Thailand

Phuket News April 13, 2021

UPDATE: Field hospitals being established in Covid hot zones around Thailand

UPDATE: The field hospital in Bangkok’s Bang Bon district, west of the Chao Phraya river, had its first 10 Covid patients today. The director of the medical services office of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration says that the 10 patients into the makeshift hospital, located at the Chalerm Phra Kiat Stadium, will enable assessment of the performance by the medical team, before more patients arrive – Thai PBS World ORIGINAL STORY: Despite the confident posture and Songkran going ahead, amid restrictions, there is a lot of background activity which suggest the authorities are getting ready for a surge of new infections […]
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Phuket News April 8, 2021

PM set to sign order tomorrow to close bars and clubs in 41 provinces

The order to close nightlife venues across Thailand is on the table and ready for PM Prayut Chan-o-cha to sign. The PM is expected to sign the measure tomorrow, which would take effect immediately, ordering bars in 41 of Thailand’s 77 provinces to close for at least 2 weeks (list below). Numerous clusters of Covid-19 infections have been reported at entertainment venues, primarily in Bangkok’s trendy Thong Lor area. Health officials suspect the outbreak is the faster-spreading UK variant (B117) of the virus. To combat the spread of the more contagious strain of the virus, health officials are implementing what […]
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Phuket News April 3, 2021

Phuket Airport welcomes first 7 day quarantine travellers

In the early hours of Saturday, a flight arrived at Phuket International Airport welcoming the first travellers to benefit from the reduced mandatory quarantine launched on April 1. The reduction of the isolation period is part of the 4 stages of fully reopening Thailand to international tourism, planned to roll out over the next 8 months (and probably into early next year). The flight was a Thai Airways plane on a direct route from Frankfurt, Germany and landed at 6:30am this morning. The new quarantine scheme allows for vaccinated travellers to be quarantined for only 1 week, while those who […]
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Phuket News April 1, 2021

Confirmed, expats in Phuket will receive Covid-19 vaccines

(Links to registration forms below) Officials confirmed yesterday that expats in Phuket will be included and receive Covid-19 vaccines as part of the Thai government’s vaccination scheme. The Phuket Communicable Disease Committee enacts all Coronavirus policy locally, and an important member, Dr Chalermpong of Vachira Phuket Hospital, announced today that foreigners will also receive the Covid vaccines. A new online form launched today and Phuket’s Vice Governor advised that initial appointments will be made online only and requested people without online access to be patient and not walk into hospitals. Phuket will receive the Sinovac vaccines this month, and AstraZeneca […]
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Phuket News March 30, 2021

Chinese tourists expected to travel to Phuket in July, Europeans at the end of the year

Phuket is reopening to foreign tourists starting July 1 with the quarantine period waived for vaccinated travellers, but it’s likely that most of the tourists will be from China. Chartered flights are scheduled to begin in July from China, while European visitors are expected to start returning in winter. Phuket expects about 2 million visitors, mostly from China and Europe, estimated to bring in about 105 billion baht during the second half of 2021, according to the vice president of the Tourism Council of Thailand. Travellers, who are vaccinated against the coronavirus, will be able to arrive and stay in […]
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Phuket News March 27, 2021

Phuket to open on July 1 – first in Thailand | OPINION

by Andrew J. Wood In a move largely expected after intense lobbying from the huge Travel and Tourism industry here in Thailand, the government approved the waiving of quarantine requirements for vaccinated visitors arriving on Phuket from July 1, the first significant reopening for the popular tourism destination. An economic panel chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday approved the proposal by Phuket’s private sector and business groups to inoculate at least 70% of the island’s residents to reopen for vaccinated tourists, said Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn. Thai tourism and airline businesses, with the support of the Tourism Council […]
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Phuket News March 25, 2021

Accelerated vaccination plan for Phuket, Koh Samui recommended by tourism sector

Those in Thailand’s tourism and airline industries are pushing for an accelerated vaccination plan for Phuket and Koh Samui as well as for those in those in the tourism sector. With Phuket set to reopen under the “sandbox” model in July, tourism and airline representatives also ask for a clear timeline for reopening the country to foreign travellers. In a letter to the Tourism and Sports Ministry, 8 organisations in the tourism and airline industries voiced their support for the new “sandbox” travel model planned for Phuket, and possibly Koh Samui. The scheme will allow foreign visitors vaccinated against Covid-19 […]
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Phuket News March 23, 2021

