covid-19
- Covid-19 News
PM says Thailand will consider lifting quarantine for vaccinated tourists
The Thai PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha says the government will consider waiving the mandatory 14-day quarantine for tourists with proof of Covid-19 vaccination. For months now, the government has stuck to its stance that vaccinated foreign arrivals would still need to be quarantined, given that it’s too early to say if vaccines prevent transmission. But with industry leaders warning that the…
- Thailand News
Tourism officials aim for vaccinated travellers to enter Thailand by the third quarter of 2021
Vaccinated against Covid-19? You might be able to enter Thailand by July. The country’s tourism officials are now working on a plan to allow foreign tourists who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus to enter the country by the third quarter of 2021. The Tourism Authority of Thailand is waiting for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration to relax certain…
- Covid-19 News
Thai FDA approves Sinovac vaccine, 13 provinces to get the first doses
The first phase of Thailand’s Covid-19 immunisation plan is ready to roll out with the first 200,000 doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine set to arrive tomorrow. The Chinese-made vaccine was just approved by the Thai Food and Drug Administration. The decision was made “just in time,” Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul wrote on Facebook with a photo of the official…
- Pattaya News
Pattaya mayor pushes to vaccinate residents and become an “area quarantine”
The Pattaya City mayor is pushing for the city to become a “safe bubble” for tourists and residents. The idea is to vaccinate all residents and workers in the tourism industry, designating Pattaya as an “area quarantine,” Mayor Sonthaya Khunpluem says. He adds that the city has prepared a proposal for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The mayor says…
- Covid-19 News
Top virologist says vaccine type used in Thailand carries low risk of side-effects
A top virologist from Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University says the inactivated Covid-19 vaccines that will be in use in Thailand carry a low risk of side-effects. Yong Poovorawan says the risk of a severe reaction such as anaphylaxis, is lower with the Chinese Sinovac jab and the AstraZeneca vaccine. Posting on his Facebook page, Yong says a US study shows that…
- Tourism News
Tourism officials call for vaccine passport strategy to re-open tourism in Q4
The Tourism Authority of Thailand says the Kingdom must agree a “vaccine passport” policy by June in order to welcome foreign tourists by the fourth quarter of the year. Siripakorn Cheawsamoot from the TAT says such a scheme would have a significant impact on the international market, where many countries have already embarked on large-scale vaccination programmes. “TAT plans to…
- Covid-19 News
Bangkok restaurants to be allowed to serve alcohol until 11pm
Bangkok’s nightlife is coming back to life… slowly, very slowly. Restrictions are easing and restaurants in the city will soon be allowed to serve alcohol, but just until 11pm. At a Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, the administration decided to ease restrictions. A formal announcement will be made tomorrow. Bangkok, as well as other neighbouring…
- Phuket News
59 foreign tourists arrive in Phuket, first to undergo the luxurious “villa quarantine”
59 tourists have arrived in Thailand and are now in “villa quarantine” at a luxury resort in Phuket. In an effort to boost the country’s economy and revive the tourism sector, Thai officials have focused on attracting rich tourists who will spend a lot of money during their visit to Thailand. 13 of the tourists flew to Thailand from Indonesia…
- Covid-19 News
Poll respondents say politicians should be last on the list for Covid-19 vaccine
A survey carried out by the National Institute of Development Administration shows that most people believe politicians should be at the back of the queue for the Covid-19 vaccine. Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul has confirmed Thailand will receive its first vaccine delivery next week, with the arrival of China’s Sinovac jab on Wednesday. Respondents to the NIDA poll said…
- Thailand News
China’s Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine is on its way to Thailand
The first 200,000 doses of China’s Sinovac vaccine is set to arrive at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport on Wednesday. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is expected to formally accept the delivery at Thai Airways warehouse. Thai officials have made an event out of the first vaccine delivery, calling it “Covid vaccines, restoring the Thai Smile.” The Chinese-made vaccine has yet to be approved…
