Shreya Nair
Image credit: Vinod Murali
Travel plans to Thailand may be the next holiday trip for several foreign tourists. Thailand is all set to receive its first set of foreign vacationers from China. A total of around 120 tourists from Guangzhou, China will be arriving in Phuket on 8th October.
According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand governor, Yuthasak Supasorn, the tourists will be placed in quarantine at government-approved hotels. Three hotels in Phuket have been chosen for visitors to stay during their 14-day quarantine.
The Chinese tourists will undergo testing twice in quarantine. They also need to have health insurance and a negative COVID-19 test 72 hours prior to their travel.
To further boost tourism around Thailand, tourists will be issues a Special Tourist Visa (STC). These visas will be valid for up to 90 days and are extendable to 270 days.
Foreign Tourists from Low-Risk Countries
Additionally, the Bangkok Post reported that foreign tourists from low-risk countries will also be allowed to Thailand. The government will monitor these tourists.
Apart from the Chinese tourists, a group of seven Chinese businessmen will also be landing at the Suvarnabhumi airport in a private jet. Furthermore, 126 Chinese tourists and 120 tourists from Scandinavian and Schengen countries will be flying to Bangkok on 25th October and 1st November respectively.
Also read: Thai Airways Opens New Airline Restaurant in Bangkok
Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said that the country is limiting the number of foreign tourists and will manage them with wrist bands and phone applications. In addition, all the tourists will also have to download the country’s tracing application so that they are traceable throughout their visit.
The foreign travel initiative is a part of Thailand’s attempt to restart its tourism sector. They expect to receive only 6.7 million foreign tourists in 2020 which is a major drop from the 39.8 million tourists in 2019.
