England adds Thailand and Montenegro to travel red list

[theoldgit]

It's worth noting that only British and Irish Nationals and those with residence rights will be allowed into the UK and, as already been stated, will be required to enter managed hotel quarantine at a cost of £2,285 plus £1,430 for each additional eligible adult or child over 11.

[boogiewoogie]

11 minutes ago, nchuckle said:

What have  immigrants arriving illegally on the shore with no funds to pay have to do with this? They will be isolated/quarantined in a camp - what else are you expecting UK authorities to do? This is about Thailand’s failure to vaccinate/control spread and by its numbers/situation qualifying for red list status - that’s where you should be directing your ire. Did Thailand get you/your partner fully vaxed with a proper vaccine yet ?

What about that Herd Immunity that was promised?

[nkg]

If you leave Thailand and go to a green/amber country for 10 days, you don't have to do hotel quarantine.

 

So spending 10 days in India, Nigeria or Iraq will make it safe for you to return to the UK ????

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/red-amber-and-green-list-rules-for-entering-england#red-list

[Chongalulu]

12 minutes ago, boogiewoogie said:

What about that Herd Immunity that was promised?

That is potentially acquired over time and isn’t a guarantee and subject to variants. There are no certainties,not even a beginning,middle and end . Notwithstanding,that has no relevance to the necessary actions taken on reducing exposure from high risk countries..which Thailand with its handling of the pandemic has become.

[RickyJB]

Come on Thailand, sort this out.. ive not been able to come see my kids since november 2019, and phuket sandbox is no use to me, also the scam of paying over the top prices for half decent quarantine in bkk, 2 weeks wasted and i only have 3 weeks off at most. 

[hotchilli]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

England will add Thailand and Montenegro to its "red list" of destinations that require travellers to quarantine in a hotel on their return, the government said

Ouuuuchhhhhhh !

[hotchilli]

3 hours ago, Clarkey611 said:

Is there an Embassy in Thailand?

I think it open for tea parties, luncheons and golf.

[raccos21]

It is only temporary; once Thailand has 70% of its citizens vaccinated, they will be remove from that red list.

[bluemoon58]

3 hours ago, condobrit001 said:

Great job British Embassy in Thailand!

You mad person...!!! What Embassy...??? ????

[ThailandRyan]

Just now, raccos21 said:

It is only temporary; once Thailand has 70% of its citizens vaccinated, they will be remove from that red list.

Of course they will, in just what year might that be.......

[hotchilli]

28 minutes ago, boogiewoogie said:

What about that Herd Immunity that was promised?

Still chewing the cud.

[superal]

3 hours ago, condobrit001 said:

As expected, Thailand now on the UK red list, making it VERY expensive for brits to get back home, even those who took up the Phuket sandbox scam who will be stranded unless they pay the 2,200 GBP per person plus testing fees to get home. The UK decision reflects their distrust of Thailands reporting of daily infection figures and their general dislike of the military junta here.

Exactly . It is well known that the covid testing in Thailand has been mostly concentrated around the Bangkok areas with the outlying districts sparsely tested . Then there is the performance from the government on its lack of communication with the nation via TV for regular covid updates and social  behavior instructions . ( social distancing and chin level masks need addressing ) . Finally there is the mismanagement and non procurement of proven vaccines . 

If the Thai baht strengthens then I will know there is something dodgy going on cos it should now plummet .

[Sticky Rice Balls]

5 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Of course they will, in just what year might that be.......

Infinity! and Beyond!!!

[sapson]

4 hours ago, condobrit001 said:

even those who took up the Phuket sandbox scam who will be stranded unless they pay the 2,200 GBP per person plus testing fees to get home.

 

Think they put the price up a few weeks back and you must pay in advance of departure for a compulsory met at the airport whisked off to an awful without any choice hotel for quarantine 10 days then dumped back at the airport.

 

Even though the vaccine roll out is happening they have made this change, clearly they know that the slightly declining official covid numbers are obviously fudged and part of the Juntas denial and delusion package and the new Thailand moves on into the abyss program.

Edited August 27, 2021 by sapson

[NorthernRyland]

1 hour ago, Bkk Brian said:

Lets hope Thailand gets its act together.

Yeah right. Let's just add it to the list of things expats bitch about but never, ever get any better.

 

1) Insane driving

2) Soi dogs

3) Burning season

4) COVID

[Surasak]

3 hours ago, Clarkey611 said:

Is there an Embassy in Thailand?

A small office on the 23rd floor of some obscure tower block, I think?

[NorthernRyland]

53 minutes ago, nchuckle said:

What have  immigrants arriving illegally on the shore with no funds to pay have to do with this?

It's 2021 man. Many Western governments treat refugees and "undocumented" immigrants  better than citizens these days. USA is leading the way (we're #1!!) but UK is not far behind from what I can tell.

[nkg]

4 minutes ago, sapson said:

 

Think they put the price up to 2825 GBP a few weeks back and you must pay in advance of departure for a compulsory met at the airport whisked off to an awful without any choice hotel for quarantine 10 days then dumped back at the airport.

 

Even though the vaccine roll out is happening they have made this change, clearly they know that the slightly declining official covid numbers are obviously fudged and part of the Juntas denial and delusion package and the new Thailand moves on into the abyss program.

