Caldera

I think once the pandemic has blown over (in whatever way), immigration policy really could go both ways and it remains to be seen. They could continue with their ongoing tightening campaign, or they could relax for a while to make up for lost income.

This is quite mind blowing, an arrival stamp with a permitted to stay date in the past. It does seem sensible along the lines of what some posters have written though. Good on them for being surprisingly pragmatic! Let's see if there will be more reports / consistency.

Very tricky to predict at this point. They might see that as their chance to finally sell tourists their own compulsory insurance, or require insurance upon entry with specifics TBD. With that in place, they might be willing to waive quarantine for those coming in from low-risk areas.

I don't expect a full return to (the old) normal anytime soon.

That's something I'm always concerned about. If my phone breaks or goes missing while being abroad, I wouldn't be able to install the K-Plus app on another phone and re-authenticate it until my return to Thailand. I tend to use it quite a lot and losing it would be a major inconvenience - too bad that they don't have a procedure in place.

Digging up more dinosaurs, are we?

No new ideas, no innovation, just good old boys and rampant stagnation.

I think the economy still has a long way to go (down), while new condos keep hitting an already deteriorating market. I'd guess we haven't seen the lows yet!

It's safe as houses.

Thailand's published numbers indicate that there's no community transmission and that all new cases are safely locked away in state quarantine.

That being the case, people can gather as much as they want - if none of them is infected, none of them can spread the virus to others obviously.

Somehow this has to be brought in sync. Either the numbers are bogus and need to be fixed to reflect reality. Or the lockdown needs to end.

While I don't like infamous WMD liar Colin Powell, I like the imbecile who's president even less. Hopefully his election defeat will be decisive and painful.

9 hours ago, Oldie said:

I am wondering. If I planned a holiday in Thailand and cannot go back to my home country after my planed holiday is over I would have a problem. But if I wanted to stay very long I would have applied for a visa allowing this. So what kind of people are happy that they don't have to go back? 

Snow birds come to mind, retired people who usually spend the winter in Thailand and then go back home. Depending on where "home" is, they might well have been happy to sit out the pandemic in Thailand.

Thai Airways has announced that they have cancelled ALL international flights till the end of July.

The big question is, why? Do they already know that Thailand's inbound passenger ban will be extended past June 30? Or is there another reason?

Shameful, but hey, if they can find it in them to be proud of this "achievement", then by all means, celebrate. Ignorance (to the world outside of the fairytale kingdom) is bliss!

That's very sad. I enjoyed their special screenings, always a great atmosphere. I'll miss Scala.

Even that short excerpt could have used some fact checking. Firstly, no visas on arrival available right now (COVID-19). Secondly, for someone who's 55+ years old, usually no documentation whatsoever is required. Finally, no special rules for retirees from the US.

No idea what the clown is smoking.

Let's have a wet day each month. Great idea, really! Next.

That's an interesting offer and I've also seen a few others I had never seen or heard of before. Maybe these "agents" and the immigration officers they are "working with" got creative, because other income streams have dried up. Or it's an outright scam in some cases. Hard to tell!

Excellent news. Since we cannot hang them, I hope they'll get locked away for a long time.

It will really depend on how they will manage things. If the borders reopen well before the amnesty ends AND entering the neighboring countries from Thailand won't be too onerous, the exodus could be spread out over weeks. My personal guess is that they will FAIL at this, so I'm planning accordingly.

An observation tower where there is nothing to see. That's a new one, even in Thailand.

Oh look, more Thai propaganda. I'm sure the fact that Netflix (the original) isn't influenced by the Thai government is a big part of its success in Thailand.