Thailand to allow long-stay tourists in island of Phuket from October

[Jonathan Fairfield 7,434]

Thailand to allow long-stay tourists in island of Phuket from October

By Panarat Thepgumpanat and Chayut Setboonsarng

 

FILE PHOTO: Empty chairs are seen on a beach, which is usually full of tourists, amid fears of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Pattaya, Thailand, March 27, 2020. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun/File Photo

 

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand will allow foreign tourists to visit for longer stays from October, a senior official said on Friday, as the government tries to revive a key economic sector that has been devasted by the coronavirus pandemic.

 

Tourists will have to stay for at least 30 days, with the first 14 days in quarantine in a limited vicinity of their hotel, before they can visit other areas, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters.

The announcement comes after authorities suspended plans to create ‘travel bubbles’ with partner countries as the number of coronavirus cases in Asia rose. 

 

“On Oct. 1 we will start in Phuket,” Yuthasak said.

 

Visitors will have to take two coronavirus tests during quarantine before they are able to travel to the rest of the island, Minister of Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, said on Thursday.

 

Staff will also have to remain in the hotel, he added.

 

Visitors will have to take an additional test and remain within the province for another week before they can travel to other parts of the country.

 

Thailand has gone nearly three months without a confirmed case of a local COVID-19 transmission. It has recorded over 3,300 cases.

 

The government’s coronavirus taskforce on Friday extended a state of emergency for another month until the end of September to control the outbreak.

 

The tourism-reliant economy has been battered by the collapse of global travel as infections spread.

 

Southeast Asia's second-largest economy shrank 12.2% in the second quarter from a year earlier, the worst contraction since the 1998 Asian crisis due to the pandemic impact.

 

The country expects to receive 8 million foreign tourists this year. By comparison, it had a record 39.8 million tourists in 2019.

 

(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng; Editing by Kim Coghill)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-08-21

 

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[Pottinger 1,256]

Iteration No. 26734 (soon to be superseded)

[shady86 2,834]

I'm looking forward for foreigners to spend their money to quarantine 14 days at 5 star resorts!

[Travelanimal 124]

Finally some sense prevails . They should test at airport and if negative send them 7 days In qurantine rather than 15 

[Sheryl 27,299]

And how exactly are tourists going to get there? Will they start to issue tourist visas again? Flights?

[Sundown 832]

Thanks, this will be the funniest topic for the next few days

[mehrdad 196]

Who would be will to go on such a journey? 
 

[Surelynot 7,626]

2 minutes ago, mehrdad said:

Who would be will to go on such a journey? 
 

No one

[sebastion 932]

Thailand the hub of quarantine travel

[Justgrazing 19,581]

12 minutes ago, Jonathan Fairfield said:

 

Tourists will have to stay for at least 30 days, with the first 14 days in quarantine in a limited vicinity of their hotel, before they can visit other areas

Limits the market already .. how many people can take a mth in one hit from their vacation allowance and then spend nearly half of it indoors .. 

[MadMac 1,742]

Sounds very attractive 555

[MadMac 1,742]

But perhaps a way for stranded expats to come back, if anything at all.

[Sujo 16,759]

4 minutes ago, Justgrazing said:

Limits the market already .. how many people can take a mth in one hit from their vacation allowance and then spend nearly half of it indoors .. 

And the other half in quarantine in their home country. There is you 4 week holiday gone.

 

I will pass.

[Laza 45 3,109]

12 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

No one

People with lots of $$ and think they will be better of there than where they are.. an ready for a holiday.. no everyone is poor.. 

[86Tiger 1,402]

15 minutes ago, Sundown said:

Thanks, this will be the funniest topic for the next few days

It will change in 48 hours.  Only because they will not assemble again before Monday....