Ferry from South Thailand to Sattahip passes test - but it wasn't full and took 22+ hours. Thai Visa





Picture: Daily News

 

Daily News were upbeat reporting that a test on the ferry between Sattahip on the eastern seaboard and Songkhla in the far south was a success. 

 

The Blue Dolphin - a 136.6 meter long 7,003 ton vessel operated by Seahorse Ferries - left Songkhla at 1 pm on Wednesday and arrived safely in Sattahip (Juk Samet) at 11.20 am yesterday - a journey time of 22 hours and 20 minutes. 

 

But it wasn't full by any means. 

 

It can carry 80 ten wheelers, 15 - 20 cars, 30 crew, and 586 passengers.

 

The test featured one truck trailer and one solitary six wheel truck. 

 

Picture: Daily News

 

Still Withaya Yamuang of the Marine Department was still bigging up this as a policy of PM Prayuth Chan-ocha and transport minister Saksayam Chidchob to reduce 2.5 PM and stimulate the Eastern Economic Corridor plans. 

 

When the actual service will start was not mentioned by the media though they said there are plans for it to drop in at Prachuap Khirikhan in the future.  

 

Attempts by Thaivisa to make a booking for a normal seat were again greeted with a version of "computer says no!"

 

The starting date was first mooted as April, then May. Your guess is as good as ours as to when the inaugural service for the public might become a reality. 

 

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has sent an official letter to international travel partners confirming the opening of PHUKET SANDBOX, starting July 1, 2021 Source: TAT Phuket : Tourism Authority of Thailand, Phuket Office

 



"Some" foreigners will visit Phuket in July, says ATTA chief. Thai Visa



REUTERS FILE PHOTO for reference only

 

Thai business media spoke to the chief of the Association of Thai Travel Agents or ATTA on Wednesday with little more than a month to go until until the much hyped "D-Day" of July 1st.

 

That's the day the so-called Phuket Sandbox begins with the hoped for arrival of foreign tourists.

 

And "hoped for" was the order of the day for ATTA chief Sittiwat Chiwarattanaporn who sounded less optimistic than the Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor or the Tourism Minister have been in recent weeks and months. 

 

Sittiwat said that studies had been done in places like Phuket, Bangkok, Pattaya and other cities trying to ascertain market demand. 

 

These indicated that just "some foreigners" were likely to arrive in the third quarter (that is to say from July).

 

Those that do come will be an indicator of who might make the journey to Thailand in the fourth quarter.

 

He noted that this was of course the usual high season and tourists would not normally be flocking to Thailand's shores in July even in a good year. 

 

The key for the ATTA chief was the Covid situation around the world and in Thailand with all its variables. 

 

But one thing that Thailand could and should control is the rollout of the vaccines.

 

He stressed that the vaccination of people in Thailand was one of the key priorities for inspiring tourism confidence among potential foreign visitors from October to the end of the year. 

 

His Majesty the King's sister has approved coronavirus vaccine imports by an institution she sponsors, bypassing the government as it deals with surging infections and growing public anger over a slow and chaotic rollout. Bangkok Post

Princess allows new vaccine imports

A woman is injected with a Covid-19 vaccine at the Chulabhorn Royal Academy in Bangkok on Thursday. (Photo: Varuth Hirunyatheb)

His Majesty the King's sister has approved coronavirus vaccine imports by an institution she sponsors, bypassing the government as it deals with surging infections and growing public anger over a slow and chaotic rollout.

The secretary-general of the Chulabhorn Royal Academy wrote on Facebook that the "alternative vaccines" would supplement the government campaign until it could meet the country's needs.

The government, which has long insisted it must handle all vaccine imports, will next month start its mass immunisation drive, which relies heavily on AstraZeneca vaccines manufactured locally by a company owned by the king.

The announcement in the Royal Gazette took some in the government by surprise, and comes as the country suffers its most severe Covid-19 outbreak so far and growing unease about the vaccine plan.

The decree was announced late on Tuesday and expanded the Chulabhorn Royal Academy's ability to respond to coronavirus. It was signed by Princess Chulabhorn, its chairwoman and the youngest sibling of King Maha Vajiralongkorn.

"The Royal Academy will procure 'alternative vaccines' until vaccines that are produced in the country reach a capacity that can sufficiently protect against outbreaks," its secretary-general, Nithi Mahanonda, posted on Facebook, adding that it would comply with regulations on imports and registration.

Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said he was unaware of the royal order before it was published.

"I just saw the announcement last night," Mr Anutin said when asked about it during a local television interview.

"But if it is a benefit to the country, we are ready."

Deputy Prime Minister Wissanu Krea-ngam said on Thursday the academy had to issue the announcement so it could qualify to import drugs and medical equipment and supplies.

"But this does not mean it can do so freely — it will have to comply with related laws in full, such as seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration."

He agreed with Dr Nithi that the institute could do so only during the Covid-19 crisis and when the vaccine supply was inadequate.

He added the institute, like private hospitals, could deal with foreign companies to import the vaccine using its own budget.

