Thai PM “pleased” with increase in tourist numbers since November 1 re-opening
A government spokesman says the Thai PM is pleased with the rise in tourist numbers since the country re-opened with minimal quarantine on November 1. Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana says that since then, Thailand has welcomed 44,774 foreign visitors to the kingdom.
According to a Bangkok Post report, 31,666 of those arrived under the new Test and Go scheme, open to vaccinated tourists from 63 approved countries. 10,964 arrivals entered under one of the Sandbox schemes, currently running in 17 provinces, while 2,144 went through mandatory hotel quarantine. From those figures, only 52 people tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival.
The government expects a further increase in visitor numbers as more flights from the Middle East and Europe resume. Since the start of the month, a further 18 airlines have resumed flights to and from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, with a total of 2,008 flights now serving the airport. 19 carriers are currently operating 793 flights to and from Phuket, a 39% increase on October’s flights.
The Bangkok Post reports that as of Saturday, a total of 173,637 people have applied through the Thailand Pass system, with 134,086 applications approved. Thanakorn says the PM has asked for the approval process to be accelerated, while Tanee Sangrat from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says improvements will be made based on comments from users. One positive change that has already been implemented is that approved applicants can now download the required QR code themselves, without having to wait for an email.
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SOURCE: Bangkok Post
