Vaccinated foreign tourists can now enter Krabi, PhangNga, and KohSamuibesides Phuket

Thursday, January 13, 2022

From Tuesday, vaccinated foreign tourists can enter Krabi, PhangNga, and KohSamuibesides Phuket under the sandbox program that won’t require them to quarantine, if they spend at least a week in these destinations.

Thailand added three popular beach destinations to a visa program that wouldpermit foreign visitors to avoid a mandatory isolation, which is indeed a lifeline to the country’s Covid-hit tourism industry.

The relaxed visa rule is yet another attempt by Thailand to restart its travel industry with the erupting of the omicron variant bringing a new wave of Covid infections. Tourism-reliant Thailand indefinitely suspended a wider quarantine-free program last week to control a surge in new cases, although it helped attract around 350,000 travelers in just two months.

While the tourist arrivals under the sandbox program are expected to be 50% less in Samui, “It’s still better than zero, still better than a total travel ban,” said RatchapornPoolsawadee, the president of the Tourism Association of KohSamui. “The suspension came during the peak travel season so the impact on the sector is quite significant.”

The resort island of Phuket was the first Thai province to waive mandatory quarantine for vaccinated travelers from July 1. It is now currently dealing with its biggest increase in daily cases since the pandemic began, with about 60% of its hospital beds occupied. But local officials have vowed to keep the program going, and said that the island’s healthcare system can tackle the resurgence.

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