Tourism
Pattaya cleaning up its Walking Street act in time for Chinese New Year

Pattaya City is planning to clean up its Walking Street act in time for the upcoming Chinese New Year. But, as the second wave of Covid-19 mostly destroyed what was left of any foreign or domestic tourism, it might all be in vain. Thousands of businesses remain closed due to Chon Buri province being a “highly controlled” Covid-19 zone, which effectively controls the number of people moving in and out of the province, including Pattaya.
In other words, not many.
Banglamung has had 0 cases of Covid-19 for almost a week now with only 1 case being reported in Chon Buri in the past 3 days. But the new downturn in Covid infections hasn’t helped to ease restrictions that have left many local businesses shuttered. Chon Buri health officials are taking note of the recently diminishing amount of Covid cases and say they will review the strict measures probably at the end of the month, but warn that there is no promise that measures will be eased.
Even if the restrictions are lifted, Covid has had a profound and lasting effect on tourism in Pattaya, like the rest of Thailand. Last March, borders closed to foreign tourism, only allowing those who were able to physically and financially get through the mandatory 14 day quarantine and mountains of paperwork.
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Songkran
Pattaya announces plans to hold Songkran Festival

The tourist city of Pattaya is planning to hold Thai New Year, or Songkran Festival, this year as long as they receive the “go ahead” from the government. The Pattaya City Mayor, Sonthaya Khunplume, made the announcement today, saying that the water festival will be held with all the traditional activities including those taking place at temples.
Songkran is the biggest holiday of the year for Thai people and falls on the public holidays from April 10 to 15. Pattaya City officials say they have a plan to celebrate the “Big Day” of Wan Lai on April 19, which will include water fights, as long as the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration and the Ministry of Public Health approves it.
The event, which is hoped to domestic tourism and the local economy, will feature covid precautions. Mask-wearing and going through screening checkpoints will be part of the safety measures for the event, as well as crowd limits, temperature checks and social distancing.
The Pattaya City mayor has pointed towards the city’s past successes in holding events under the Covid-19 safety measures. Such events included fireworks and music festivals. He went on to assure that holding the Songkran Festival would be successful as well under the Covid safety regulations.
Recently, Pattaya City launched the “Welcome Back Pattaya” campaign to lure domestic tourists back to the city as Covid-19 situation has continually improved. The campaign is aimed towards attracting domestic tourists and is expected to boost the local economy after many businesses in the province were ordered to close last month.
Those businesses were already struggling to survive as many hotels took their featured restaurants to the streets by offering take-away meals and street stalls. Schools, entertainment venues, gyms, pools among others have reopened with travel restrictions, for people entering the province, also having been lifted.
SOURCE: The Pattaya News
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Tourism
Thailand to introduce “area quarantine” for international visitors from April

From next month, foreign visitors to the Kingdom will be able to experience the delights of “area quarantine”, after the government confirmed the scheme for 5 provinces. Following a meeting with the Public Health Ministry, the Tourism Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn confirmed that Phuket, Krabi, Chiang Mai, Chon Buri (Pattaya), and Surat Thani (Koh Samui and Koh Pha-ngan) have been chosen to pilot the scheme.
Foreign tourists opting for area quarantine will be required to remain in their hotel rooms for the first 3 days of their stay. They will be tested for Covid-19 and, if negative after 3 days, will be allowed to leave their room and roam freely around the resort for the remainder of their 14-day quarantine. At the end of the 14-day period, they will once again be tested for the virus and, if negative, allowed to travel around the quarantine area.
In order to avail of the scheme, tourists will still need to fulfil the other requirements for travel, including obtaining a Certificate of Entry, a negative Covid-19 test 72 hours prior to travel, and adequate health insurance. Nation Thailand reports that the area quarantine plan will be run by 29 travel agencies, under TAT supervision.
The area quarantine scheme comes as the TAT hails the success of the first “golf quarantine” scheme, which operates in a similar manner. Travellers from countries considered “low-risk” for Covid-19 can come to Thailand for a golf holiday at approved golf resorts in the Kingdom. Conditions are similar to those attached to area quarantine, with the golfers having to spend the first 3 days in their room, test negative for the virus, and then enjoy free rein of the resort, with a few rounds of golf thrown in.
Thailand’s economy has been decimated by the fallout from the pandemic, in particular the loss of international tourism. The current mandatory 14-day quarantine period is seen as the biggest hurdle to overcome in order to re-ignite the sector. In 2019, international tourism contributed 2 trillion baht out of a total 3.01 trillion baht tourism trade. In the same year, tourism made up 17% of Thailand’s GDP.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
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Pattaya
Pattaya police raid nightclub suspected of presenting pornographic shows

