South Africa that can supposedly evade immunity and cause symptoms in people who were infected with their parent strain just months ago. Yes, I do believe that Thailand might have broken the back of this current Omicron wave. However, there will be more subvariants coming along that will test Thailand's resolve. I just hope the country learns to live with the virus like many other countries are doing right now. Of course, South Africa now has the first of the new subvariants, having skipped the Omicron BA.2 wave — though the new subvariants (BA.4 and BA.5) are unlikely to do much more than create a new wave (or ripple) of mostly sniffles. Also, I cannot for the life of me understand the furore that has arisen from some of you claiming England has had a recent spike in deaths from the BA.2 strain. Deaths in England never breached 250 a day in April, similar to levels seen in bad flu seasons. I should also point out that hospital admissions peaked at just over 2,000 — half of the peak in January 2021 — and more than half were likely admitted for a different illness and tested positive incidentally. And again, hospital admissions have dropped for the 22nd day in a row here in the UK. So let's put things into perspective, people.

I'm not one to stick up for Doris, but it's down to the botched decision-making by the Bank of England for not raising interest rates, allowing inflation to run rampant at 7 per cent – more than triple the target set by the Government. Anyway, looks like the BoE will be raising the base rate anytime soon, but will it be enough? Probably not.

Must admit, this is the first I've heard about any annual migration of expats leaving Thailand and returning home to enjoy their own summers. Considering that summer hasn't even peaked its head above the parapet here in Europe, why would there even be any kind of exodus yet? Possibly next month, but early May?! Sorry, I don't buy this. I think it's more face-saving PR from Thai immigration.

To be quite honest, 300 baht is the least of my worries when travelling to Thailand. It's paying for an expensive flight and holiday, then testing positive in a country that hasn't learnt to live with Covid yet. I can take the 300 baht hit, really I can. Just don't expect me to want to be treated as a flying germ when your country is already infected with all the existing strains, which are only a real threat to those with existing comorbidities.

The WHO also praised China's Covid response. Now let me see, how is China’s Zero-Covid policy going there right now?

Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn obviously doesn't talk to the PM, as the Thai government has said it has NOT cancelled the Thailand Pass registration requirement for foreign travellers yet, but it will be made more conve­nient and quicker to obtain. Well, I'm just going to have to take their word for it because I'm still not booking a flight to Thailand until they totally drop all this red tape and learn to live with Covid like many Western countries currently do. Tourism professionals say Thailand's complicated entry rules are now holding back recovery in an industry that contributed 12% of GDP before the pandemic. Forward bookings for 2022 show Thailand "reaching" 25% of pre-pandemic levels. If the Thai government is happy with roughly 25% of pre-pandemic tourism then they can stick to their present course, but they can do so without the other 75% visiting Thailand.

What is an anti-vaxxer? Every time I have travelled to Thailand I've ensured that I had my typhoid, tetanus, diphtheria, polio, hepatitis B and even rabies shots—all at my own discretion. These were all medically approved vaccinations and not issued under some medical emergency use. In other words, they've all passed years of rigorous testing to meet the necessary guidelines that we fully expect and therefore understand what their side-effects are. Not so with these latest wonder drugs. Some people are even completely unaware of their efficacy (how long they actually work for) and if they even work at all against certain strains. This, of course, makes informed consent near to impossible. Add to this the snobbery of which pharmaceutical brand works better than another, and we've reached an impasse. Then there's those that have every shot, including their boosters, who still fret that they'll catch it from someone who doesn't have this magical protection, despite their own insistence that it offers every medical benefit. The mental gymnastics they'll go through to illustrate that their vax is "null and void" if they should come into contact with an actual carrier is quite lamentable. So who is the real anti-vaxxer? Perhaps its someone who takes it but doesn't believe in its effectiveness or overall protection?

As I posted elsewhere, shifting your vaccination status to the TM6 form is still NOT living with Covid. Until the entire bureaucratic system is scrapped and the country adopts the UK approach, which is all travellers are treated equally with or without these vax shots, I won't be booking a flight there.

Scrapping the Thailand Pass is a step in the right direction. However, transferring it to the TM6 immigration form is still not the answer if you want to boost tourism. Travelling to the UK you do not need to complete a UK passenger locator form before you travel, take any COVID-19 tests or quarantine when you arrive in England. This applies whether you're vaccinated or not, which is just as it should be. When Thailand scraps all its bureaucratic COVID-19 rules, I'll consider booking a flight.

True. I'd also flown back to England before my first year was fully up and re-entered to get an additional 11 or 12 months on the first visa, something you were allowed to do. It was on my next visit after this that I just went for a bog standard visa exempt. But you're right, I've never done back-to-back visa exempts. Well, not since 2011, and I didn't have a problem even then. One thing I've noticed, and there's no exact science to it, but I think certain people are just pulled up and made an example of, especially in front of long queues.