The Chulabhorn Royal Academy, which includes a hospital and research institute, will organise a news conference for Friday about what it said was its importation of the vaccine of Sinopharm.

Thailand is expected to approve the Chinese vaccine for emergency use this week.

It was not immediately clear how many vaccines the academy would import and when, as well as whether they would be free.

The government is expecting to have available 6 million AstraZeneca doses and 3 million doses of the Sinovac vaccine next month, as it starts its main drive to inoculate 70% of its more than 66 million people by year-end.

Other private hospitals plan to buy 10 million doses of Moderna vaccines through a state-run company.

Alternative vaccines are those the government does not offer or plan to administer for free. Currently, the government is administering shots made by Sinovac and AstraZeneca. It also plans to import vaccines made by Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and Gamaleya (Sputnik V).

Authorities on Thursday reported 47 new coronavirus deaths, a record for the second successive day, bringing total fatalities to 920, with 141,217 cases overall.

ATT det ska vara svårt att förstå !?!?!? OFATTBART Dozens of Thai and foreign tourists arrested "brazenly" drinking alcohol and smoking shisha



Picture: Daily News

 

A team of Muang Pattaya police led by Maj Chainarong Chai-in swooped on a Pattaya restaurant and bar early this morning after reports that Thai and foreign tourists were brazenly breaking Covid rules, reported Daily News.

 

The location was Sky Mountain (Laem Bali Hai or Bali Hai cape) where 24 Thais and 7 foreigners saw their evening come to an end at 12.30 am.

 

Taken into evidence was alcohol, bills and eight shisha pipes. Everyone was taken to Muang Pattaya police station.

 

Picture: Daily News

 

There the customers were charged with breaking Covid-19 rules while the owner was also charged with not having a licence, serving shisha and alcohol.

 

Whether the venue will be permanently closed will be up for discussion, said the media.

 

MYCKET ATT LÄSA MEN INTRESSANT !!!! Opinion: If Thailand wants tourism to return, even slowly, we must ensure there are no "knee-jerk" changes once open - The Pattaya News

Opinion: If Thailand wants tourism to return, even slowly, we must ensure there are no "knee-jerk" changes once open

Friday, 28 May 2021, 1:16

The following is an opinion article. The opinions are the authors own

Every day it seems we hear a new announcement about tourism restarting in Thailand, be it from Phuket officials stating the plan to reopen Phuket in only FOUR weeks to foreign vaccinated tourists will take place or Pattaya officials stating the October plan for reopening will also take place.

The announcements, and posts about it, always bring a fair bit of diverse comments (mostly negative) and discussion here on The Pattaya News and I wanted to take a moment to address that, as well as some opinions on that.

It's understandable why so many people are negative, first of all. It's been well over a year since Thailand closed its borders to foreign tourists who don't go through quarantine or other hoops.  Other countries, despite the messy situation, have many fewer hoops and restrictions for tourists, such as Mexico, Turkey, Dubai, Maldives, Seychelles, etc. Pretty much all of these have had outbreaks and a rise in infections at one point or another since reopening to tourists…but for the most part did not impose additional restrictions on tourists or resort to quick reversals in tourism policy.

Seychelles, for instance, has recently had a major tick in cases, despite their vaccination levels, but an understanding of how important tourism is did not stop flights, raise tourism quarantines or take the situation out on tourists. They addressed it in other ways.

Turkey, despite its strictest lockdown since the start of the Covid-19 situation, allowed tourists an exception, keeping museums and some popular tourist attractions open.

These and many other examples from tourist-reliant economies showed that the country understood how valuable and important their tourists were and how important they were to the economy. In Thailand, the exact percentage of GDP that tourism contributes to the economy is widely debated but given that the officially non-existent "red-light" industry isn't included that brings well over a billion baht yearly to the Thai economy (prior to Covid-19) as well as millions of informal workers like motorbike taxi drivers, street cart vendors, guesthouse operators, and many more the true percentage is much higher than the "official" number of 14%. In fact, the "official" number, without informal workers, is as low as 9%. The true number, however, including all of the informal workers and "it doesn't exist adult industry" is likely around or even over 20%.

An informal worker is one, by the way, who does not collect social security and is not officially "working" per the Ministry of Labor. In the tourism industry (and indeed many other industries) this is the vast majority of employees and encompasses millions of people in Thailand, from your waitress to your maid, to the DJ, to the security guard, and yes, to the bar girl…and on and on.

It's quite clear right now that Thailand is having the worst outbreak of Covid-19 since the virus reared its head early last year in 2020. There are likely all sorts of reasons for that and we aren't getting into that in this particular article. Last year, Thailand had a very clear phase plan for getting out of endless restrictions and closures of business. That isn't the case right now, and as the vaccination program is in a very early period it likely won't be for some time.

That being said, if Thailand truly wants to bring back foreign tourists, (And I believe they do, and yes, I believe some people will come. I saw this personally during the ASQ period last year when many online commenters claimed nobody would do it-yet I met many that did and it was just enough-barely-to keep some businesses running) they need to ensure there are no knee-jerk reactions or penalties to the tourists like the countries I listed above.

