Tim Newton
- Tourism News
Welcome to Thailand’s Post Pandemic Day – July 1. What will change?
Between the start of this year and last Sunday, June 26, just over 2 million foreign travellers were stamped into Thailand at immigration points, mostly at 2 airports – Suvarnabhumi and Phuket. During this time the impediments to arrival in Thailand also became less restrictive. This Friday, July 1, there will be an official declaration that Thailand is now in…
- Politics News
NIDA poll puts Thailand’s opposition parties way ahead of the government
Thais have placed a candidate for the next Thai PM at the top of a recent poll. And that person hasn’t even declared they will run for the top job at this stage. Paetongtarn Shinawatra, the youngest daughter of former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra, has scored the top position in the latest popularity poll conducted by the NIDA poll. Paetongtarn…
- Thailand News
Thai health officials ‘concerned’ about the international rise of Omicron BA4 and BA5 variants
Thailand health officials are expected to gather more data in the coming weeks as the highly transmissible BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants of Omicron spread in Thailand. There is a new wave of BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron sub-variant infections hitting a number of countries that had, until recently, seen a large drop in their Covid case loads. Germany, Italy, Australia, Taiwan,…
- Tourism News
Back to the future – the resistance to taking off masks in Thailand | OPINION
Walking along the streets of Bangkok this morning I may as well be in a time loop. There was only one person not wearing a mask as I walked to breakfast. Me. Everyone else, everyone, was wearing a face mask, just like over the past 2 years and 2 months. It was 7.30am, it’s not as if it was busy.…
- Tourism News
Thailand is open NOW – masks off, bars open until 2am
Thailand is open for business. The whole country is now a ‘green’ zone, allowing a full-scale resumption of business and activities with even the Thailand Pass being dropped next Friday. It’s about as back to normal as it can be at this time. Decisions made by the CCSA on June 17 were put into effect yesterday after being published in…
- Crime News
The great Thai cannabis mass-debate – July’s censure motions
So what is the main topic for debate in next month’s censure motions directed at the Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and 10 ministers in the Thai parliament? The handling of the Covid pandemic? Problems with the economy? The new motions to change Thailand’s marriage laws? No, the opposition will be going after the government for their botched cannabis decriminalisation and…
- Thailand News
It’s official – face masks now voluntary in most places in Thailand
Any face mask confusion is now clarified by the publishing of the latest edict in the Royal Gazette. “The wearing of a mask is a voluntary practice from now onwards so that people can now live closer to normal conditions. The Ministry of Public Health only recommends that the general public wear a mask when living with other people in…
- World News
‘Elvis’ the movie – all shook up in a blancmange of jump suits and pop tribute
It’s pretentious, over-decorated, and probably overlong. But it’s also a spectacular 2 and half hours which will reconnect you with the 20th century’s most consequential pop icon – Elvis. “Elvis” was released today in Thailand and is now showing at cinemas around the country. If you want to revel in Elvis nostalgia and the music, there’s plenty of that. But…
- Transport News
Grab bike ‘taxis’ forced to get commercial licenses in Thailand
A win for ‘Win’ motorcycle taxi riders today after new rules force Grab riders into the same transportation regulations. Of course, the new rules will probably force up the prices for Grab bikes from next month when the app-based ride-hailing service will have to comply with the same rules governing ‘Win Motocy’ motorcycle taxi riders. The orange-safety-vest-clad Win drivers are…
- Business News
Flip a coin – bumpy ride for the crypto-faithful
The following is a news opinion and NOT financial advice. If you’re into trading or investing in cryptocurrencies you already know it’s been a rocky ride. Just one roller coaster crypto-ride – Bitcoin – stands out since it hit a peak on November 8 last year. And has tanked 70% of its perceived value since. Today the online crypto-gurus are…
- Tourism News
Getting rid of masks and revised closing times in Thailand – waiting for official rubber stamp
Whilst we might be rid of the Thailand Pass on July 1, there appears to be an administrative delay to the changes in mask requirements and changes to the closing times. In clarifying new face mask guidelines, Dr Taweesilp Visanuyothin, the spokesperson for CCSA says that all 77 provinces in Thailand would be redesignated as green zones. Previously there were…
- Technology News
Why your flights are getting more expensive, not cheaper
There’s a short-term situation and a longer-term evolution that will make your flights more expensive than they were in the past. If we briefly look back at the past 65 years of world aviation, there has been a slow, incremental decrease in passenger seat prices on flights. That was until the start of 2020. For the modern era (despite the…
- Tourism News
Come fly with me in Thailand, with a face mask – OPINION
July 1 is looming as the day Thailand really opens up again, with all the ‘Covid’ paperwork (aka. The Thailand Pass) being binned. They’re even scrapping the TM6 form, at least in the short to medium term (maybe permanently?). But if you want a reminder about some of Thailand’s more hypocritical and absurd Covid restrictions, just go for a flight,…
- Tourism News
July 1 – Thailand more open than ever
OPINION On July 1, Thailand will be more open that it’s been since April 2020 when the boom gates first came down on the borders, locking out international travel. Since then it’s been a tedious and drawn out lessening of restrictions, with a few stumbles on the way. That finishes in just 11 days time as the country rids itself…
- World News
“It’s a hiatus, not a breakup.” Superband BTS announce extended break.
