The South China Morning Post reported that on February 23, Thailand Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha declared that Thailand may scrap mandatory quarantine for foreign visitors vaccinated against Covid-19. The potential change would be a major step to revive the nation’s tourism industry.
Foreigners visiting Thailand who could produce a “vaccine certificate” would be allowed to skip the two-week quarantine currently imposed on all foreign tourists. The government would “track” such tourists in an unspecified way.
On February 24, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor Yuthasak Supasorn attempted to clarify the Pime Minister’s statement by noting that measures for vaccinated visitors would be introduced “step-by-step” and could include shortening the mandatory quarantine for all arrivals from two weeks to three days for those vaccinated, or waiving it entirely. He also indicated that the TAT plans to begin selling tour packages after April.
Another bit of marginally good news for those willing to put up with a quarantine was that next month five of the most popular tourist provinces will change their quarantine requirements to permit tourists in some hotels to participate in a “hotel area quarantine” where visitors can move around within hotel grounds instead of being strictly confined to their rooms.
Final Thoughts
In the last few months, Thailand has come up with several ideas and plans for reviving international tourism, which powers 20% of the Thai economy. Substantial differences between what is proposed and what is ultimately implemented, if anything, has often been the way things have turned out so far.
In this case, the basic plan of waiving or severely reducing time in quarantine for tourists who have been vaccinated is sound and one that other countries are also considering. The devil will be in the details as to when the plan would be implemented, the method for “tracking tourists, and what the Thai authorities accept as proof of vaccination.
I hope Thailand adopts quarantine-free arrivals for those who have been fully vaccinated against covid-19. I could live with as much as a three-day quarantine but anything much longer would be a deal breaker.
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To be honest I have great hope with the vaccinations, not only for travelling but also to come back to a normal everyday’s life. I am glad that some countries start thinking of applying softer rules for vaccinated people, and I wouldn’t be shocked if some “benefits” were granted to vaccinated people in their own countries too, but that brings the problems of discriminations, and having to share some medical data… Not an easy topic, but Thailand seems to be full of ideas. As you said, devil is in the details so let’s wait and see 🙂
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Getting vaccinated should grant some “benefits” and privileges at home. That would be added incentive for those who may be reluctant to get vaccinated. If there are such benefits, there should be a national registry of those vaccinated as the CDC vaccine cards seem to be easy to fake. Thanks for your comment.
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Good info! I’m thinking of going in 2-3 years and let the hoopala and Covid hopefully be gone. What do you think?
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Thailand should be in great shape in a couple of years although there are ongoing issues with government repression.
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I’ll wait until then… well, I’m staying a short visit so I would hope I don’t have to worry about that.
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I also plan to go back, soon hopefully. It is sad though to see what is going on politically there. When the ruling class realized fair elections threatened their control, they staged a military coup in 2014, changed the constitution and election laws, and outlawed meaningful dissent. When democracies view elections merely as a means of preserving the power, position and privilege of a certain segment of society, there is no more democracy. A lesson for democracies everywhere.
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That is sooo sad. It’s hard to fathom how this happens in our world and serving one segment of the population and ingoring others is a sure form of disaster. It really is so heartbreaking. 🤗
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This is great news! I can’t wait to get my vaccine!
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It looks like the vaccine rollout is gaining speed. I hope you can be vaccinated soon.
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wow – I did not hear about Qantas. That is a real blow to the travel industry. My first thought was that you might be traveling to Thailand soon, since you are vaccinated. Maybe that won’t be happening soon……
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On my mind I am hoping will get to our real world soon. Thanks for the info.
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we live in hope. let’s see how it all goes. Some countries only require a clear test 3 days before you enter – mostly in Africa. It’s different depending where you are. In regards to Australia I think that we hope to hit 60% vaccinations by October and hence the date for international travel. thats the lower end of what WHO recommends for ‘herd immunity’. realistically we wait and see what the next 3 – 4 months brings. the numbers have fallen worldwide in the last month and with only 0.52% of the world fully vaccinated at this point, it has nothing to do with vaccinations. if the trend continues and by june the world is moving well on vaccinations, it is not impossible to imagine an earlier date for international travel. However, I wouldnt think much earlier. we may see a travel bubble emerge before then but theyve been talking about that for 6 months and nothings materialised. New Zealand are also talking about allowing vaccinated travellers in I think with no quarantine.
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That’s good news..but for Australians not so much as we still don’t have a date for leaving the country, some say it might be next year even 😱
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That is severe. Today, Qantas announced it is postponing all international flying until at least October 31.
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Yes I just saw that ..hoping to make it back to the UK in October for my Dad’s 90th ..fingers crossed 🤞
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