Phuket gears up for reopening to long-staying foreign tourists in October

[snoop1130]

Phuket gears up for reopening to long-staying foreign tourists in October

 

Image Credit: Phuket 101

 

Thailand’s resort island of Phuket is preparing to reopen to long-stay foreign tourists on October 1st and one of the areas being improved is road safety.

 

According to a survey, by a team of Thai PBS reporters sent to the island province, which was Thailand’s top tourist destination before the COVID-19 pandemic, provincial officials in charge of traffic management have been fixing more than 200 accident black spots around the island.

 

Several U-turns, which are scenes of regular accidents, have been closed, while speed bumps, warning signs and light-reflecting road signs have been installed, while lighting on dimly-lit stretches of road has been improved.

 

Nationally, Phuket has the second highest road accident rate, after Bangkok, especially among foreign tourists who are unfamiliar with the roads and traffic signs. Drunk driving has been blamed as one of the major causes of accidents, while many motorcyclists and pillion riders fail to wear crash helmets.

 

Mr. Kiart-anan Luankaew, an economist at Thammasat University, said recently that Phuket has the capability and advantages to draw foreign tourists back in the post-COVID pandemic period, but faces fierce competition from other countries in the region. The behavior of the tourists is also expected to change, which will pose another challenge.

 

He added, however, that the private sector in Phuket alone will not be able to cope with the challenges without help from central Government.

 

Like many other top tourist destinations worldwide, Phuket has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw many hotels and tourism-related businesses close or partially close due to the disappearance of foreign tourists, following lockdown measures imposed in many countries, including Thailand.

 

Mr. Kongsak Khupongsakorn, President of the Southern Hotels Association, told Thai PBS that many hotel staff and workers in tourism-related businesses in Phuket have been permanently or temporarily laid off.

 

He suggested that the Government try to promote domestic tourism by encouraging Thai people to travel, or by holding activities, such as seminars, in hotels during weekdays, not just at weekends, so that they can generate income to keep their staff on the payroll.

 

Several entertainment venues in Patong beach area, which was described as “never sleeping” before the COVID-19 pandemic, have reopened, especially on Fridays and weekends, but it appears that there are more workers than tourists on the once famous strip of bars.

 

Source: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/phuket-gears-up-for-reopening-to-long-staying-foreign-tourists-in-october/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2020-09-28

 

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[Redvic]

???????? These ???? have no idea. Gearing up for who??? They are that stupid at TAT they think people are actually going to come in there thousands. ????????????

[Tropicalevo]

32 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

or by holding activities, such as seminars, in hotels

That is really going to help the poor and distressed people of Phuket. Not.

[steven100]

44 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

preparing to reopen to long-stay foreign tourists

aha .....   wow !   how many ? 5 ...15  ....  lol

[madmitch]

There's been a lot of road resurfacing with all sorts of lines and different surface syles. Didnt know it had anything to do with tourism until I read this article.

[RichardColeman]

8 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Thailand’s resort island of Phuket is preparing to reopen to long-stay foreign tourists on October 1st

What ? Both of them ? 

[samsensam]

 

why dont they improve road safety for the benefit of thai people?

[Chang_paarp]

What if they held a party and nobody came?

[bodga]

1 hour ago, samsensam said:

 

why dont they improve road safety for the benefit of thai people?

there  are  some things you  just cant fix

[ezzra]

I imagine the wreath and the curses of those hotels and entertainment people be placed upon those "bad ungrateful tourists" who didn't show up and blame them for losses...

[hotchilli]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Phuket gears up for reopening to long-staying foreign tourists in October

 

[quadperfect]

Lets hope for phuket sake this plan to prepare is for wider and further tourism. If not we all know phuket cant survive another high season lock down.

But as uk goes into some kind of lock down,france and spain might too . It seems more dire daily.

The plandemic has already worked. just now watching the fall out.

[Henryford]

What they want dirty farangs now?

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

Will they lock-up the farang hating guy with the sling shot?

[Somtamnication]

Yep, closing u-turns will help, NOT!

[ChipButty]

one of the areas being improved is road safety.

 

What year will that be?

[Scot123]

4 hours ago, quadperfect said:

Lets hope for phuket sake this plan to prepare is for wider and further tourism. If not we all know phuket cant survive another high season lock down.

But as uk goes into some kind of lock down,france and spain might too . It seems more dire daily.

The plandemic has already worked. just now watching the fall out.

For the first tim an MP has called out the government in the house of commons for their handling and ignoring the science that is now coming forward as doctors start to speak out. Yes even with the terminally I'll and very old dropping like flies Corona is only the 4th or 5th biggest killer in the uk but over 80,000 are now dead because of lockdown. The farce can no longer be hidden as the ones who were calling believe the science are now the science deniers!!

[PETERTHEEATER]

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

among foreign tourists who are unfamiliar with the roads and traffic signs.

Laughable! Show me accurate statistics showing the rates of traffic accidents recorded in Phuket Province comparing Thai Nationals vs Foreign Nationals.

[Knocker33]

And of course theres that old chestnut. 

Get some decent public transport and get rid of the taxi scum. 

Don't keep blaming everything  on drunk driving 

[Kopitiam]

BANGKOK: Thailand will receive its first foreign vacationers when a flight from China arrives next week, marking the gradual restart of a vital tourism sector battered by coronavirus travel curbs, a senior official said on Tuesday (Sep 29).

The first flight will have about 120 tourists from Guangzhou, flying directly to the resort island of Phuket, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters.

 

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/thailand-restart-tourism-china-flight-covid-19-13159752

 

Can't imagine Chinese tourists flying to Phuket to be quarantined for 14 days during their 1-week Golden Week holidays.  Doesn't add up.

[Felt 35]

3 hours ago, Kopitiam said:

BANGKOK: Thailand will receive its first foreign vacationers when a flight from China arrives next week, marking the gradual restart of a vital tourism sector battered by coronavirus travel curbs, a senior official said on Tuesday (Sep 29).

The first flight will have about 120 tourists from Guangzhou, flying directly to the resort island of Phuket, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters.

 

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/thailand-restart-tourism-china-flight-covid-19-13159752

 

Can't imagine Chinese tourists flying to Phuket to be quarantined for 14 days during their 1-week Golden Week holidays.  Doesn't add up.

They didn't get all with the first wave so this is the gen.....de squad????

[norfolkc]

I saw yesterday somewhere that among the first wave will be 130 Chinese how they know this i don't know but 130 Chinese WOW that's it then tourism back to normal i don't think