Pattaya City Police inspected a nightclub after reports that the venue was hosting pornographic shows on the weekends. Although the nightclub, Dragon Man Club, wasn’t presenting a sexually explicit show when officers came by, the owner was arrested for operating an entertainment business and selling alcohol without the proper permit.
Police say a tip was made through social media from an anonymous source. Officers asked the nightclub owner for the venue’s license, but the owner did not have the document at the time. Police arrested the owner. The nightclub owner was not named in reports.
SOURCE: Pattaya News
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Sebastian
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 3:50 pm
Interested to know what “clean up its Walking Street act” refers to as the article quickly flew off at a tangent and became just another Covid-19 update.
luca
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 4:18 pm
sometimes it seems that the Thais have no sense of ridicule, cleaning up Wolking street for the Chinese New Year without the Chinese what’s the point? The authorities should be more honest and say that tourism will perhaps reopen in 2022, so all the people who lived on tourism now have to find more to survive
Issan John
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 4:55 pm
As much point, if not more, as there was doing so for Christmas and New Year …
Robert Elliot
Friday, January 22, 2021 at 12:05 am
From what I understand there are many Thai Chinese in Thailand
Leo Z
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 8:32 pm
Some people in Pattaya had dreams of seeing the “obligatory” Chinese bus tour groups and the young Chinese couples in groups (some/many of them awe-struck) over CNY. It turns out Beijing is battling its own outbreaks now, and will definitely require strict 14-day quarantine from anyone returning to the motherland. Given that the maximum (not average) Chinese vacation is 10-15 days….oops, the numbers don’t add up.
So are they going to clean it up for the Thai domestic tourism? We’re going to see “hi-so” girls, and their entourage, from BKK?
Laurent
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 8:51 pm
Second wave? Are you kidding me? There’s 1 person in the hospital, that’s it!
EdwardV
Thursday, January 21, 2021 at 10:14 pm
Seems like a waste of money, even if it probably doesn’t cost all that much. Since there are no international tourists, is it for for domestic tourists? There doesn’t seem to be many of those anymore. With the world bank saying 1.5M Thais dropped into poverty last year (per todays BP), there has to be better ways to spend money than on decorations for tourists that are not coming.
Terry
Friday, January 22, 2021 at 6:42 am
quote: a “highly controlled” Covid-19 zone, which effectively controls the number of people moving in and out of the province, including Pattaya.
This is a lie and bullshit, I have travelled in and out off Pattaya 3 times lately and there is no so-called control or checkpoints anywhere. Just a warning in the newspapers who spread the lies…
Alexandra
Friday, January 22, 2021 at 9:08 am
Another puzzling effort. In the middle of pandemic courtesy of China, you want Chinese tourist to arrive en masse?
PranpuunPapillo
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 4:17 pm
Clean up will require giant sheets across all the boarded up and dilapidated businesses. Scrubbing and disinfecting the in-ground massage parlor smell in the street and surrounding sois. And towing all the parked cars and motos that have planted themselves on the main drag. And if bars are going to remain closed I’m not quite sure why anyone would even walk along that road. Thais generally avoid that area like the plague. I mean like covid19.