Thailand seeks to slash quarantine period for visitors

[snoop1130]

FILE PHOTO: A man relaxes on Karon beach as Phuket gets ready to open to overseas tourists from July 1 allowing fully vaccinated foreigns to visit the resort island without quarantine, Phuket, Thailand June 29, 2021. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's disease control committee has proposed a halving of a two-week hotel isolation requirement for vaccinated arrivals, amid delays in plans to waive quarantine and reopen Bangkok and tourist destinations from next month.

 

Thailand is keen to welcome back foreign visitors, after nearly 18 months of strict entry policies caused a collapse in tourism, a key sector that drew 40 million visitors in 2019.

 

"Reducing the quarantine is not only about tourism, but will help business travel and foreign students," senior health official Opas Karnkawinpong told a news conference, adding tests would also be required.

 

Under the proposal, to be presented to government on Monday, those without vaccination proof would be isolated for 10 days if arriving by air, and 14 days if by land.

 

Authorities this week delayed to November plans to grant vaccinated visitors entry without quarantine, due to the country's low inoculation rate.

 

Only Phuket and Samui islands currently waive quarantine for vaccinated tourists, as part of a pilot scheme.

 

Less than a quarter of the estimated 72 million people living in Thailand have been fully vaccinated.

 

The country is still fighting its most severe wave of infections, which has accounted for about 99% of its 1.5 million cases and 15,884 deaths.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-09-23

 

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[Upnotover]

4 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

halving of a two-week hotel isolation requirement

 

5 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

isolated for 10 days if arriving by air, and 14 days if by land.

"Halving" obviously means something else in these parts.

[rebo]

But still the CoE, still the insurance, still no alcohol in restaurants, still the early closings, still …

Forget it …!

[kotsak]

Even one day is one day too many.. 

[Gold Star]

Once out of quarantine, can’t go to a bar,  must be back before curfew, can’t wear sunscreen so can’t go out doing things in the sun during the day, why come at all?

[richard_smith237]

Common sense would see the following... 

 

- Vaccinated arrivals no quarantine 

- Pre-flight PCR test requirement

- Arrival PCR test requirement (24 hr home / hotel quarantine until negative result is known)

 

Only until 70% of the population if vaccinated with an ‘effective’ vaccine (i.e. not Sinpharm / Sinovac, but with Pfizer, Moderna - vaccines of >90% efficacy) 

 

- Non vaccinated individuals (with out a medical certificate that they have a vaccine allergy etc) still quarantine (thats their choice). 

 

 

 

 

[DrJack54]

12 minutes ago, rebo said:

But still the CoE, still the insurance, still no alcohol in restaurants, still the early closings, still …

Forget it …!

Wait on.....after new quarantine you can buy a beer at 7/11 and relax in your room. Just can't go to a bar. 

Netflix recommended.

[aussiexpat]

Lift you up and then smash you back down. With 7 day ASQ I'd be booking my flight right now...but no, they still want 10 days, which would mean 11 nights....

 

...so much for half ????

[Yorkshire Tea]

10 minutes ago, aussiexpat said:

Lift you up and then smash you back down. With 7 day ASQ I'd be booking my flight right now...but no, they still want 10 days, which would mean 11 nights....

 

...so much for half ????

10 days is for those without vaccination proof.  7 days for those with.

[ukrules]

17 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Common sense would see the following... 

 

- Vaccinated arrivals no quarantine 

- Pre-flight PCR test requirement

- Arrival PCR test requirement (24 hr home / hotel quarantine until negative result is known)

 

Only until 70% of the population if vaccinated with an ‘effective’ vaccine (i.e. not Sinpharm / Sinovac, but with Pfizer, Moderna - vaccines of >90% efficacy) 

 

- Non vaccinated individuals (with out a medical certificate that they have a vaccine allergy etc) still quarantine (thats their choice). 

 

Under your little plan above you doom the country on a permanent basis.

There will never be 'home quarantine' - it will always involve some convoluted system of state control right down to when you can open your specially supervised by the military hotel door room.

 

If the currently available vaccines are going to be accepted as in any way useful then there's no need to test vaccinated travelers, no need to quarantine them or anything else, just let them in and leave them alone.

 

Until that happens the vast majority of people will simply go somewhere else.

 

For most people their only requirement is warm weather during the the winter months and there's a lot of places within 10 hours flying time from Europe that provide that, those who remove any quarantine requirements will be the winners and people have long memories once they go somewhere new and like it.

 

 

[steven100]

until they do away with quarantine, but provided the tourist shows their vaccination cert' .....   no one will come while you still have to sit in a hotel room,  and outside is no beer, no fun, nothing.

 

Let vaccinated tourists in and get tested during the stay.

Quarantine for unvacinated, tests x2 , 

 

 

[aussiexpat]

20 minutes ago, Yorkshire Tea said:

10 days is for those without vaccination proof.  7 days for those with.

Oops totally misread it (brain must have just assumed the worst lol)

 

Thanks

[RotBenz8888]

59 minutes ago, snoop1130 said:

halving of a two-week hotel isolation requirement

Will make absolutely zero difference for the tourism. Even one single day of quaranten is a deterrent. And even if they would remove the quaranten completely, am certain they'll keep the multiple PCR tests and the 100.000usd insurance, which many other attractive destinations do not demand. 

No, Its quite obvious that the Thai tourism is and will be dead as a dodo for a foreseeable future. 

[Andrew Dwyer]

55 minutes ago, Upnotover said:

 

"Halving" obviously means something else in these parts.

