TheFreqFlyer

46 minutes ago, billd766 said:

Maybe you should clean your crystal ball more often.

 

You are only guessing with no basis in fact at all.

I'm not guessing anything.

Maybe you should read more.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/15/pfizer-ceo-says-third-covid-vaccine-dose-likely-needed-within-12-months.html

23 minutes ago, placeholder said:

Better to be a sheep than all those lemming refusing to be vaccinated.

The lemmings are the ones blindly accepting vaccination. Besides, that's what the talking heads on TV are telling them to do. Those refusing are the bright ones and certainly no lemmings. 

5 minutes ago, DrDave said:

I'm confused by this as well. 

I just did a quick check of available flights from Los Angeles to Bangkok departing tomorrow. The following are currently flying into BKK:

 

Singapore Airlines via Singapore

Qatar Airways via Doha

Asiana Airlines via Inchoen

Emirates via Dubai

Lufthansa via Frankfurt

Korean AIr via Incheon

 

... and that's just what appears on the first page of available flights - there are more.

So what does "resume international flights by November" mean when international flights are already serving Bangkok?

 

Not sure where you checked this, but many of the flight websites are showing pre-covid schedules, which is misleading. Even on the departures/arrivals board at BKK, all the usual flights are shown, with most of them showing up as "cancelled". This is totally absurd, given at least half of these flights haven't been in operation since March 2020 and will never return.

They should only list actual scheduled flights, which are about 10 or 20% of the usual number. 

Some of the airlines you mentioned operate daily, others only a few times a week. 

35 minutes ago, bermondburi said:

I wasn't referring to countries requiring mandatory vaccination, but airlines. Qantas, Singapore, and Emirates have all said they'll do it in the future. 

 

Some countries will undoubtedly require it for working visas etc, or to remain working in a country. There will be subtle pushes such as mandatory weekly PCR tests at your own expense if you don't, like in UAE right now. 

 

Western countries are small in number, and even in the good old bastion of democracy the UK, there are already companies with mandatory vaccination policies in place and this number will only grow. 

 

https://www-bbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.bbc.com/news/business-56113366.amp?amp_js_v=a6&amp_gsa=1&usqp=mq331AQHKAFQArABIA%3D%3D#aoh=16210792014015&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&amp_tf=From %1%24s&ampshare=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fbusiness-56113366

 

Agree with you that there will be medical exemptions..???????? Neglible number though so insignificant.

 

Why is a simple swab test inside the mouth on a baby criminal? 

It's not inside the mouth but up the nose. If you don't think that's child abuse then there's something wrong with you.  Thai authorities aren't the brightest - they simply do what they're told and if they see a newborn baby, they'll force a swab up their nose in the same way they would an adult. 

I'm afraid you're wrong - if you think westerners will take this sitting down. I don't see it happening.

UAE - not a good example. They're nearly as authoritarian as Thailand.

In Israel, vaccination certificates are hardly checked anymore. Soon they'll probably drop the whole thing and go back to normal.

I can see totalitarian governments like Thailand sticking to the most extreme application they can come up with, but it won't fly in the USA - Florida has BANNED vaccine passports, as have Texas, Arizona and an increasing number of states. Some have even banned future mask mandates.

You're barking up the wrong tree if you believe authoritarian countries like Thailand are in any way comparable to the free west.

For starters - there is no punishment for refusing to get vaccinated. In some companies that are trying to institute a mandatory vaccination policy - medical exemptions are always acceptable, as is testing, proof of recovery or simply being reassigned to a different position.

We're still under "pandemic rules" after all. Things will undoubtedly change as time goes by. In a year or two from now, I expect there to be relatively few restrictions left. The only maybe might be mandatory vaccination for travel, but even there covid testing, a medical exemption etc. are likely to be accepted. It will also depend on where you are coming from, or going to. In other words, the epidemiological situation. 

For instance between Australia and New Zealand NO vaccines and NO testing is required. Only a mask on the flight (for those aged above 12). I think as infection numbers go down, we'll probably see that happening more and more in other countries.

For example - I can foresee the following possibilities: flights between Taiwan and Vietnam in 18 months from now - no vaccine or testing required. But between Taiwan and Thailand, perhaps a test will be required. Between India and Thailand, a vaccine or test, or both. That's probably how it will happen.

Besides, Thailand has now stopped it's reduced quarantine for vaccinated travelers. This proves that vaccination alone won't be the golden key to unlocking "freedom" as some people have been led to believe. 

5 hours ago, thto said:

 

 

It is also not allowed by law of any country to force anyone to vaccine. What a bunch of idiots.