 

 

Nope, £2,285.

 

 

Quote

 

How much you’ll need to pay

	Rate
1 adult in 1 room for 10 days (11 nights)	£2,285
Additional rate for 1 adult (or child over 11)	£1,430
Additional rate for a child aged 5 to 11	£325

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/booking-and-staying-in-a-quarantine-hotel-when-you-arrive-in-england

[wensiensheng]

1 hour ago, Whale said:

I must admit that surprised me. Guess I can stop looking for a cheap flight/route back now. I was looking forward to going to the pub again.

 

 

Obviously means Thailand does not have anything under control as UK official daily covid figures are quite higher than Thailands.

UPDATED TO ANSWER MY OWN OPINION:

from UK gov website

 

"Thailand and Montenegro will be added to the red list from 4am on Monday 30 August 2021, reflecting the increased case rates in these countries and the higher risk that travel from these countries poses to UK public health. The high rates combined with lower levels of published genomic surveillance in Thailand and Montenegro than other countries mean that an outbreak of a new variant or existing variants of concern (VOC) or variants under investigation (VUI) cannot be easily identified before it is imported and seeded across the UK."

 

That’s interesting. Thanks for posting.

I read it to mean that it’s not just headline case and vaccination rates that’s important, but also behind the scenes scientific monitoring for new variants. 

[chalawaan]

Cheer up Kalaland, it's Ferrari Red.

Edited August 27, 2021 by chalawaan

[Walker88]

17 minutes ago, raccos21 said:

It is only temporary; once Thailand has 70% of its citizens vaccinated, they will be remove from that red list.

So what vaccines will be acceptable to the UK govt? Sinovac?

 

When---when----Thailand hits 70% fully vaxxed, half of those are likely to be 2 Sinovacs.

 

Also, the quarantine isn't related to the vax level; it's related to unknown variants not yet in the UK. Since Thailand doesn't do as thorough of a job identifying the strain of Covid, the UK chooses not to take chances.. Delta is already in the UK. The UK's worry is new variants.

[chalawaan]

7 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

Yeah right. Let's just add it to the list of things expats bitch about but never, ever get any better.

 

1) Insane driving

2) Soi dogs

3) Burning season

4) COVID

Police corruption got  better, who knew just how good they had gotten at it!

[Thaiophil]

That’s likely screwed my plans to see my family for Xmas.

 

Not surprised at the decision (Indonesia, Philippines already red) but timing is odd when infections have likely peaked here.  Lots of politics involved, eg India amber due to lobbying by well connected Brits of Indian heritage.

 

Much better to unquarantine for ten days in say Dubai than be locked in a <deleted>ty hotel near Heathrow. The occasional Thai direct flights will probably stop now anyway so Emirates will be one of the better options.

 

Not sure why people are knocking the Embassy on this. It’s nothing to do with them. Decisions are made by the Health Ministry in London.

 

As others have pointed out, as Thailand has effectively operated a red list policy for the whole of the rest of the world (2 weeks expensive hotel quarantine) and still does so even though delta is rampant, Thailand can hardly complain

 

 

[MichaelSulz]

what about the flights?

Edited August 27, 2021 by MichaelSulz

[Thailand]

42 minutes ago, Surasak said:

A small office on the 23rd floor of some obscure tower block, I think?

I don't think anyone in though. Had a problem that I thought they could help with ???? a few weeks ago.

Sent email and had confirmed receipt, still waiting for it to even be opened. Fortunately I found a department in the UK that resolved the problem quickly and efficiently.

[Kaopad999]

1 hour ago, peleid said:

I always said that as long as the positives out weigh the negatives regarding going back, I would continue to live in Thailand, speaking personally what has/is happening in Thailand over the last 18 months that is getting closer by the week

My thoughts exactly.

[sapson]

40 minutes ago, nkg said:

Nope, £2,285.

Yep you are correct amended my post, it was increased recently from circa 1700 to 2285.GBP

 

interesting reviews below on CTM the company handling the bookings for the government.

 

Corporate Travel Management UK Reviews | Read Customer Service Reviews of www.travelctm.co.uk (trustpilot.com)

 

Many of us who have been here many years use Thai banking debit cards and dont have UK credit cards, so how exactly are we meant to pay the 2,285 online to this company.

 

Also seems hard to find the information as to which hotel and where you will pay to be incarcerated.

[Kaopad999]

53 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

Yeah right. Let's just add it to the list of things expats bitch about but never, ever get any better.

 

1) Insane driving

2) Soi dogs

3) Burning season

4) COVID

5) Lying

Feel free to add to the list..

[Boedog]

Does Grandmaster Prayut and the TAT know about this, l wonder how they are going to spin this one, surely they will have to revise there mythical tourists numbers that were supposedly coming in "HIGH SEASON "and his delusional re-opening (scam) scheme and the 100,s of billions of baht  saving the economy, interesting the <deleted> that comes out of the mouth in the coming days, laughs and giggles to follow

[Bangkok Barry]

4 hours ago, Clarkey611 said:

Is there an Embassy in Thailand?

It's a corner table in the Robin Hood. Upstairs so that you can't find and disturb them.