Phuket to present reopening plan this Friday with fingers crossed

Phuket is expected to present a reopening plan for approval that would allow vaccinated tourists visit without undergoing quarantine starting in July. The plan will be submitted to the Centre for Economic Situation Administration this Friday. Yuthasak Supasorn, the governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, says the Phuket Tourism Sandbox plan can only be successful if the Andaman island achieves herd immunity by vaccinating at least 70% of its population before letting in visitors. Therefore, the plan also includes how many doses of the vaccine the island would need as well as a timeline of administering them. To reach the […]
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Phuket News March 20, 2021

Patong official denies wastewater to blame for macro algae bloom along beachfront

A Patong official is denying that wastewater flowing into the beach’s bay is causing a large influx of algae, leading to mass amounts of red sea urchins being stranded on the shore. Nattawut Thepthon, Chief of the Patong Municipality Sanitary Works Division told The Phuket News that the appearance of sea urchins is a natural phenomenon. But the chief of the Phuket Marine Biological Centre disagrees, saying the urchins are swarming the shore as they are attracted to algae. He says the algae blooms are the urchins’ food source and high tides during the spring season are adding to their […]
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Phuket News March 18, 2021

Dutchman in Thai jail for alleged involvement in SPM scam now getting donations

While Dutch national Wesley Halbach sits in Thai jail for charges related to the dodgy money-making app SPM Shopping Mall said to have scammed thousands, a GoFundMe page has been set up, asking for donations to help pay bail, hire a lawyer and reunite Wesley with his family overseas. The page claims that the 37 year old father is a “victim of a big set up.” In previous reports, police said they suspect Wesley was an administrator for the scheme’s Line messaging chats and that there are around 40 other suspected “Line Admin.” A recent Facebook post, with a link […]
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Phuket’s July Sandbox no-quarantine model “needs a major revamp”
by Tim Newton on April 17, 2021 at 9:43 am
Thailand’s Sports and Tourism minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn is acknowledging that Phuket’s ‘Sandbox’ model for a no-quarantine re-opening in July will need “a major revamp”. As the Songkran travel bubble bursts and the monsoon season waves start to roll onto the island’s west coast beaches, Phuket’s scheduled July re-boot suddenly seems a long way off. Minister Phiphat says he plans to meet with “all related agencies” this week. Apart from the latest national re-surge […]
Phuket begs Kolour attendees to come for Covid-19 testing
by Neill Fronde on April 16, 2021 at 5:29 pm
Health officials in Phuket put out a public statement this week compelling all foreigners who attended clubs and ‘Kolour’ events to report for Covid-19 testing. As many might expect, the response has been lacklustre at best. Spreading the message around the foreigner and expat community in Phuket, the message is aimed at the multitudes of people, mostly foreign who attended Kolour and related events that turned into a Covid-19 superspreader event. Many foreigners have not come forward, much […]
Pattaya, Phuket and Hua Hin brace for increased restrictions
by Tim Newton on April 16, 2021 at 9:53 am
Three of Thailand’s biggest expat areas are seeing sharp rises in new infections, partly from pre-Songkran traffic. The Songkran holidays, now officially over (but will see many people taking today off and making a weekend Songkran extension), and the government says they are expecting to see a rise in the cases numbers reported in the popular holiday locations. Chon Buri Public Health office says they now have a total of 910 infections since April 1. They have 103 new cases in the past 24 […]
Footbridges stop luxury yacht travelling from Phuket to Samui
by Neill Fronde on April 15, 2021 at 9:31 pm
Footbridges in Phuket stood in the way of a luxury yacht travelling from its home in Phuket to Koh Samui when the boat was too tall to pass. Police received a call around 8 pm last night from the truck driver after his trailer carrying the yacht had trouble getting under one of several bridges for walkers to pass over the highway. The boat was travelling down Thepkrasattri Road, where it was stopped by the bridge near Baan Tha Reua School. The boat also had trouble at the pedestrian bridge at […]
Hotel blog suggests Phuket should push ahead with July reopening despite Covid surge
by Neill Fronde on April 14, 2021 at 6:08 pm
A hotel information blog is claiming that, despite growing Covid-19 numbers, Phuket should stick to its schedule in reopening to travellers without quarantine in July. That’s only 2 and a half months away. In an interview with the Director of Travel and Tourism Consulting at GlobalData, they stressed that while it is crucial to rein in the spread of Covid-19 and the B117 strain now menacing Thailand, the risk must not overshadow the need to push forward with vaccinations and the march towards […]

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