In an other thread, someone insisted that Air-Travel to Thailand is "as usual".

 

Bovine droppings!

 

 Checking major Travel-Agencies today. Nobody flies from major Airports in Europe to BKK. Period.
 
Some Airlines will accept bookings (Swiss). You pay today. Then the flight will likely be postponed eternally. But they got your money. 80% of "Swiss" customers (ZRH/BKK) are still waiting for their "money-back" for cancelled flights during the "peak-virus debacle" during April/May).
 
Expanding further: According to various Travel-Agencies, the Demand to visit Thailand is unbroken and absolutely intact. But any Travel-Agency that has a name to lose (loose, for Americans) will currently refuse to book any flights to BKK, nor accept any financial advances towards such a project, due to the Quarantine and other various Restrictions that may change overnight and are entierly unpredictabe.

 

By the time, when unrestricted Travel will be possible again, some of us may realise that it wasen't worth waiting "for the new Thailand" while sitting in Europe, outlasting the Virus. As most of us already know that the "old Thailand" started to transfer to the "new Thailand" around 2005.

 

Sad would it be, when the restrictions would be lifted, and a frequent Pattaya Farang visitor of yesteryear would find himself looking at the sunset on Pattaya Beach, mumbling to himself "what the hell am I doing here anymore".  
- Hoping sincerely, that it won't be me that eventually has to say those words, while watching the sun setting over the (old) Pattaya. Not if I can help it. We shall see.
Cheers.

 

 

 

Well, looks like for you, Thailand equals Pattaya... so there are good news for you...

- the beach is much wider now but still dirty (as is the water)

- girls are still waiting for handsum farangs and even some beer bars are open for you

- STD clinics are still all over waiting to check and fix you before you go back home

 

For me, even though I live near Pattaya, Thailand is SO MUCH MORE than Pattaya, in fact, I could well do without QUOTES... and the "old Thailand" is still right there.. just open you mind and close your pants and go look around outside of Pattaya

My understanding is that Thailand is only allowing 500 to fly in per day ..with very specific acceptance criteria ...unlikely to change in the near future ..

I don't blame the airlines for selling tickets as a) they want to have passengers on board as soon as flights resume, and b) it brings them in some cash to pay out to those they cancelled last month.

 

For anyone buying these tickets they should know it's a gamble as to whether the flight will operate or not, and they could be out of pocket for longer than they think, despite legal requirements for refunds in many places.