Nope.

It means exactly the same.

7 days for vaccinated and 10 days for unvaccinated.

It is all in the OP.

 

 

[alyx]

33 minutes ago, Yorkshire Tea said:

10 days is for those without vaccination proof.  7 days for those with.

Where is that implied ? On the contrary vaccination is mentioned...

All I can read is "Thailand's disease control committee has proposed a halving of a two-week hotel isolation requirement for vaccinated arrivals"

[Salerno]

1 minute ago, alyx said:

Where is that implied ?

All I can read is "Thailand's disease control committee has proposed a halving of a two-week hotel isolation requirement for vaccinated arrivals"

Followed by:

 

1 hour ago, snoop1130 said:

...those without vaccination proof would be isolated for 10 days if arriving by air, and 14 days if by land.

 

[boogiewoogie]

Bash overpriced PCR tests now! One is enough!

 

 

[alyx]

2 minutes ago, Salerno said:

Followed by:

 

 

Yep, saw that but still does not make sense as it is in opposition with the title and the introductive paragraph

[Salerno]

1 minute ago, alyx said:

Yep, saw that but still does not make sense as it is in opposition with the title and the introductive paragraph

You don't expect 100% clarity with the state of politics &  journalism as they are now do you? 555

 

Basically sounds like they're looking to go back to the way it was for a short time around May.

[alyx]

9 minutes ago, Salerno said:

You don't expect 100% clarity with the state of politics &  journalism as they are now do you? 555

 

Basically sounds like they're looking to go back to the way it was for a short time around May.

555 you are correct.....honestly I was expecting a minimum of 50% ???? 

But after "trying" to read it again and again, it might mean that on one hand quarantine for vaccinated visitors would be halved and reduced to 11 nights for the non vaccinated whereas the one arriving by land will not see their status changed

[djayz]

1 hour ago, DrJack54 said:

Wait on.....after new quarantine you can buy a beer at 7/11 and relax in your room. Just can't go to a bar. 

Netflix recommended.

What every tourist has dreamed of all year long as they save for their winter holiday. 

[RJRS1301]

41 minutes ago, ukrules said:

Under your little plan above you doom the country on a permanent basis.

There will never be 'home quarantine' - it will always involve some convoluted system of state control right down to when you can open your specially supervised by the military hotel door room.

 

If the currently available vaccines are going to be accepted as in any way useful then there's no need to test vaccinated travelers, no need to quarantine them or anything else, just let them in and leave them alone.

 

Until that happens the vast majority of people will simply go somewhere else.

 

For most people their only requirement is warm weather during the the winter months and there's a lot of places within 10 hours flying time from Europe that provide that, those who remove any quarantine requirements will be the winners and people have long memories once they go somewhere new and like it.

 

 

Vaccination does not stop infection or transmission, people who are vaccinated can still become infected, to not test would be foolhardy

[DrJack54]

2 minutes ago, djayz said:

What every tourist has dreamed of all year long as they save for their winter holiday. 

JayJay market Bangkok last Sunday. Tourists dream.

[Yorkshire Tea]

2 minutes ago, RJRS1301 said:

Vaccination does not stop infection or transmission, people who are vaccinated can still become infected, to not test would be foolhardy

Covid is already here.

[zzaa09]

1 hour ago, Upnotover said:

 

"Halving" obviously means something else in these parts.

As well as how it's interpreted and promoted by the less than stunning journalistic acumen. 

[alyx]

18 minutes ago, RJRS1301 said:

Vaccination does not stop infection or transmission, people who are vaccinated can still become infected, to not test would be foolhardy

Although your statement is correct what is the point in getting vaccinated and go through the same hurdles as if we were not vaccinated 

That makes common sense in the rest of the world: Europe ans US to only mention these

Well. we need to get on with our lives.

[richard_smith237]

11 minutes ago, RJRS1301 said:

Vaccination does not stop infection or transmission, people who are vaccinated can still become infected, to not test would be foolhardy

That is a hugely dumbed down and oversimplified binary response…

 

Vaccination cuts down infection, the severity of infection and transmission. 
 

Vaccination with vaccines reported to have a greater efficacy improve this to the degree that with sufficient numbers (percentages of a population) vaccinated with an effective vaccine testing may not be necessary at all.

 

It is at this stage we move on with life and handle Covid-19 as we do other respiratory illnesses. 

 

[zzaa09]

15 minutes ago, Salerno said:

You don't expect 100% clarity with the state of politics &  journalism as they are now do you? 555

 

Basically sounds like they're looking to go back to the way it was for a short time around May.

The continuous rhetorical pronouncements are confusing enough, yet the wishy-washy strategy defies reasoning. 

For the last month [or more], the campaign appears to be ever-changing daily if not every third day - a new scheme is envisioned and then cancelled, changed, pushed back, revised or whatever. 

Stick with a program and go with it - hook or crook. 

[starky]

So 16 days has been reduced to 12 days.? Massive. Slashed to the bone.  And if it's "halved" for the vaccinated does that mean 9....and the 0 for the vaccinated in the sandbox might as well be 14 as there is not much to do and no more to go with lots of things closed. Huge effort. 

Edited September 23, 2021 by starky

[starky]

3 hours ago, Upnotover said:

 

"Halving" obviously means something else in these parts.

Rading comprehension lacking.  10 days for those arriving by air unvaccinated halving of the current 14 days for those fully vaccinated <deleted> at least read the OP first. Having said that my money is on 12 and 9.

Edited September 23, 2021 by metisdead
Profane acronym removed.