Now, there are still MANY questions that remain about Thailand's plan to bring back tourists and we have written about that previously HERE.

This article isn't about that either, however. One thing pretty much everyone can agree on is that the current "Sandbox" or "Move On" plan or whatever it will be called has more questions than answers.

If there is one thing that will give tourists confidence who decide to go through with Thailand's plans it will be that they will not take a "knee-jerk" reaction on tourists if some more cases (especially without hospitalizations) take place. What do I mean by a knee-jerk reaction? I will give you a perfect example.

Thailand recently changed its quarantine program to fourteen days for everyone after the recent outbreak. Including vaccinated tourists. Even from low-risk countries. Everyone is currently fourteen days (And in reality, it is closer to sixteen days due to how they count a day). They had previously recently reduced quarantine prior to the current Covid-19 outbreak, especially for vaccinated tourists. More so, those on quarantine now currently cannot leave their room (officially) and there is no more pool, gym, or free time currently. This decision was made very quickly shortly after the current outbreak took place, despite having nothing to do whatsoever with foreign tourists or quarantine.

This, quite frankly, was a "knee-jerk" reaction. It left many people who had booked and bought tickets out of luck and caused many people to scramble to book longer hotel stays and other things. Some people had their entire trip back to Thailand canceled. Yes, there was a small "leeway" period for those who had already booked, but it wasn't significant.

If Thailand has another round of cases, especially after the majority of people in tourist "sandbox" test areas are vaccinated, they simply must avoid kneejerk reactions that penalize tourists. There might be a need, like Turkey or Seychelles, to put some restrictions in place and tighten the rules for the general area or business, but putting those specifically on tourists or "ruining a holiday" will only hurt the already badly damaged tourism industry in Thailand.

I truly hope that a big reason so few details have been released on the current Sandbox plan is because officials understand this. Many major tourism industry associations and business owners are taking part in the planning for the "restart" of tourism and I am aware they understand how critical it is not to put blame or strict rules on tourists coming on a holiday. However, if this ever-changing Covid-19 situation in Thailand has taught us anything, it is that things can change literally within an hour.

It will be very important that those changes and rules are not directed at true tourists with "knee-jerk" reactions, or it is going to be a very rocky and long road to bringing back a significant part of Thailand's economy. (And for places like Koh Samui, Pattaya, and Phuket, the vast majority.)

Thanks for listening,

Adam Judd, Pattaya News Co-Owner

May 28th, 2021

Feedback? E-mail me, Pattayanewseditor@gmail.com

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Thailand on Friday (May 28) reported 3,759 new COVID-19 cases and 34 additional deaths. Thai Visa

REUTERS FILE PHOTO for reference only

 

Thailand on Friday (May 28) reported 3,759 new COVID-19 cases and 34 additional deaths.

● 2,465 new infections
● 1294 prison / prison infections
 
Friday's cases bring the total number of COVID-19 infections in Thailand to 144,976 with 954 deaths.

 

The news comes as The Department of Medical Sciences has announced that nine production lots of the AstraZeneca vaccine, manufactured locally by Siam Bioscience, passed quality inspection by the Department.

 



Asean reported the highest number of Covid-19 cases and fatalities in 10 days on Thursday. The Nation

 



Bangkok Post highlights 28/5

 

Official COVID-19 update in Thailand on Thursday. NBT



 

According to the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), five new COVID-19 infection clusters have been discovered in Bangkok, bringing the total to 38 clusters across 30 districts. Of all the clusters in the capital, 10 have been brought under control. CCSA

 



Ranking of 10 provinces with highest COVID-19 transmission, as of 27 May 2021. PRD

 



VACCINE NEWS: Is this what Thailand has been delaying for? Which raises the question, ‘is this why Thailand has been fumbling their vaccine roll-out, for many, many months and at what cost, in an attempt to make sure the money stays within the Kingdom? Bangkok Jack

VACCINE NEWS: Is this what Thailand has been delaying for? 

May 27, 2021

The first nine batches of AstraZeneca vaccine produced in Thailand have passed official quality checks, the Department of Medical Sciences (DMS) announced on Wednesday.

Which raises the question, 'is this why Thailand has been fumbling their vaccine roll-out, for many, many months and at what cost, in an attempt to make sure the money stays within the Kingdom?

The department is awaiting results of its checks on another five batches of vaccine sent by local manufacturer Siam Bioscience, DMS chief Dr Supakit Sirilak said.

Siam Bioscience delivered the five batches for checking on Tuesday (May 25), with results expected after three days.

Each batch contains between 1 million and 2 million doses. However, the next batches may be increased to 2.5-3 million doses each once the company gains confidence in the product, said Dr Supakit.

The vaccine is being produced by Siam Bioscience via a technology-transfer deal with AstraZeneca.

AstraZeneca has confirmed that the first batch of vaccine will be delivered next month. Mass vaccination in Thailand is due to start on June 7. – Source article – by The Nation