Thai economic committee approves in principle to welcome selected vaccinated foreign tourists to visit Thailand without state quarantine, piloting in Phuket - The Pattaya News

Thai economic committee approves in principle to welcome selected vaccinated foreign tourists to visit Thailand without state quarantine, piloting in Phuket

Friday, 26 March 2021, 19:59

Bangkok –

The Center for Economic Situation Administration (CESA) has agreed in principle with a reopening plan to allow selected vaccinated foreign tourists to visit the island of Phuket without state quarantine, starting in July.

Yuthasak Supasorn, Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), revealed this afternoon, March 26th, that the CESA has approved in principle a TAT plan to welcome vaccinated foreigners to visit Phuket island without mandatory quarantine upon arrival.

According to TAT's previous market survey, the plan is expected to draw at least 100,000 foreign tourists to the island province in the third quarter. The TAT also aims to formulate a tourism promotional plan to initially attract vaccinated tourists from Europe, the United Kingdom, Russia, United States, United Arab Emirates, and Scandinavian countries. However, not all of these countries may be allowed at first and restrictions could be placed on countries let in.

The CESA has assigned the TAT to discuss the agenda with the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) and related local authorities before summarizing and proposing the plan in detail next month for further approvals.

Yuthasak continued that TAT also proposed a procedure to gradually reduce the quarantine period to seven days for vaccinated foreign tourists in the second quarter of 2021, prior to the arrival of non-quarantine tourists in July.

The plan is planned to be firstly implemented in major tourist provinces, piloted in Phuket and respectively followed by Koh Samui, Krabi, Phang Nga, Pattaya, and Chiang Mai. However, this is only an initial plan that has to be further discussed and approved by the Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).

The Pattaya News notes that the plan is not finalized and needs multiple other levels of approval, including from the CCSA and Thai Cabinet and also depends on vaccination levels in Phuket.