borders closed

  • Tourism News

    Record number of tourism firms quitting Covid-ravaged sector for good

    As the devastating economic effects of Covid-19 restrictions persist, a record number of Thai tourism operators are quitting the sector for good. The number of tourism firms surrendering their licences peaked last month, and around 70% of outbound agents have shut up shop indefinitely. The final nail in their collective coffin has been the Covid-19 resurgence, which originated in a…

  • Phuket News

    Academics call on government to hurry up and help the tourism industry

    Leading Thai academics are calling on the government to get a move on and help the tourism industry before it’s too late. Addressing a gathering arranged by the Foundation for Labour and Employment Promotion, Kiriya Kulkolkran from Thammasat University’s Faculty of Economics, pointed to the 80% drop in international tourism as a result of the Covid-19 fallout. His estimate includes…

  • South Thailand News

    Government to consider rescue packages for tourism businesses in South

    The government will hold a mobile Cabinet meeting in Phuket today to consider potential rescue packages for tourism-related businesses that have been ravaged by the closure of international borders. The proposals, which include soft loans for airlines and other businesses, come after PM Prayut Chan-o-cha met with Phuket business representatives and local officials yesterday. The Bangkok Post reports that the…

  • Economy News

    Thai government considers easing restrictions for foreign business travellers

    The Thai government is considering further easing entry restrictions for foreign travellers coming to conduct business in the Kingdom. Currently, around 11,000 businesspeople and work permit holders have been granted entry by the Centre for Covid-19 Administration Situation since they started allowing some foreigners back into the country after July. All arrivals have to submit to a mandatory 14 day…

  • Covid-19 News

    Head of economic recovery panel warns of collapse if borders not re-opened now

    A businessman heading up an economic recovery panel is warning the government that unless Thailand’s borders are re-opened for the last quarter of the year, the country is headed for total economic collapse. The Bangkok Post reports that Pailin Chuchottaworn says the gradual easing of Covid restrictions in recent months is not enough, insisting the country must re-open to international…

  • Tourism News

    Tourism authority says Thailand must prepare for virus cases as part of re-opening

    The Tourism Authority of Thailand says the country must re-open its borders by the last quarter of the year and prepare to manage new Covid-19 cases as a result. TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn says the impact of new cases can be contained with careful risk management. The reality of the situation is now sinking in as Thai officials are now…

  • Phuket News

    Phuket airport sees increase in domestic arrivals over long weekend

    The general manager of Phuket airport, Thanee Chuangchoo, says domestic arrivals were on the up over the course of the recent 4 day holiday. The long weekend, from September 4 to 7, was brought in to replace the annual Songkran holiday in April, cancelled this year due to the Covid-19 lockdown. The jump in domestic arrivals will have provided some…

  • Phuket News

    Phuket Airport prepares for eventual launch of tourist pilot project

    Phuket Airport carried out a trial run yesterday, going over all the steps necessary to admit tourists under the much-discussed, not-yet-happening, off-and-on “Phuket Model”. The plan to use Phuket as a pilot, to test a limited return of international tourists, was set to launch in October but has now been postponed. The brakes were applied when Thailand recorded its first…

  • Phuket News

    Minister eases local concerns over Phuket tourism plan

    The Minister of Tourism and Sports has rushed to reassure Phuket locals who have voiced concern over a tentative plan (now postponed) to re-open the province to foreign visitors. Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakarn says there may have been some miscommunication, as he reassured Phuket residents that they would not be forced to accept any tourism plan. The minister, along with a…

  • Pattaya News

    Domestic tourists give Pattaya a boost over holiday weekend

    There has been some respite for Pattaya’s battered tourism sector over the 4 day long weekend, as domestic tourists visit the city for the extended break. The public holidays on Friday, September 4, and Monday, September 7, are replacements for the Songkran festival that was cancelled in April as a result of Covid-19. But the water fights were put on…

  • Covid-19 News

    Thailand’s Health Minister optimistic about admitting business travellers

    The Thai Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, admits Thailand is caught between a rock and a hard place and can’t go on locking all foreigners out forever, in an effort to prevent a resurgence of the Covid-19 virus. “We will either die of the disease or of hunger, so we have to face the challenge.” He adds that the Kingdom…

  • Tourism News

    Eva Air pushes back Phuket flights to July 2021

    A new timetable from Taiwan’s Eva Air indicates a delay to the planned resumption of direct flights between Taipei and Phuket, which had recently been tentatively pencilled in for March 2021. The new schedule now lists the flights as operating from July 1 next year with the airline’s website taking bookings from that date. The delay is indicative of the…

  • Economy News

    Government’s economic task force meets to discuss job creation, “Phuket Model”

    The government’s Covid-19 economic management team meets today, with a number of stimulus measures expected to be announced. Nation Thailand reports that officials plan to discuss job creation for graduates, along with yet more talks on how to safely welcome international tourists. Deputy PM and Energy Minister, Supattanapong Punmeechaow, says any measures announced are expected to be short-term. The government…

  • Tourism News

    Bank of Thailand issues stark warning over ongoing ban on foreign tourists

    The Bank of Thailand has issued a sombre warning that the ongoing ban on foreign tourists returning to Thailand may have an even worse impact next year. Don Nakornthab, from the BOT’s economic and policy department, says if international tourists are not allowed back into the country soon, Thailand’s tourism industry will face even bigger threats next year. A report…

  • Tourism News

    Thai Hotel Association demands international tourists be allowed to return

    The Thai Hotel Association is urging the government to re-open the country to international tourists, pointing out that room occupancy is nearly zero and many smaller premises have had no choice but to close. THA chairman, Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, says the government must look at ways it can admit tourists from certain countries or cities, using marketing promotions to lure…

  • Covid-19 News

    Aviation Authority monitoring global Covid situation, no re-opening of Thai skies yet

    While the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand gave the green light for more international arrivals to enter the country from July, it says there will be no further re-opening for the time being. However, Director-General Chula Sukmanop says the CAAT will continue monitoring developments, in particular improvements in the Covid-19 situation in other countries. He adds that any decision to…

  • Tourism News

    Room rates drop as Thailand’s hotels feel the Covid pinch

    The devastating economic effects of the Covid-19 crisis continue to make themselves felt as hotels are forced to reduce their rates significantly in an effort to lure guests. Speaking to the Bangkok Post, James Kaplan from asset investment and management company, Destination Capital says that, unlike the economic crash of 1997, hotel revenue took a hit at the height of…

  • Tourism News

    Thailand’s Tourism Minister urges government to revisit travel bubble idea

    Thailand’s Tourism Minister, Pipat Ratchakitprakan, is once again floating the idea of ​​”travel bubbles” with low-risk countries after the plan was initially shelved by the Civil Aviation Regulator. The original plan had been to create travel pacts with countries deemed safe from the virus, such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. However, a new spike in numbers in some…

  • World News

    Thai-Malaysia border sealed

    The Thai-language daily Khao Sod reported today the Royal Thai Army has ordered a shutdown of 13 temporary Thai-Malay border checkpoints to prevent the spread of the Covid 19 coronavirus . The order took effect from 5am today. The measure was taken after the Malaysian government closed the nation’s borders from today (March 18) to March 31, to contain the…