Ifah SakinahInternational tourists can finally visit Phuket without the need to quarantine effective 1 July 2021. It will apply to vaccinated visitors arriving on the largest island in Thailand.
The approved plan stipulates there would be no quarantine for international tourists who must remain in Phuket for at least seven nights before travelling elsewhere. They must be vaccinated against COVID-19 and must test negative upon arriving. On top of that, they will also have to download the specified alert application.
On 1 June 2021, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) issued an assurance to tourism industry professionals that the “Phuket Sandbox” project will go ahead, as projected. This came after the Centre for Economic Situation Administration (CESA) gave the green light to TAT’s three-stage roadmap to reopen six major tourist provinces.
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Image credit: Mike Swigunski
While Thailand will tentatively fully reopen in October, Phuket will be the first in line to do so. It will be reopening at least three months before the rest of the major tourist provinces. They are Krabi, Phang Nga, Surat Thani (Ko Samui), Chon Buri (Pattaya), and Chiang Mai.
“The plan is aimed at accelerating the revival of the country’s tourism industry and paving the way for the reopening of other tourist destinations within Thailand,” Mr Yuthasak Supasorn, TAT Governor, said.
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How is Phuket preparing for international tourist arrivals?
Image credit: Arkady Lukashov
To prepare for international visitor arrivals, Phuket will be amassing nearly one million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. This is in hope that it will be able to inoculate at least 70% of local residents in line with “Phuket Sandbox.” The new pilot program seeks to reopen Phuket and several other destinations by the Andaman Sea by achieving herd community. The reopening of Phuket to foreign visitors will set the stage for other tourist hot spots such as Koh Samui. The Thailand government intends to test the reopening plan before expanding it to other destinations.
Tourism in Thailand accounts for one-fifth of the country’s economy before the pandemic cut a swathe across the globe. According to the President of Phuket Tourism Association, Mr Bhummikitti Ruktaengam, an early reopening could boost the economy by more than ฿30 billion (S$1.3 billion).
With more of such announcement making waves, we are hopeful that travel may soon return to some semblance of normality. In the meantime, share this article with friends and family who’ve been longing to visit Phuket.
