Covid-19 News

Thailand Covid-19 news, vaccine updates, travel restrictions, and government policies—stay informed on case numbers, safety measures, and global developments. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for Covid-19 updates in Thailand.

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    How one hospital visit in Thailand could cost more than your whole trip

    Thailand is a favourite spot for travellers who want to enjoy more while spending less. From cheap street food to low-cost hotels and fun attractions, it’s easy to stretch your budget here. But there’s one thing many people don’t think...

  • Phuket Covid-19 ‘updates’

    Phuket Covid-19 ‘updates’

    The spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus prompted tourism industry leaders in Phuket this week to support moves to cancel or postpone mass events across the island. All official Songkran Thai New Year festivities in the southern resort island’s Patong district have already been cancelled, along with the annual Phuket Bike Week, usually the biggest motorcycle event in Asia. Even the…

  • Body of Chinese man lies untouched for hours over coronavirus fears

    Body of Chinese man lies untouched for hours over coronavirus fears

    A Chinese man who fell to his death from a Bangok hotel room yesterday was left lying untouched for more than six hours, as responders feared contracting the Covid-19 coronavirus from the body. Police, who were notified at about 12;30pm, say the 39 year old Chinese national was staying in a room on the sixth floor of the hotel, which…

  • Seven new confirmed coronavirus cases in Thailand include popular actor

    Seven new confirmed coronavirus cases in Thailand include popular actor

    The Public Health Ministry confirmed 7 new cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus today, raising the number of infections in Thailand to 82 since the virus struck in January. Of those, 35 have recovered and been sent home, while 46 remain under medical care. One man died from complications arising from the illness. Sukhum Karnchanapimai, the ministry’s permanent secretary, said that…

  • 240 Thais return home after ‘naval quarantine’

    240 Thais return home after ‘naval quarantine’

    240 “phee noi” (little ghosts), Thais who have thus far returned from South Korea, have been allowed to return to their homes after they tested negative for the Covid-19 coronavirus. A spokesman for the Royal Thai Navy made the announcement yesterday. “We prepared 16 buses to take them to their homes and we have coordinated with Public Health offices in…

  • The Thai Tourism Ministry hopes for Covid-19 to abate

    The Thai Tourism Ministry hopes for Covid-19 to abate

    Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said yesterday that if the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus continues, it will be a “big issue” nationally not only in terms of public health but also the tremendous loss of tourism revenue. However if the outbreak can be contained by then end of next month, the ministry expects more than 36 million tourists…

  • Europe is the new epicentre of Covid-19 coronavirus – WHO

    Europe is the new epicentre of Covid-19 coronavirus – WHO

    The World Health Organisation has now put Europe as its current “epicentre” for the global coronavirus pandemic, warning that it was impossible to know when the pandemic would peak. In the past 24 hours there has been a swift rise in new cases and deaths, compared to past months, primarily in Europe, as well as Iran and the US. WHO…

  • Monkeys plunder town hall building in South, apparently searching for food

    Monkeys plunder town hall building in South, apparently searching for food

    Days after a pitched battle between rival monkey gangs rocked Lop Buri in central Thailand, dozens, perhaps hundreds of monkeys have ransacked an old town hall building in the southern province of Prachuap Khiri Khan, forcing staff to flee. It’s believed in both instances that the drop in tourism caused by the Covid-19 coronavirus, combined with dry weather and drought,…

  • Amazon cafe suspends ‘bring your own cup’ campaign

    Amazon cafe suspends ‘bring your own cup’ campaign

    Thai coffee shop chain ‘Amazon’ announced today the suspension of their promotional campaign called “Café Amazon for Earth” which was aiming to reduce plastic waste by allowing customers to bring their personal cup when buying a beverage and receive a discount of 5 baht. The company says the decision to end the promotion was made to increase customers’ awareness to…

  • Friday the 13th: Thai bourse uses “circuit breaker” as coronavirus batters Thai stocks

    Friday the 13th: Thai bourse uses “circuit breaker” as coronavirus batters Thai stocks

    The Stock exchange of Thailand (SET) pulled the “circuit breaker” for the second time in as many days, to suspend trade between 9:59 and 10:29am after the index fell by over 10% this morning. A stock analyst at Krungsri Securities said that move was due to panic selling after US President Donald Trump suspended travel from Europe for 30 days,…