- Bangkok News
Bangkok bars and nightclubs may soon reopen, CCSA announcement expected today
Bangkok bars and other nightlife venues may soon reopen. An announcement by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration on the easing of disease control restrictions is expected today, according to Thai media. The Ministry of Public Health has proposed reclassifying Bangkok as well as the neighbouring provinces Samut Prakan, Nonthaburi and Pathum Thani, from “red” to “orange” zones. As an…
- Covid-19 News
Border officials on alert for Burmese coup protesters fleeing military crackdown
Border police have increased patrols in the northern province of Chiang Rai amid concerns that Burmese protesters may try to cross into the Mae Sai district. This follows a military crackdown in the Burmese border town of Tachilek as the army tries to quell anti-coup rallies. According to a Bangkok Post report, Sompong Chingduang from Thailand’s Immigration Bureau says the…
- Thailand News
Thai PM survives no-confidence motion – “no surprise”
Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha and 9 of his cabinet members have unsurprisingly survived a no-confidence censure motion today in the Thai parliament after 3 days of intense debates. The opposition, who filed the motion, sharply criticised the PM’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, along with the subsequent vaccination program, or lack of it, and alleged “systematic corruption”. According to Thai…
- Thailand News
Thai PM walkout, easing of covid restrictions | February 19
Thailand News Today Police have arrested a man in Samut Prakan, southeast of central Bangkok, for allegedly possessing war weapons and attempting to sell assault rifles online through Instagram. The “dewaffen” Instagram page for “Oz John Woo” has an eclectic combination of cat photos and gun photos. The bio says “military support/ small arms import/export service. Life is limited, please…
- Thailand News
130 new Covid infections today while first group of foreign tourists arrive tonight
Thailand is reporting 130 new cases today of Covid-19 with 116 of those cases being locally-transmitted. 61 cases were confirmed at hospitals and 55 were found in communities, bringing the current total of cases to 25,241 since the pandemic began with 83 deaths. The most recent death marked the first physician in Thailand to succumb from the virus, in central…
- Covid-19 News
Government think tank says vaccine rollout vital to tourism recovery
The National Economic and Social Development Council says the recovery of Thailand’s tourism sector is heavily dependent on the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines and the establishment of herd immunity in the Kingdom. The Bangkok Post reports that Danucha Pichayanan from the NESDC says the government needs to come up with a better plan for the rollout, including prioritising workers in…
- Covid-19 News
54 provinces to see relaxing of disease control measures
Thailand is proposing an easing of disease control measures in 19 more provinces in an effort to resume business operations. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration will consider the proposal on Monday, which would increase the number of provinces to see relaxed measures from 35 to 54. Those provinces would be listed as green zones and include: Kamphaeng Phet, Chai…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand reports first physician to die of Covid-19
Thailand is reporting its first physician to die of the Covid-19 virus. The doctor, Panya Hanphanitphan, in the central Maha Sarakham province, passed away this morning as confirmed by his family and a healthcare foundation in which he served as a senior advisor. Panya supposedly caught the disease from a patient who tested positive for the virus and sought treatment…
- Pattaya News
Quarantine hotel threatens to sue over complaint about cockroach in food
A quarantine hotel in the eastern province of Chon Buri is threatening legal action after a Thai returnee lambasted the facility on social media. It is the second Thai hotel to appear hyper-sensitive to criticism. In October 2020, a hotel on Koh Chang threatened to sue an American guest if he did not apologise for his negative review of the…
- Covid-19 News
Traders at 2 Pathum Thani markets unhappy with extended closure order
Traders at 2 wet markets in the central province of Pathum Thani have expressed their frustration at the decision to keep the markets closed until next Thursday. The Pornpat and Suchart markets, in the Thanyaburi district, have been closed since last Friday and were supposed to re-open yesterday. However, officials have extended the closure in response to a number of…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today | PM parliamentary rebuke, ‘OnlyFans’ Covid alternative | February 17