 

 

Although in Cambodia...it's exactly what the government has started to mandate:

https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50837153/vaccination-against-covid-19-is-mandatory-says-new-sub-decree/

5 hours ago, RJRS1301 said:

The principle of voluntary informed consent protects the right of the individual to control his own body. This code also recognizes that the risk must be weighed against the expected benefit, and that unnecessary pain and suffering must be avoided.

 

However is Thailand a signatory to the code??

I think for it be enforceable they would need to a signatory nation

That's something I'd need to look up, but I'd be surprised if Thailand weren't a signatory nation. I thought all UN member states automatically were? 

6 hours ago, Bradmeister said:

Let's see....hmmmm What do we have in Buriram thats so terribly important that the governor is threatening incarceration..... 

 

 A worldclass GP race track, a Popular Soccer Club, or would it be the Mechnized Army Bases? 

 

Yes, it may be he does not want a repeat

of last year (maybe the year before) where small arms went missing and people began liberating themselves....and doing some killing.

 

It may behoove the Ministry of Defense and of the Interior to start innoculations on all military bases. 

 

THE 9 DASH LINE IS LESS THAN 1000 Nautical MILES AWAY..... last thing we need is for our military to be weakened and our boarders wide open for an invasion.  

Aside from the GP track, Buri Ram is a boring, desolate and flat rice field with a few mountains in the south. It really is nothing special. Few foreigners have even heard of it. A friend last night asked me "what's Buri Ram" when I sent him a screenshot of this article. 

In other words, they want more censorship so the sheep take the vaccine. Got it. 

12 hours ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

I haven't spoken to any Thai Phuketian who has refused to get vaccinated...I only hear such talk among anti-social foreign elements of the population; which also explains the massive death toll in many Western countries. 

"Anti-social elements". LOL. No, the difference is Thais are sheep and don't ask questions. They'll fall off a climb if the government tells them to. Westerners, we value our freedoms more.

That stated, there are plenty of Thais questioning vaccination, particularly this one. 

22 minutes ago, JetsetBkk said:

 

Nice of them to give people a months notice...

 

June 15??? That's in a months time. 

I'm sure tourists are just dying to get to Phuket in July and walk around muzzled everywhere, happy to pay their 20000 Baht fines if they fail to comply. 

Think carefully about this plan. Indeed the rules are only in place until May 31 at this point. I wouldn't risk it. Thailand is under de-facto martial law right now and you could find yourself detained and placed in a field hospital if you're unfortunate enough to test positive. 

On 4/19/2021 at 11:10 AM, Dogmatix said:

 

 

It is pathetic how some government officials, particularly in distrct offices, act like little Hitlers and invent their own laws. 

 

I had a problem in a district office in Bangkok where I went for the supposedly joyous event of registering my marriage.  I had PR and was aware that the requirement for the embassy affirmation to marry paper didn't apply to PRs.  The head of registrations thought differently and made an outrageous claim that my red alien book was fake because he held the ludricrous belief they could only be issued to ethnic Chinese aliens.   We bade farewell to that jumped up nincompoop and went down the road a piece to the next district office where we were just in time to be happily married by smiling officials before they closed. 

Why would they only be issued to ethnic Chinese aliens? Racist much? 

No issue and I don't believe there is any particular discrimination towards foreigners now that is worse than pre-Covid. Maybe at the beginning last year a little bit, but this sentiment has since dried up (or been forgotten). When you're struggling to survive because your own government is running the economy into the ground, there's little time (or reason) to be resentful of westerners. It doesn't even make sense. Even less so, when so few westerners are left in Thailand. Aside from the usual long-term residents in my local neighborhood and on rare trips to the beach, I've hardly seen any westerners in Thailand since last March. 

"A third shot". Ah yes. So after 6 months the 3rd shot propaganda will begin. Borders will still be closed until everyone gets their 4th shot. The goalposts will be moved once more and then Covid-22 shots will be required, this time 3 doses taken 3 days apart and so forth. I can already see where this is going. 

1 minute ago, bermondburi said:

Mandatory vaccination will be a precondition to fly on some airlines in the future, just as it will be for visas, and just as it already is for employment in some countries.

That's not a foregone conclusion. Mandatory vaccination is much more likely to apply to Thailand than western countries. Employment in some countries? Depends on the industry, but people are fighting back. It's not an across the board thing.

Also, medical exemptions will be accepted, though I can already foresee Thailand having a totalitarian "one size fits all" no exemptions allowed policy, like they do with PCR testing.

Thailand is the only country in the world that PCR tests newborn babies. It's criminal and a violation of human rights.

Most other countries don't test children younger than 3, or 5, or even 12 (depending on the country). 

3 minutes ago, bermondburi said:

Did it all when I came to Thailand in December and it was actually very straightforward, easy, and simple. 

