Thai Visa’s while under Covid

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CDC scuppers Q3 tourism hopes

The latest travel warning from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) against travel to Thailand has exacerbated the tourism outlook for the third quarter, with all hopes now resting on the high season.: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business...-tourism-hopes

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Americans might hold off on visiting

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might be a while before they think about returning

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U.S. CDC Urges Avoiding Travel to Israel, France, Thailand Over COVID-19

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned on Monday against travel to Israel, France, Thailand, Iceland and several other countries because of a rising number of COVID-19 cases in those nations.

The CDC has been adding to its highest "Level 4: Very High" COVID-19 level as cases spread around the globe. The United States added Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, along with other places, including Aruba and French Polynesia.

The U.S. State Department also issued its parallel Level 4: Do Not Travel" advisories for Iceland and France on Monday.

In July, the CDC had raised concerns about Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, lifting its travel health notice by two levels to "Level 3: High."

The CDC also hiked alert levels to "Level 3: High" for Austria, Croatia, El Salvador, Azerbaijan, Guam, Kenya and Jamaica. The CDC says unvaccinated travelers should avoid nonessential travel to those countries.: https://www.usnews.com/news/us/artic...-over-covid-19 - https://travelmaps.state.gov/TSGMap/

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Phang Nga reopening to foreign tourists postponed to Aug 15

The reopening of Phang Nga province to foreign tourists scheduled for August 1 has been postponed to August 15, provincial governor Jamroen Thippayaphongthada said on Friday.

“We decided to postpone the reopening under the 'Phang Nga Prompt' campaign to August 15, as the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has yet to approve the reopening date previously scheduled for August 1,” he said. “The other reason is the province’s integration with the Mor Chana contact tracing platform is not yet complete.”


“Lastly, the province has seen new cluster cases in the past week and therefore needs more time to publicise disease control measures to the locals at the community level,” he added.

On Friday, Phang Nga reported 37 new cases, bringing cumulative cases in the province since April 1 to 640 patients.

Jamroen added that he had called a meeting with tourist entrepreneurs in the province regarding the postponement, and most of the business owners agreed that the postponement was necessary, and the economic impact should be at an acceptable level.

Phang Nga had estimated that more than 20,000 tourists would visit the province in the first month of reopening, generating more than THB2.6 billion of direct and indirect income to local businesses.

The Phang Nga Prompt campaign is linked to the Tourism Ministry’s "7+7 Island Hopping" scheme under which vaccinated tourists who stayed in Phuket for seven days can travel to nearby islands in Phang Nga, Surat Thani and Krabi provinces for another seven days, provided they tested negative via RT-PCR method.

Minister of Tourism and Sports Pipat Ratchakitprakarn said on Friday that the scheme would be postponed indefinitely pending approval from the CCSA.: https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40004005

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Push to promote Phuket after murder

A heavy tourism marketing drive will be launched overseas to spread the message of Phuket being safe after the murder of a Swiss woman and as the US placed Thailand on the list of countries with a Covid-19 alert, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

The murder case has no immediate impact on tourism bookings through the Phuket sandbox programme, as reported by 29 TAT offices overseas, said Nanthasiri Ronsiri, director of TAT's Phuket office.

However, in the longer term, the pandemic might put pressure on Phuket's tourism outlook, especially with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adding Thailand to the highest Level 4 list of countries -- "very high" -- which urges fully vaccinated US citizens to avoid travel to Thailand due to the risk of exposure to the virus and its variants.

The priority now was to communicate to people overseas and tour operators that Phuket, being the most vaccinated province, is far removed from the pandemic situation in the rest of the country, said Ms Nanthasiri.

The message must be put out urgently with a heavy marketing campaign to be implemented.

Phuket has a strong public health safety record and is medically equipped in terms of personnel and facilities to handle the pandemic, she said.

Meanwhile, the provincial health office has reported a steady rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in Phuket, especially among migrant workers from Myanmar employed mostly in the fishery industry.

Koosak Kookiatkul, head of the office, said Phuket logged 297 new Covid-19 cases last week, and 328 so far this week.

"New cases are coming on a wave of the Delta variant, which spreads 60-70% faster than the outbreak in April," he said.

"There are more patients as we have more visitors and inbound workers."

Sounds safe: https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand...t-after-murder

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TAT mulls tourism strategy after adverse US travel advisory

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is unfazed by the latest US travel advisory against travel to the country, as it is promoting tourism only in Covid-safe areas.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday raised the threat level for Thailand from “high risk” to “very high” for Covid-19, along with some 70 countries, such as Brazil, Malaysia and Indonesia.

Responding to the development, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn admitted that the US move could slightly affect tourism in Thailand, as foreigners are normally concerned about their health safety before choosing a country for vacation.

Yuthasak added that his organisation must explain to several countries that Thailand presently has opened only some safe areas for travellers, not the whole country.

He pointed out that no foreigner had got infected with Covid-19 in Thailand recently, as the opened areas were really safe for them.

