Phuket Sandbox - some practicalities to be answered?

[RickSee]

Hoping to return to Thailand in the coming weeks via the Sandbox option.  I understand that many unanswered questions remain, though hope some will be addressed in the coming days.  At the moment I would be grateful for any info on the following:

 

Arrival in Phuket:

- I understand that only flights arriving in Phuket directly from a foreign destination are possible (eg. cannot transit in BKK) Is this correct?

- I notice that Turkish Airlines is showing a direct flight to Phuket from IST in mid-July, but I did not see Turkish mentioned in the recent articles amongst the airlines to be part of the Sandbox experiment.  What are the airlines currently eligible/available for direct flights to Phuket?    

 

Re covid tests:  Unlike for BKK quarantine, where required tests are included in the hotel package, this does not seem to be the case for Phuket (perhaps because one can move between SHA Plus hotels during the stay).  If the intention is to proceed to another Thai destination (say BKK) after 14 days in Phuket:

 

- how many tests are required from arrival in Phuket until departure for BKK?

- what type of tests are required, where are they administered, and by whom?

- is the traveler responsible for paying and, if so, what is the cost of each test?

 

Upon arrival at Phuket airport:

 

- Are there any controls in place for transport to the SHA Plus hotel that has been booked (ie. in BKK the hotel package includes this transport)?

 

Best bets by location in Phuket:

 

- I'm not familiar with Phuket.  Any suggestions on what might be the better parts of the island to locate given pleasant setting but also access to whatever commercial businesses might yet be open?

Thanks in advance for any help with the above, RS

[ItoroK]

I'm in the same boat.

 

To be quite honest i'd wait until August and wait for some reports for people who went there and who will answer those questions. Because apparently even the institutions in thailand who make the rules dont know about those rules themselves and it will probably be a huge mess.

 

 It might also just be a huge scam to get some publicity and its just a different version of the traditional quarantine.

[Rhacsyn]

Hi. Draft instructions on requirements and how to proceed started appearing in Thai Embassy website in US yesterday. Once the formal approval appears in the Royal Gazette in Thailand, sometime this week, may be even today, then those draft versions will change to actual and you can then go ahead and start the COE application process, SHA+ hotel booking and so on. The embassy site will tell you about Covid tests (one prior to flight departure, and three whilst in Phuket during the 14 days, at your cost) as well as SHA transport, and costs from airport to hotel, but best to wait until clear instructions appear on your local Thai embassy website.

 

Plenty of options and choices for reasonably priced SHA+ approved hotels.

[zzzzz]

theres over 450 SHA+ hotels
suggestion:
look at those in Rawai, Kamala, Chern Talay if you want be somewhere that has 70% or more open.

Book Patong, Karon, Kata if u desire to be spending ur time looking for somewhere to eat 
No matter where you choose you will have empty beaches and traffic free trouble around the island AND
 

Wont see it like these again>>

[dougiemac52]

There are no details about how to apply for a COE yet so what are you talking about

[khunPer]

Richard Barrow posted today (23rd June)...

 

Only eight days to go before the #PhuketReopening and foreign tourists are still waiting for the official list of approved countries to be released and for the Certificate of Entry (COE) website to be updated to include the #PhuketSandbox. Also for answers about cost of tests and how to transfer to hotels.

 

I’m really perplexed about the Phuket Reopening. Tourism officials are showing off about the number of confirmed flights for the first week & even passenger numbers. But how’s this possible? The Certificate of Entry website is not updated. Who are these people? Surely not real tourists.

 

 

You follow Richard Barrow on Facebook and/or Twitter, an excellent source for updates about Thailand...????

[khunPer]

Full list of sandbox hotels can be found HERE.

 

The site includes...

• All 230 Sandbox Hotels in Phuket
• Updated on June 23, 2021
• Showing 230 Phuket Sandbox hotels with starting packages ranging between ฿9,450, and ฿283,340. The rooms are also filtered by rooms with any rating. All of the results are currently sorted by Popularity.
• Helpful Links
• COVID-19 Entry Requirements
• Thailand Sandbox Requirements

[worldfun]

who knows how it will be come next week but as of this week there's a bit of a buzz and influx of people on the island but patong is still half dead but the further you move away from the beach front the more options become available with food etc.

phuket town at the other extreme has been fairly normal throughout but farang oriented shops still shut here & there as are major tourist traps like tiger kingdom, water parks, elephant camps etc! National parks, waterfalls on the other hand have actually stayed open and some even can be persuaded to sell 'ordinary' 20bt tickeks instead of the usual specials of 200b hahaa.

then the taxi mafia? oh I wouldnt bet on them being willing to charge friendly now would you?