 

1: Sent all docs to the embassy and arranged appointment time of my choosing within opening hours to apply for and collect the visa. Total time at the Embassy 20 minutes.

 

2: ASQ booking and insurance done online from the comfort of my sofa. 

 

3: C19 test done at local clinic

 

4: Got CoE 20 minutes after emailing it to the embassy.

 

What other hoops did you have to go through. I was actually very impressed by the response of the Thai Embassy and the Charge d'Affaires guided me through the process very clearly at every step. 

 

As for flights, the big 3 ME airlines are still doing daily flights now as they were 6 months ago. 

"Very simple".

I never went through these procedures. If I were outside of Thailand, no way in hell would I go through this nonsense. I'm not insane. 15 nights imprisoned in a hotel, carted off to the hospital if you test positive. Must wear a mask throughout the flight. God no thanks. 

1 minute ago, Sean60 said:

I guess this one will also get delayed by several months. 

But it dose not matter, we have time. it is only people that will get bankrupt and go hungry. one dose not have to think of them. 

After all miljons of Chinese are standing in line for coming to Thailand! opps even that prediction got delayed. !!

Nah. I can assure you the Chinese aren't keen on coming right now. Why would they? To do what exactly? Everything is closed, they have to be muzzled...there is simply far more liberty in China than Thailand right now.

If it wasn't for the quarantine and anal swab, I'd dash off to China in an instant. 

10 minutes ago, the green light said:

luring tourism in a country is always a wishful thinking for many countries.

tourists select travelling spot based on amenities on how they want to spend their money, and fun things to do , and most of all safety.

 

As long that there is any kind of quanrantine..no visitor will ever consider thailand.

the second main point is how safe thailand will before 70% of the population to be inoculated with the vaccine and which one.

 

Vaccinated people from USA can travel but they require restriction coming back. they need to show a negative test 72 hr before departure. the fear is that more restriction may be added. It makes going out of the USA worrisome. You do not want to have the problem to be stuck overseas and unable to come back home.

 

From the Chinese survey done earlier, it shows that the Chinese tourists  will wait 4-6 month after 70% of Thai population are vaccinated before visiting Thailand.

 

As of July, Greece, Turkey and Spain are countries you can visit with no quarantine if vaccinated...Thailand should drop all kind of quarantine to be competitive with the rest of the world or just focus on inoculating their people.

 

There is a lot of work to be done before we can talk about tourism now

Same with a lot of countries, Thailand included.

Even if you're willing to be vaccinated to travel, requiring a PCR test is a very risky proposition, especially if you test positive. You could find yourself forcibly detained in hospital for at least 2 weeks, even if not showing symptoms. This won't happen in a western country, but authoritarian countries like Thailand have such a policy in place. Unless this is lifted, the risk of visiting Thailand is too great for most potential visitors to bear. 

31 minutes ago, Huckenfell said:

Rubbish, here in Queensland, life is completely free with no restrictions such as you have in Tailand.

Exactly.

No face muzzles, no lockdowns (granted, some weeks ago there was a brief 3 day lockdown in Brisbane and masks were required to be worn, but this lasted only 15 days in total. After the first 3 days, masks were only needed on public transport and malls, later only public transport before being lifted entirely).

A far cry from Thailand's totalitarian restrictions of mandatory masks even for (get this) news readers on TV!!!/mandates where residents of Buri Ram are being threatened with 2 years in jail for refusing to get vaccinated. 

13 minutes ago, polpott said:

I didn't realise that they'd stopped international flights. I flew to Amsterdam at the end of April and fully intend to fly back at the end of July. Am I missing something?

Yes - you need a COE, quarantine, health insurance, possibly a vaccination certificate, Covid free certificate and a ton of other hoops to jump through.

Flights are very limited. It's not like the old days. Hence why the people talking about "no flights" are almost correct. There are indeed very FEW flights. KLM is offering by far, the greatest number of flights between Europe and Thailand at the moment. Most other airlines, if they're flying at all, are down to 3 flights a week. During normal times, there would be at least a daily, if not twice daily service. 

29 minutes ago, wensiensheng said:

And on the very day that the transport minister issued orders to be ready to resume international flights in November. You couldn’t write this in a script, no one would believe it.

 

I know it’s a while until November, but still, on the very day ????????????

This is all theater. I bet you there is no way flights will resume in November. As I understand it, the Phuket governor hates foreigners and he is about to be replaced. There is no accountability. 

More fear mongering propaganda. Obviously these numbers will remain high (probably 2000+) until the mass vaccination campaign kicks off in June. I'm 99% certain Thailand's numbers will exceed those of Myanmar (with 143,000 confirmed cases) in just a couple of weeks at most.