Surely it doesn't matter what your previous visa history is when entering Thailand, as personal circumstances can often change. For instance, I came in on a 1-year visa once, but then the next time I visited I just went for a normal 30-day exempt which I was perfectly entitled to do. The only thing the immigration officer said to me upon arrival was: "Only staying for 30-days this time, not a whole year?" My reply was "not this time" or words to that effect. He simply smiled, quickly stamped my passport and I was waived through.

I promised myself I would never respond to amateur armchair critics, but as you decided to trumpet the fallacy that the UK has had the worst (if not one of the worst) Covid deaths in the world, I feel this needs to be addressed. Firstly, the UK is divided into 4 nations which each have a separate response to treating and controlling the virus. Secondly, it's how the deaths are recorded. Thirdly, a recent study published in the Lancet, showed Britain’s Covid death toll—as measured by excess deaths per 100,000—is far from being the worst in the world or indeed the worst in Europe. The U.K. ranks roughly in the middle of a global league table of excess death rates, coming 102nd out of 191 countries and territories. Previously, countries have been judged by Covid death rates alone, which relies on infections being accurately recorded. These would place Britain at 168—or 24th worst. Lastly, the UK population had one of the most rigorous daily Covid testing of any nation on earth, so it wouldn't at all be surprising that the country would record much higher infection rates than many others. For the record, I still haven't caught the virus here in England after 2 years and I fall into the higher risk category!! Though I DO agree that lockdowns have had a terrible domino effect on the UK as a whole, with life-threatening hospital treatments for serious medical conditions being put on hold. But that is another subject entirely, and questions the folly of locking-down a nation of healthy people rather than adopting "focused protection" of the most vulnerable instead.

The last time I read anything about dropping all restrictions it was to be done on 1st of July. This was on the proviso that the virus became endemic and meets the approval from the World Health Organisation (WHO). Are you saying the Thai authorities have brought the date forward from July 1st since this previous announcement?

And they're both correct. Just in case anyone from TAT is reading this, I won't be booking a flight to Thailand until ALL restrictions are lifted. And just to make sure that the Thai government doesn't do another U-turn, I will be leaving it for a couple of months after their so-called 1st of July Victory-Day with the proviso of it being "dependent on incoming infection rates and approval from the World Health Organisation (WHO)". Not sure why Thailand has to wait for the WHO giving them the green light, but there you go. With a good wind at my back, I might even be sunning myself in Thailand by early September at this rate.

What's the vaxx status for entering Thailand right now from the UK? There doesn't appear to be any info on their Thai embassy website for how many jabs are needed to avoid a longer quarantine. Is it 2 dose or is it 3 (the so-called booster)?

I don't know whether you're aware but there's now a nasal spray available that's passed its Phase 3 clinical trials called the SaNOtize Nitric Oxide Nasal Spray designed to kill the Covid-19 virus in the upper airways, preventing it from incubating and spreading to the lungs. I honestly no longer see the need for this constant barraging of the unvaxxed when a few squirts up the hooter will be the future. It's also just been approved in India, Israel, Bahrain, Indonesia & Thailand.

Dropping ALL restrictions is the only way I see things ever picking up again. Sure, I'm vaxxed but I'm not jumping through hoops, getting RT-PCR tests, self-ATKs, or uploading a Certificate via the ‘Mor Prom’ app just for a holiday. Nor do I want to wear a mask for a 12-hour flight. For me, this is welcome news. Though the proof will be in the pudding.

I've just watched a few vloggers on YouTube and I've never seen the place looking so dead—bars empty, shops shuttered-up or closed, streets practically deserted. Still too many hoops to jump through for a stress-free holiday. When ALL restrictions are dropped that's when I'll be heading back out there again.

A very illuminating read. Provides further grist for the mill as to why I won't be booking a flight to Thailand any time soon.

I agree, it can be a total headache if you've never had to do it before. Fortunately, I've had some experience with the Thai electronic visa application system with these types of files. However, there are free converters available online that allow you to upload your PDF which converts the document to a JPG format and then downloads it to your PC, or phone, or whatever device you use. There is no real need to purchase software and install it as it can be done totally for free via a website. Here is such a free online PDF converter to JPG site... https://pdf2jpg.net/ There's plenty more, but that was the first one I happened across. You just need to make sure your settings for the file size come within the Thailand Pass upload parameters before you upload the final converted JPG file from your PC to the Thailand Pass site. I hope that helps.

If you're doubled jabbed and pass the required PCR tests, then it doesn't matter what your home country daily infections are. But don't fret, you can have my place, because I'm not flying to LOS, despite being doubled jabbed. Not until these hurdles are totally removed.

I agree with @smedly. Until Thailand drops all the money gouging red tape and hoop jumping, it won't generate that much interest for the UK as a whole. Apart from the usual die hard, desperate to return types, this won't do anything to tempt your average seasoned traveller. It's now been close to 2 years since I last travelled to Thailand, but I won't be packing my bags or booking my flights anytime soon. Not only is the costly quarantine procedure, tests and Covid insurance still in place, but what's actually open to enjoy once I've been released from my holding pen and how will I be treated when I finally emerge? Realistically I'm looking at next year, but even then it's going to take some convincing and big incentives before I'll feel comfortable with the idea.