Thai airlines and hotels say that the tourism crisis in the year ahead is set to dwarf last year’s in terms of its impact, a lack of customers, and an absence of government aid. Asia Aviation, the largest shareholder in Thai AirAsia, is warning that when international tourism eventually does resume, there may not be enough suppliers to meet demand…
- Covid-19 News
Thai Airways to deliver first doses of Covid-19 vaccine on February 24
Thailand’s national carrier, Thai Airways International, is being tasked with transporting 200,000 doses of a Covid-19 vaccine from China to Bangkok, arriving next week. The CoronaVac jab from Chinese manufacturer, Sinovac, will be the first Covid-19 vaccine to be administered in the Kingdom. Nation Thailand reports that Thai Airways flight TG675 will take off from Beijing at 6.50am local time…
- Covid-19 News
2 more cases of South African variant detected in Thais in state quarantine
There are now 3 Thai people in state quarantine who are being treated for the highly transmissible South African variant of Covid-19. Unlike foreign nationals, Thai nationals do not have to be tested prior to returning to the Kingdom. Opass Putcharoen from the Thai Red Cross Emerging Infectious Diseases Clinical Centre has confirmed there are 3 patients in quarantine, infected…
- Tourism News
Airlines, hotels say 2021 likely to be even worse than last year
Thai airlines and hotels fear that the tourism crisis in 2021 is set to dwarf last year’s in terms of its impact, as they appeal for government aid. The Bangkok Post reports that Asia Aviation, the largest shareholder in Thai AirAsia, has warned that when international tourism eventually does resume, there may not be enough suppliers to meet demand as…
- Thailand News
Thailand News Today | Pyramid scammer arrested, first vaccines arrive next week | February 16
A 45 year old Thai woman, known as Jay Phet, has been arrested, along with several Burmese accomplices and nearly 400 of the trafficked migrants. She was arrested for acquiring illegal Burmese migrants, getting them over the border… undetected, and then sending them to the Central Seafood Markets along the coast of Samut Sakhon province, just south west of Bangkok.…
- Covid-19 News
Covid lockdown in Pathum Thani district, just north of Bangkok | VIDEO
Whilst migrant dormitories and parts of the seafood markets in Samut Sakhon remain either in complete lockdown or as restricted areas, and the affected gambling dens in Rayong have magically disappeared, the focus of the current Covid outbreak has now turned to Pathum Thani… just north of Bangkok and probably better known as the province that hosts the Buddhist Dhammakaya…
- Covid-19 News
Health Minister says first vaccine doses will be here on February 24
Thailand’s Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, says the first doses of the Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine will arrive in the Kingdom on February 24. Nation Thailand reports that the first batch of 200,000 doses will leave China on February 20. Anutin’s statement comes after weeks of uncertainty, with the government coming in for criticism over the slow pace of the vaccine…
- Tourism News
Thai government says tourism-dependent locations will get high priority in vaccination drive
The government’s Covid-19 task force says places like Phuket and Pattaya, which are heavily reliant on international tourism, will be considered “high priority” for vaccination. The Pattaya News reports that Apisamai Srirangsan, assistant spokesperson for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, made the announcement at a press conference yesterday. The southern island of Phuket – along with a number of…
- Covid-19 News
Quarantine may be increased to 21 days for returnees arriving from Africa
The Thai government may increase mandatory quarantine to 21 days for those returning from Africa, as efforts continue to stop the spread of the South African variant of the virus. The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says the B1351 variant, which first surfaced in South Africa late last year, is faster spreading and could lead to an increase in the…
- Crime News
Thai woman arrested for allegedly running labour trafficking operation linked to Samut Sakhon market
Police arrested a 45 year old Thai woman for allegedly running the country’s largest illegal labour trafficking operation and bringing undocumented Burmese migrants into Thailand to work at the Central Shrimp Market in Samut Sakhon, the epicentre of the new wave of Covid-19 infections. Ratree “Jay Phet” Vechsuwan was arrested on Friday. Police say she trafficked migrant workers for more…