Yuthasak explained that the US travel advice did not mean its citizens were prohibited from coming to Thailand; it was just a suggestion to US people.

Previously, Thailand had been removed from the EU White List for pandemic risk but there were still European travellers coming to Thailand, he said.

On Friday, new Covid cases in Thailand hit another high with 23,418 patients in the past 24 hours.: https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40004618

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Domestic tourism urged to be promoted as backup plan to overseas arrivals

The Thai Hotels Association is urging the government to come up with measures to promote domestic tourism, because it is unsure that the plan, earlier announced by Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to reopen Thailand to foreign visitors by mid-October, will be achieved, as the country is battling its worst COVID-19 outbreak yet with new highs set each day.

The association’s president, Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, said that, although the government is determined to meet its target, it should have a Plan B to promote domestic tourism, such as state agencies holding conferences or seminars in hotels.

She claimed that up to 20% of hotels have already closed permanently, while about half of the remaining establishments have temporarily suspended operations due to poor cash flow and lack of revenue.

Citing the opinion survey, conducted by the association and the Bank of Thailand last month among 304 hotels about their confidence in business prospects, 60% of hotel proprietors, which are still in operation, said that they are facing cash flow problems, with the majority saying that their cash flow will last three months at most and the rest just one month.

Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, meanwhile, insisted that the government will press ahead with its plan, using the Phuket “sandbox” scheme as the model, which will be expanded to other tourist destinations, such as Samui, Krabi and Phang-nga provinces, staring August 22nd.

He expects that, by October, when about 70% of the Thai population is expected to have been inoculated, 10 more provinces can reopen to foreign visitors, adding that the number of foreign arrivals for the whole year has been adjusted down to one million, from three million.

If the COVID-19 pandemic can be contained in the next 2 months, Mr. Phiphat said he believes countries, such as the United States, France and Israel, will lift their advisories warning against visiting Thailand.

Phuket has the highest rate of COVID-19 vaccination in the country, but a surge in infections on the island over the past month has prompted the local authorities to seal off the resort island from domestic visits, while the “sandbox” in which fully vaccinated COVID-negative foreign tourists and Thai returnees are welcome without entering a quarantine from July 1st – considered as the first phase of Thailand’s reopening, is still proceeding.: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/domesti...seas-arrivals/

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TAT plea to amend sandbox plan

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is asking the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) to approve the so-called 7+7 model allowing tourists to stay in Phuket for seven days before visiting other locations.

Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, a secretary attached to the Prime Minister's Office, said on Saturday the TAT has come up with the so-called 7+7 formula, which means tourists who complete their seven-day stay on the island can visit and spend another seven days in other tourist destinations taking part in the model.

The model is expected to be implemented this month, for seven tourist attractions.

They comprise Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao in Surat Thani; Khao Lak, Kho Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi in Phangnga; Koh Phi Phi, Railay Beach, and Koh Ngai in Krabi.

Starting on July 1, Phuket waived quarantine requirements for foreign tourists fully vaccinated against Covid-19 under a new sandbox model, which is being touted as a model for the reopening of the tourism industry. However, as a precaution, tourists have to remain on the island for 14 days before they are allowed to travel to other destinations in the country.

Mr Thanakorn said the Phuket sandbox had been a success, attracting almost 20,000 arrivals since its opening with 371,826 room nights booked at hotels with Safety and Health Administration (SHA) Plus certificates until the end of September.

Visitors from the US made up the largest number of foreign arrivals, followed by those from the UK, Israel, Germany and France, Mr Thanakorn said.

Currently, a total of 2,622 foreign tourists who completed the 14-day stay have left the island by land, with Bangkok, Koh Samui, Chiang Mai, Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chon Buri as their top five next destinations, he said. Another 7,827 tourists have opted to travel to other destinations in Phuket by sea via Chalong Bay pier, Po Bay pier and Rassada pier, he said.: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business...d-sandbox-plan

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Phuket extends restrictions for 14 days due to high numbers of new COVID-19 cases

Phuket has extended its restrictions until the end of August, including the sealing off of the island to outsiders, with some exceptions, due to continuing high numbers of new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases.

The exceptions are Phuket residents, visitors related to the “sandbox” scheme, and people who have been vaccinated with 2 shots of Sinovac or at least one shot of AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson at least 14 days prior to arrival, or those who have recovered from COVID-19 for at least 90 days. The visitors have to produce negative RT-PCR or Antigen test results not older than 72 hours.

Children under the age of 6, however, can enter the island when accompanied by a guardian who meets the requirements. Children age 6, but not over 17, have to produce a negative RT-PCR or Antigen test result not older than 72 hours. Students who are under 18, who need to enter the island for school, have to produce a student ID and take an RT-PCR test.

Phuket recorded over a hundred new COVID-19 cases yesterday (Saturday). All were locally transmitted and none are from the “sandbox” scheme. Accumulative infections on the island are now 1,940, with 14 deaths and 776 remaining in hospitals.: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/phuket-...ovid-19-cases/