No confirmation on when international tourists can return to Thailand: PM

 

Tourists queue to check in at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, Thailand, January 16, 2018. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha

 

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has appeared to downplay the idea that international tourists would be allowed to return to Thailand next month.

 

The Thai government had previously set a tentative deadline of 1 July for lifting all restrictions put in place in order to combat the spread of COVID-19.

 

However, last week it was reported the lifting of restrictions would mean that international travel into Thailand would resume from 1 July.

 

But on Tuesday, the prime said Thailand still had a long way to go in its fight against COVID-19 before international tourists would be allowed to return.

 

The prime minister said the issue hadn’t yet been discussed by the Cabinet.

 

He added that only tourists from certain countries may be allowed to visit Thailand - namely countries where the COVID-19 outbreak is deemed to be under control.

 

And any tourists that are allowed to travel to Thailand will only be able to do so under a number of restrictions.

 

This will include creating so called “travel bubbles” using bilateral agreements with other countries to help limit any potential further outbreak.

 

“Once the situation improves, we’ll allow travel between countries that we have an agreement with,” Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha told Bloomberg.

 

The idea is similar to those put in place elsewhere as countries try to safely kick start their tourism sectors.

 

Last month, a travel bubble, or “travel corridor” as it was described, allowed people to travel between Seoul and 10 regions in China, including Shanghai, while in Europe, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania established their own travel bubble on 15 May. 

 

Australia and New Zealand have also discussed plans to resume travel between the two countries, potentially starting from September.

 

The news comes as Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Governor Yuthasak Supasorn last week said he doesn’t expect international tourists to return to Thailand until later this year. 

 

"It is still dependent on the outbreak situation, but I think at the earliest, we may see the return of tourists could be the fourth quarter of this year," he told CNN.

 

If and when foreign tourists can return to Thailand, there will likely be restrictions in place to determine where they can travel to.

 

"We are not going to open all at once," he said. 

 

"We are still on high alert, we just can't let our guards down yet. We have to look at the country of origin [of the travelers] to see if their situation has truly improved. And lastly, we have to see whether our own business operators are ready to receive tourists under the 'new normal'."

 

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Meaning that the Thai tourism industry will continue to be in the crapper and millions who depends on it for their survival will continue to suffer and lose their life's works and investments witch will take years to recover from, way to go PM...

Sounds like they are thinking smartly and trying to do the right thing here.

Strange news article. Quotes the PM at great length talking with Bloomberg but most of what the report is claiming he said or what the government is planning is not mentioned in the linked Bloomberg article. The CNN link is a bit more factual.

 

And that picture is of passenger arrivals, not departures.

 

4 out of 10

Must try harder.

the covid panicker need more lockdowns, shutdown the country and close the borders forever,

 

1 hour ago, bkk6060 said:

Sounds like they are thinking smartly and trying to do the right thing here.

I'm alright jack

So I can not leave LOS and go to Europe and/or the US and then return to LOS after 2 to 5 weeks (my frequent pattern) sooner than October at best, which is what I've been expecting.

1 hour ago, webfact said:

We have to look at the country of origin [of the travelers] to see if their situation has truly improved

the departing country isn't arriving, individual people are; do individual testing over there and do testing here; make it painless,free,fast,accurate; problem solved

“...before international tourists would be allowed to return...”

 

in a way it kinda reminds me of this: 

 

“Thaksin Shinawatra, the Thai prime minister, on Monday declared that the country did not need foreign aid to help it recover from the tsunami disaster...”

1 hour ago, ezzra said:

Meaning that the Thai tourism industry will continue to be in the crapper and millions who depends on it for their survival will continue to suffer and lose their life's works and investments witch will take years to recover from, way to go PM...

No, it's a lot more dramatic than that...............

8 minutes ago, YetAnother said:

the departing country isn't arriving, individual people are; do individual testing over there and do testing here; make it painless,free,fast,accurate; problem solved

Sounds simple.

But it would be a logistic nightmare and take money and cooperation between airlines the governments.

I would certainly pay extra for my ticket if I knew it was safe.

The problems lies at the departure city.  How do you keep people separated, tested, safe prior to boarding?

Have them waiting at the gate and test prior to boarding?  If one person tests positive the flight is canceled and the airport shut down fearing infection spread.

I have an idea of having passengers meet off site from the airport and in some way keep them well separated.

Test them all, then transport to a special entrance area that is confined for those only testing negative waiting for flights.  To add, all flight/airport staff would have to be involved in the same process.

Then as you say after they arrive, test again.  

Certainly seems like a way for some peace of mind and to help maintain the health of everyone.  

But logistically, may not be possible.

Basically he has inferred that the situation will be monitored and should it be deemed safe to allow tourism again then Khun Prayut will act. 

 

" He added that only tourists from certain countries may be allowed to visit Thailand - namely countries where the COVID-19 outbreak is deemed to be under control.

And any tourists that are allowed to travel to Thailand will only be able to do so under a number of restrictions. "

Good job by Khun Prayut Chan O Cha.

 

No tourist travel "bubble" will be allowed unless China is included. It depends on China's infection rate or a cover up of that rate. 

A "bubble" not including China sends shivers down the Government's spine. 

Go on! Include Taiwan before China. 

