How to pick a hotel in Phuket for the required sandbox 7 day stay?

[ppatrick]

Hi,

 

There are 500+ hotels to choose from even with the filter Phuket and SHA Extra+ from the link from Thai Pass page:

https://web.thailandsha.com/shaextraplus?province=83&keyword=

None of them have reviews or stars. I'm not sure how to pick one. I'm looking for a simple non luxury place to do my time (yeah sounds like jail time hehe) in Phuket. Also, none of them offer a ride from airport to their hotels. Is Uber or any ride share cars abundant in Phuket? 

 

Any advise or recommendation? Thanks.

[Emeraldisle]

I stayed at The Marina Phuket Hotel in Patong last month.  800 baht per night. They arranged taxi pick up from airport. https://www.guestreservations.com/the-marina-phuket-hotel/booking?gclid=CjwKCAiAtouOBhA6EiwA2nLKH7i6YhMy7c8emoLJlNja1GC7IgvPKxyO92GGh1WnYjXrjx9MRX7bpBoCCS4QAvD_BwE

 

[ppatrick]

48 minutes ago, Emeraldisle said:

I stayed at The Marina Phuket Hotel in Patong last month.  800 baht per night. They arranged taxi pick up from airport. https://www.guestreservations.com/the-marina-phuket-hotel/booking?gclid=CjwKCAiAtouOBhA6EiwA2nLKH7i6YhMy7c8emoLJlNja1GC7IgvPKxyO92GGh1WnYjXrjx9MRX7bpBoCCS4QAvD_BwE

 

Good price and nice place. Thanks!

[Fat is a type of crazy]

You can look at those hotels on Tripadvisor and other sites such as Agoda with reviews included of course. Most big sites tell you if the hotel is SHA Plus. 

When you search on Agoda it will ask if you want to  'Book stays for vaccinated travelers with inclusive PCR tests and airport transfer or all-inclusive quarantine stays for non-vaccinated travelers.'

So then the search will include only those appropriate hotels. 

I assume you are aware you are not quarantined in your hotel as such, if you don't test positive, so you'll want a hotel that meets your needs e.g. near shops, beach, etc.

[ppatrick]

1 hour ago, Fat is a type of crazy said:

You can look at those hotels on Tripadvisor and other sites such as Agoda with reviews included of course. Most big sites tell you if the hotel is SHA Plus. 

When you search on Agoda it will ask if you want to  'Book stays for vaccinated travelers with inclusive PCR tests and airport transfer or all-inclusive quarantine stays for non-vaccinated travelers.'

So then the search will include only those appropriate hotels. 

I assume you are aware you are not quarantined in your hotel as such, if you don't test positive, so you'll want a hotel that meets your needs e.g. near shops, beach, etc.

Thanks for the info. I was wondering what SHA Plus mean and found the answer in your reply. So the hotels that advertise SHA Plus mean that they have PCR tests and airport transfer for quarantine stay? I'm vaccinated. Unless I test positive, I should be allowed to wonder the island ???? My destination is Bangkok though.

[Fat is a type of crazy]

46 minutes ago, ppatrick said:

Thanks for the info. I was wondering what SHA Plus mean and found the answer in your reply. So the hotels that advertise SHA Plus mean that they have PCR tests and airport transfer for quarantine stay? I'm vaccinated. Unless I test positive, I should be allowed to wonder the island ???? My destination is Bangkok though.

To be honest I get a bit confused too. I have a booking for Phuket for February and I am not sure if I'll use it. All the hoops, and the risk of being near an infected person and getting quarantined,  and wearing masks everywhere might not make it a fun holiday. It was a cheap ticket so I'll just see what happens. 

I think in your case if you are landing in Phuket you had to stay at an SHA Plus  hotel for 7 days and then you could go to Bangkok. At one point they changed it to 5 days. Hopefully someone can explain clearly how it works for you now. 

[ppatrick]

Actually they

35 minutes ago, Fat is a type of crazy said:

To be honest I get a bit confused too. I have a booking for Phuket for February and I am not sure if I'll use it. All the hoops, and the risk of being near an infected person and getting quarantined,  and wearing masks everywhere might not make it a fun holiday. It was a cheap ticket so I'll just see what happens. 

I think in your case if you are landing in Phuket you had to stay at an SHA Plus  hotel for 7 days and then you could go to Bangkok. At one point they changed it to 5 days. Hopefully someone can explain clearly how it works for you now. 

Based on the info from the Thai Pass website, they changed from 5 days to 7 days

https://tp.consular.go.th/en/plan

 

Originally I planned to do the 1 day Test & Go in Bangkok. Yesterday they suspended the Test & Go. The only option left is to go to the sandbox Phuket. I already bought a ticket to fly from the US to Bangkok. Do I have to get another ticket from Bangkok to Phuket? The arrival time in Bangkok is already late (about midnight). I doubt that I would be able to find another flight to go to Phuket on the same night. What to do? Sleep at the airport? 

[farang51]

1 hour ago, ppatrick said:

I already bought a ticket to fly from the US to Bangkok. Do I have to get another ticket from Bangkok to Phuket?

You can only use the Phuket Sandbox if you fly directly to Phuket from another country. If you land in Bangkok you will have to quarantine in Bangkok.

[ppatrick]

1 hour ago, farang51 said:

You can only use the Phuket Sandbox if you fly directly to Phuket from another country. If you land in Bangkok you will have to quarantine in Bangkok.

Thanks for the info. I'll cancel my Bangkok flight and get a Phuket flight.

[Apiwan2]

8 hours ago, ppatrick said:

Good price and nice place. Thanks!

When I click on the link it says £39 per night 

 

 

But no mention of Taxi or PCR test .

 

 

[geisha]

15 hours ago, ppatrick said:

Thanks for the info. I was wondering what SHA Plus mean and found the answer in your reply. So the hotels that advertise SHA Plus mean that they have PCR tests and airport transfer for quarantine stay? I'm vaccinated. Unless I test positive, I should be allowed to wonder the island ???? My destination is Bangkok though.

Make sure you get receipts for hotel, Taxxi from airport and PCR tests separately. Otherwise you won’t get the Thai Pass.

[Apiwan2]

8 minutes ago, geisha said:

Make sure you get receipts for hotel, Taxxi from airport and PCR tests separately. Otherwise you won’t get the Thai Pass.

I can't see the Taxi & PCR test on agoda website.

 

Do I have to contact the hotel direct ?

 

Also this example is £180 after discount for 7 nights, is that correct ?

[DFPhuket]

I'd start by thinking about which area appeals to you - are you more of a quiet beach type or do you like to have plenty of drink and restaurant options. Patong has more going on, but unlike pre-Covid years, it's not crowded, the beach is nice and there are plenty of live music options on Bangla. Karon/Kata are still mostly closed. Rawai and Kamala have more of a relaxed vibe. 

 

I stayed at the DoubleTree Hilton on Patong beach for two sandboxes and found it to have a nice combination of luxury, beach, and walking distance to restaurants, bars and music. 

 

Several hotels have unadvertised sandbox special rates that you won't find on their corporate websites, so I'd check their Facebook page or send a message and ask. Since you need to get documents from the hotel to apply for Sandbox, I prefer booking directly with the hotel.