Pop kings BTS, the South Korean band that broke through music’s bamboo ceiling, is having a break after 9 years. The septet have had outstanding global success and amassed, not only the most numerous, but also the most engaged fandom in music history – the BTS ’ARMY’. This year BTS won three of the top awards at the American Music…
- World News
Surprise! Additional luggage fees on a budget airline ruin family holiday
Yikes. How much were you charged recently for late checked baggage fees? All but some of the larger legacy or national airlines charge for checked in luggage these days and arriving at the airport check-in, without having paid for your checked luggage, when you booked the cheap seats online, will likely provide an unhappy surprise. So HOW unhappy? Have a…
- Crime News
Thailand’s new cannabis laws, yes, but no, but yes…
The reports of Thailand’s reformed cannabis laws have reached the far corners of the earth, being reported in the BBC, on CNN, Fox News, Australia’s ABC… well everywhere really. But once readers get past the headline the nitty gritty paints a more nuanced story about exactly what the recent ‘legalisation’ actually means. “People in Thailand can now grow cannabis plants…
- Thailand News
Nightlife closing times, revised mask requirements and more land border re-openings
Thailand’s Covid taskforce are meeting this week to consider three proposals made from around various Ministries and industry stakeholders. It’s going to be a pivotal week for the CCSA. Announcements are expected by this Friday. One of them is to remove the requirement to wear face masks in public, although it is widely considered that, even if this concession is…
- Business News
Huge Bangkok bar raided as police arrest underage and customers for drug possession
Despite the ‘official’ closing time for nightlife venues around Bangkok being extended to midnight, from 11pm, on June 1, many venues have continued to push their luck with authorities for the last few months. This venue since February. Yesterday morning Pathumwan district police raided a bar in Bangkok’s Rong Muang area after receiving a tip off that the venue had been…
- World News
Thai special envoy to Myanmar warns not to ‘cancel’ Burmese military
Thailand’s new special envoy has spoken out as an apologist for the Myanmar military by urging the international community not to “get stuck in cancel rhetoric” when dealing with the Burmese Junta that seized power 16 months ago. She spoke in support of ‘moving on’ from the past and towards a different style of engagement with the military leaders. Pornpimol…
- Visa Information
Big problems for expats and people needing British passport renewals
Some minor delays are now turning into a massive problem in the processing of British passports in the UK. It’s been an ongoing news item in the UK recently and is now affecting many British expats in Thailand. Authorities in the UK are blaming a rush to travel for the summer season and new Brexit-linked problems for British travellers heading…
- Visa Information
New tourist visa waivers being proposed to CCSA for next week’s meeting
More proposals are heading to next week’s crucial CCSA meeting where Thailand’s Covid taskforce is poised to make several key changes to the reopening of the country and existing restrictions. Among the latest proposals to be tabled next week are changes to tourist visas. The Tourism Authority of Thailand, with support of a wide variety of tourism associations and players…
- World News
50 years today – anniversary of an iconic photo
It’s June 8, 1972 and bombs come raining from the sky in a village called Trang Bang, just 50 kilometres northwest of Ho Chi Minh City (then it was called Saigon). 50 years ago, today, a photo was snapped featuring a 9 year old called Phan Thi Kim Phuc. The photo became not only an indelible image representing the worst…
- Thailand News
New Civil Partnership Bill in Thailand passed by the cabinet
Now the Bill needs to survive its first reading in the lower house of the Thai parliament. Out of nowhere, but perhaps inspired, or prompted by the Pride Month activities around Bangkok, the Thai cabinet has approved what is considered the next step towards same sex marriage in Thailand, a Civil Partnership Bill. This bill will allow same-sex couples to…
- Bangkok News
Bangkok Governor to propose lifting of midnight close time and mask wearing
The new Bangkok Governor is pushing the CCSA to consider easing the current closing times for the capital’s nightlife, as well as asking for a similar easing of the face mask requirements. His requests follow a botched easing of mask wearing by the Phuket Governor last week where he, one day, announced a variation of the CCSA guidelines for wearing…
- Tourism News
Check-in mayhem for Thai Airways flights last Friday
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has ordered airlines and airports to make urgent adjustments after acknowledging long queues for Thai Airways flights at Suvarnabhumi airport. The early morning flight check in delays at the Thai Airways counters in Suvarnabhumi Airport was caused by a lack of check-in staff at the Thai Airways counters, according to the Civil Aviation…
- Thailand News
“Cases could reach 10,000 a day again”. Thai Public Health Minister.
Thailand’s party-pooper-in-chief, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, has made another spurious claim to Thailand’s media. He’s predicted that Thailand’s Covid infections could soar to 10,000, a day, now that Thailand’s nightlife has ‘officially’ reopened. He said that the numbers of new coronavirus cases could “soar” within 3-5 days after the country’s entertainment venues were given the official nod on June…
- World News
Taiwan battles Covid infection spike as it continues to re-open borders
Taiwan is currently Asia’s Covid-19 hotspot, following years of keeping the Covid variants at bay. The island-nation’s relaxation of travel curbs has fuelled a record spike in new infections. Taiwan began the process of prying open its borders in March, initially allowing business and essential travellers to enter the island. They were welcomed with quarantine in a hotel or state quarantine…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s nightlife can officially open from Wednesday but this will be too late for many businesses
Warnings yesterday from the Thai government health officials as they urge business operators of Thailand’s nightlife – bars, karaoke bars, clubs and the larger massage premises – to “follow strict precautions” against Covid when they re-open next month. That’s next Wednesday. We’ll get back to the absurdity of that warning a bit later. 31 Thai provinces, 14 now reclassified as…
- Events
Deep Week in Phuket – The world’s largest open freediving festival
Phuket recently hosted ‘Deep Week’, a huge freedive training event, which sold out in just 5 days. This was certainly Asia’s, and probably the world’s, biggest ever participation of freediving held in open water. The recent reopening of Thailand certainly enabled this first-of-a-kind freediving event to take place from May 14 – 21. Freediving, free-diving, free diving, breath-hold diving, or…
