JCP108

Here's some math: If it takes 25 minutes to process one person, a plane of 400 people would take 10,000 minutes, or 7 days to process (if there is one processed at a time). If they had 14 processing stations running non-stop simultaneously, then that plane-load would take 12 hours before the travelers could proceed to baggage claim. But, what if another plane lands during that 12 hours?! In order for the plane load to be processed in only 1.2 hours, they would have to have 140 processing stations running non-stop.

So, if it takes 25 minutes per person to process them out, it would take total of 10,000 minutes, or 7 days, to process 400 people arriving on an international flight. If they have 14 processing stations running non-stop, then the people on that plane could be all on their way to baggage claim in only 12 hours. Of course, what about the people on other planes that arrive during that twelve hours?

So, "no quarantine" now means about 2 days of quarantine if you have to get a test within 24 hours of arrival and wait for the results before traveling free outside of quarantine. They are still using the phrase "without being required to enter quarantine." This is confusing to me.

There was a farang living long-term in Thailand two or three years ago who had a Youtube channel where he mainly talked about an orphanage that he helped out at times. He monetized the channel and donated all the proceeds to the orphanage. Thai authorities contacted him and told him to demonetize the channel or it was "work" and he would be deported. Also, in one of the videos, he bought a bunch of chicken and donated it to a fund-raising event for the orphanage and then he had the audacity of helping set up for that event which apparently was considered "work" and also mentioned in the threat to deport him. I forget the guy's name now.

October 19 and still no clarification of whether "no quarantine" means no quarantine. Every minute that passes, thousands of people are booking holiday flights to destinations other than Thailand.

Um, it does... https://www.bbc.com/news/health-56904993#:~:text=Those given a first dose,than unvaccinated people%2C PHE found.

Good to know. There's another scenario which has happened on Phuket....you don't test positive, but someone sitting near you on the plane does. Then you are put into quarantine. Wonder if it would pay for that?

"He did not refer to this as quarantine by name." So, if we don't call it quarantine, it's not quarantine.

I can imagine some Covid insurance policies not covering you if you simply test positive but are asymptomatic. Could end up being a big out-of-pocket expense.

ASEAN can now note that there is even more confusion.

It's not the double- and triple-vaccinated travelers that pose a risk to Thailand. It's the un-vaccinated populace of Thailand that poses a risk to the travelers. Just require a test before flight and proof of vaccine. Do that, and you might save some of the high season this year.

Complete <deleted>. They ask you, "are you sick?" So, you say, "no." They collect the money and you download a certificate. Sounds like a great method to protect public health.

They won't in the U.S. even for $150.

This is a circus.

If they thought vaccines provided safety, they would have vaccinated people in Thailand by now. No. That's not what they mean, I'm sure. What they probably mean is by keeping all sorts of things in place (multiple PCR tests on arrivals, keeping some sort of quarantine, transporting us in hazmat suits on sealed routes in vehicles driving through a land filled with unvaccinated Thai people, and such) to maintain the view that it's we dirty farangs who threaten the safety of people in Thailand rather than the fact that such a low percentage of the population has been provided vaccines.

Did he clarify if "no quarantine" for vaccinated visitors actually means no quarantine?

Nothing yet. As it is said to begin November 1, I suggest checking back in around December 15.

Oh, all those places can just convert themselves into family-friendly restaurants like Chuck-E-Cheese or something. Didn't you hear? Thailand is going to attract families now instead of the kind of people who have traditionally enjoyed Thai night life.

They have to: 1) come up with a reasonable plan that tourists actually find acceptable (not done, yet), and 2) enact that plan in a way that subsequent tourists can trust (unlikely...what happens if a person tests positive and spreads the word about the mandatory 14-day hospital incarcertation...or, what if a person is on a plane with a person who tests positive and they get quarantined, too?) This is October 16. No clear plan, yet.

I vote that they just require the test prior to flight and skip tests altogether after arrival.

It's already a failure. People make their travel plans ahead of time. November 1st is now only two weeks away and confusion reigns. They're still telling people to use the tracking app that doesn't work. They said "no quarantine" for vaccinated travelers from selected countries but now say one to two days of quarantine and can't decide on which countries are actually on the list. If they wanted to save this high season, clear rules for entry would have been in place two months ago.

You understand it correctly.

Did they publish a list of accepted vaccines?

I thought for that type of visa, once you have all your final documents submitted, at some point, the embassy just sends you a note with a specific date for the final interview rather than "giving the green light" to schedule it. What notice did you get from the embassy?

This is partly due to lack of freedom of the press. When they have these public announcements of such things, the press is not free to ask reasonable follow-up questions. Therefore, they can spout complete nonsense that isn't thought out and everyone just takes downt their notes and reports the face level of the announcement. Then, we thinking people who are less restrained ask the follow-up questions in forums like this one (which the Thai government seems to ignore). And, so on...