  • Covid-19 reaching ‘stage 3’ in Thailand

    Covid-19 reaching ‘stage 3’ in Thailand

    Yesterday The public Health Ministry insisted that the country was yet to enter Stage 3 of the covid-19 coronavirus outbreak. Despite the discovery of a new cluster of infections, the number of cases still remains at 70. (Update: 5 new cases were announced on Friday morning) The permanent secretary for public health, Dr Sukhum Kanchannaphimai reports some cases can be…

  • Thousands laid off, millions of baht lost as Chiang Mai elephant camps close

    Thousands laid off, millions of baht lost as Chiang Mai elephant camps close

    Elephant businesses in Chiang Mai and elsewhere in Northern Thailand are being wiped out in their dozens by the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak. Most have closed their doors and laid off thousands of staff. Those that remain open are haemorrhaging money. According to Boonthachai Lert, chairman of Mae Taeng Elephant Camp and a spokesperson for the industry, 85 of Chiang Mai’s…

  • “Little ghosts” going home

    “Little ghosts” going home

    Some of the Thai nationals dubbed “phee noi” (little ghosts), who recently returned from South Korea and were quarantined at a naval base in Chon Buri’s Sattahip district are today being sent to their hometowns. Public Health Ministry and Royal Thai Navy officials agreed this week that many of the migrant workers can be released. All are suspected of being…

  • Government cancels cancellation of visa-on-arrival, visa-free travel

    Government cancels cancellation of visa-on-arrival, visa-free travel

    In yet another abrupt U- turn, the government yesterday withdrew its suspension of visa-on-arrival status for 22 countries and territories over the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, less than 24 hours after issuing the order, citing the “need for more research.” The areas affected are Bulgaria, Bhutan, China (including Macau, China and Taiwan), Cyprus, Ethiopia, Fiji, Georgia, India, Kazakhstan, Malta, Mexico, Nauru,…

  • Thai health minister has a slash at ‘dirty farang’

    Thai health minister has a slash at ‘dirty farang’

    Many farang dress dirty and don’t shower. As hosts we have to be very careful.” Thailand’s Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is at it again making public disparaging and xenophobic comments about ‘white’ foreigners (farang). This time he’s warned his fellow Thais about the foreigners fleeing their own countries for the ‘safe haven’ of Thailand. “Today I visited Chiang Mai…

  • China says US military may have brought virus to China

    China says US military may have brought virus to China

    In an escalating war of words with Washington, China’s Foreign Ministry suggested yesterday that the US military might have brought the Covid-19 coronavirus to the Chinese city of Wuhan, long considered the source of the outbreak. China has taken great offence at comments by US officials accusing it of being slow to react to the virus, first detected in Wuhan…

  • Lazada investigating allegations of facemask price gouging

    Lazada investigating allegations of facemask price gouging

    Online marketplace Lazada is investigating an allegation by the Commerce Ministry’s yesterday that protective facemasks for the Covid-19 coronavirus are being sold via its platform at illegally high prices. The masks were declared a price-controlled item in Thailand on February 4. Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit ordered a complaint filed against Lazada for allegedly allowing sales of masks by vendors at…

  • Tourism officials ponder moving Songkran to July, boosting domestic tourism

    Tourism officials ponder moving Songkran to July, boosting domestic tourism

    Joint ventures with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) are trying to solve worst case scenarios of losing over 1 trillion baht in revenue and 10 million in inbound guests to celebrate Songkran. The TAT has set a optimistic target of 172 million domestic trips this year, generating 1.13 trillion baht in revenue.…

  • Thailand confirms 11 new coronavirus cases

    Thailand confirms 11 new coronavirus cases

    Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health announced 11 new confirmed cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus at its press briefing today. The new cases bring the total of confirmed cases in Thailand to 70. The ministry said the new patients were found infected in a cluster, the first since the virus struck the country in January. Officials say the eleven were at…

  • UPDATE: 11 new Covid-19 cases announced for Thailand – total now 70 people

    UPDATE: 11 new Covid-19 cases announced for Thailand – total now 70 people

    Thailand now has a total of 70 Covid-19 Coronavirus cases with the announcement yesterday of six new confirmed patients and another 11 cases announced this morning. In their daily briefings the Thai Ministry of Public Health added that 34 patients had now fully recovered. One person has died of the disease in Thailand. And Thailand confirmed eleven more cases of…

  • Thai stocks tumbles, SET drops nearly 6%

    Thai stocks tumbles, SET drops nearly 6%

    Thailand’s stock exchange, the SET, plunged yesterday along with the region’s other bourses. The index dropped amid concerns over the growing global Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. The SET dived 74.57 points, or nearly 6%, to 1,175.32 points. This all happened shortly after the open in a turnover of 9 billion baht. The SET50 index, Thailand’s top 50 listed companies, faired even…