Whelp, looks like I'm locked out of Thailand forever I guess

2 minutes ago, sukhumvitneon said:

Whelp, looks like I'm locked out of Thailand forever I guess

And by the same token, it looks like I am locked IN Thailand for practically the foreseeable future.

46 minutes ago, uli65 said:

the covid panicker need more lockdowns, shutdown the country and close the borders forever,

 

Agreed. Not trying to minimize the severity of Covid-19 but media and social media have struck fear in the hearts of many and caused many to over react. Previous pandemics were far worse. Hong Kong flu of 1968 caused more than 1 million deaths. The Asian flu of 1956 to 1958 caused more than 2 million deaths. Then there was the swine flu and SARS. With the Asian Flu and Hong Kong flu there wasn't mass fear created and sustained by media and governments. Point of interest is where these recent pandemics originated.

 

12 minutes ago, Enzian said:

And by the same token, it looks like I am locked IN Thailand for practically the foreseeable future.

Wanna trade places?  I'm so over living in the US

It's fascinating to watch the leadership of a country literally destroy that country's economy.  It is a testament to how financially insulated said leadership is from the woes of the general economy and the citizens that they laud control over. 

 

7 minutes ago, sukhumvitneon said:

Wanna trade places?  I'm so over living in the US

Certainly can't blame you at the moment. Or in general I guess, since I also would rather live here. But problem is, presently I cannot leave Thailand and be assured of returning, which is tough for various reasons, including that I have a grandchild in CA that I have never met in person. 

13 minutes ago, Enzian said:

Certainly can't blame you at the moment. Or in general I guess, since I also would rather live here. But problem is, presently I cannot leave Thailand and be assured of returning, which is tough for various reasons, including that I have a grandchild in CA that I have never met in person. 

I am communicating with family in CA almost everyday.

This place is Nirvana now comparing.

Much better staying here for the moment.

2 hours ago, webfact said:

"It is still dependent on the outbreak situation, but I think at the earliest, we may see the return of tourists could be the fourth quarter of this year," he told CNN.

This makes some sense, yet without a quick testing method to remove any 14 day quarantine, most holiday goers will not travel.  4, 6, 8 months should not "ruin" an economy whose tourism accounts for 12% GDP.  Ideally, you stop paying all government workers and their health insurance (including the PM)  Then let them decide what is best for Thailand concerning travel and tourism. ????

19 minutes ago, Skallywag said:

This makes some sense, yet without a quick testing method to remove any 14 day quarantine, most holiday goers will not travel.  4, 6, 8 months should not "ruin" an economy whose tourism accounts for 12% GDP.  Ideally, you stop paying all government workers and their health insurance (including the PM)  Then let them decide what is best for Thailand concerning travel and tourism. ????

With or without a method, they will remove the 14-day quarantine for Chinese travelers or I will eat my hat. 

43 minutes ago, Enzian said:

Certainly can't blame you at the moment. Or in general I guess, since I also would rather live here. But problem is, presently I cannot leave Thailand and be assured of returning, which is tough for various reasons, including that I have a grandchild in CA that I have never met in person. 

In the same boat. I must travel from Thailand to the U.S. in the near future for family matters. Right now, looks like I will not be able to return for some time, which will also bring up family matters here. In a bind. 

52 minutes ago, Skallywag said:

This makes some sense, yet without a quick testing method to remove any 14 day quarantine, most holiday goers will not travel.  4, 6, 8 months should not "ruin" an economy whose tourism accounts for 12% GDP.  Ideally, you stop paying all government workers and their health insurance (including the PM)  Then let them decide what is best for Thailand concerning travel and tourism. ????

Thailand has to hope for a vaccine, effective treatment, or quick testing.  It's chosen a policy of eradication, and therefore insulation from the outside world.  I guess that's the price to be paid.  I'm not sure the country has any other choice.

33 minutes ago, JCP108 said:

With or without a method, they will remove the 14-day quarantine for Chinese travelers or I will eat my hat. 

But will the Chinese come?  My guess is there will not be the appetite to travel for a long while, while others will simply focus on meeting domestic living costs.

Europe will recover much faster, infections are slowing rapidly and tourism is already restarting .

Here they decided to treat this virus as the bubonic plague and they don't tolerate even one infection.

25-30% loss of your economy is going to hurt badly. 

 

Dayam, would be like London or New York closing it financial centres. 

 

Tests at airports is the simple solution. 

2 minutes ago, AndrewMciver said:

25-30% loss of your economy is going to hurt badly. 

 

Dayam, would be like London or New York closing it financial centres. 

 

Tests at airports is the simple solution. 

It is emphatically NOT a simple solution. The logistics of individual testing alone at an airport such as LHR, LAX or BKK would demand huge delays. Then there is the problem of anyone testing positive - is contact tracing performed, the flight cancelled, other passengers scheduled on the same flight quarantined, the airport evacuated?

I guess the date of the July 31 visa amnesty was set for a reason. Wouldn't surprise me if its extended beyond that if no boarders are opened or no incoming flights.

2 hours ago, sukhumvitneon said:

Whelp, looks like I'm locked out of Thailand forever I guess

 

Well, for those that have one or can get one, there's always the relatively recent work permit, special application to home country Thai Embassy, prepay for air travel, insurance, pre-flight medical check and post-arrival two-week quarantine package in order to get permission to re-enter now...