  • Covid-19 now a world pandemic, World Health Organisation

    Covid-19 now a world pandemic, World Health Organisation

    The Covid-19 coronavirus has now been identified in at least 114 countries, whilst killing more than 4,000 people. From an outbreak, to an epidemic, the coronavirus has now been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation. Even though media outlets around the world were starting to use the ‘P’ word, the WHO had so far resisted raising the…

  • Thailand cancels visas-on-arrival and some visa exemptions for 21 countries

    Thailand cancels visas-on-arrival and some visa exemptions for 21 countries

    On top of all the changes announced in the past few days for passengers arriving in Thailand, today the government has announced an additional measure. The Thai government has now cancelled the automatic granting of the visa-on-arrival for 18 countries as well as cancelling visa exemption for three other countries in additional efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.…

  • “My experiences with Coronavirus in Bangkok”

    “My experiences with Coronavirus in Bangkok”

    Today, the owner of Ohana Poké restaurant ‘Mr. Jay’ in Bangkok, has recently been placed in quarantine after been confirmed with the Covid-19 coronavirus. Feeling concerned, Jay decided to blog about his experiences battling the disease and his personal experiences in quarantine, in an honest and open fashion. Rumours spread after Mr. Jay travelled from Singapore to Bangkok on February…

  • A few more flight cancellations and K-Pop curtailed

    A few more flight cancellations and K-Pop curtailed

    Airlines around the world are battling to re-assess and refine their flight schedules in response to the dive in passenger bookings following the outbreak and impact of the covid-19 coronavirus at the start of the year. In recent weeks the restrictions on travel, to many parts of the world, have started to bite. Thai AirAsia announced today that it will…

  • Three new coronavirus cases raises Thailand total to 53

    Three new coronavirus cases raises Thailand total to 53

    The number of confirmed Covid-19 coronavirus cases in Thailand has now reached 53 with 3 new cases announced yesterday. The Thai Ministry of Public Health announced that the new cases brought the Thai total to 53, with 33 patients already fully recovered. One person has died and the others remain in hospitals for treatment. One of the new cases is…

  • All arriving passengers now required to provide additional contact info

    All arriving passengers now required to provide additional contact info

    The Department of Disease Control plans to impose compulsory measures for all inbound arrivals, including notifying personal information and contact information such as mobile phone numbers and email addresses as part of steps to control the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak. The additional arrival formalities will start tomorrow and officials say the new personal information provided by inbound passengers will stay in…

  • Thai Airways passengers, flying from ‘at risk’ destinations, now require health certificates

    Thai Airways passengers, flying from ‘at risk’ destinations, now require health certificates

    Thai Airways is now demanding passengers, departing on their planes from China, Italy and South Korea, to Thailand, provide the national airline with health certificates before they can receive their boarding passes. The announcement was the airlines’ latest reaction to the growing coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak. Here’s The Thaiger’s daily Coronavirus update HERE. The new compliance relates to Thai flights out…

  • Coronavirus UPDATE: China stabilises, Asian markets recover slightly, Italy goes into ‘lockdown’

    Coronavirus UPDATE: China stabilises, Asian markets recover slightly, Italy goes into ‘lockdown’

    More than 4,000 people have now succumbed to the Covid-19 coronavirus as it continues spreading around the globe. As of 12pm today, 4,027 have died from the virus, there are 114,422 cases confirmed around the world and 64,081 people have fully recovered. Whilst most of the cases and deaths are still in mainland China but the numbers of new cases…

  • Thai Airways crew restrain Chinese passenger who deliberately coughed at them: VIDEO

    Thai Airways crew restrain Chinese passenger who deliberately coughed at them: VIDEO

    A shocking Facebook video claims to show the moment Thai Airways cabin crew tackle a passenger who deliberately coughed at them. The unverified footage is said to have been taken on a Thai Airways flight in Shanghai on Friday, and was shared online by YouTube user Fugu M. Reportedly, the plane had already landed at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport, but…

  • Reasons you should take Covid-19 seriously – symptoms and prevention

    Reasons you should take Covid-19 seriously – symptoms and prevention

    Viruses are designed to survive, evolve and thrive. The insidious beauty of the Covid-19 virus is that the symptoms in its human hosts can remain dormant for up to 14 days (or so), during which time the host can be highly contagious, milling around in close contact with other humans, oblivious to their role as a ‘spreader’. As of this…