Phuket sandbox
- Thailand video news
Thailand News Today | Upgraded Sandbox entry, over-the-counter Covid tests | July 12
Tougher controls have now been introduced for domestic visitors to the Phuket Sandbox. Three more infections were found among tourists who arrived on the island yesterday, total six. The Public Health Ministry has approved in principle for rapid antigen tests to be made available for the public to purchase from Bangkok clinics and pharmacies. Surprise surprise, the Burmese military junta’s…
- Thailand video news
Good Morning Thailand | Restrictions and curfews start today in Bangkok, Sandbox update
Today Tim and Bill talk with Caitlin about the restrictions, curfews and roadblocks that start in Bangkok today (and other red zone provinces). Sandbox update. Also update on the ‘Stefanie’ situation, the German lady shuffled off to an ASQ hotel, at her expense, last week. You can watch the video about her story here… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_91SYF456UU
- Phuket News
Tougher checks for visitors arriving on Phuket from high-risk provinces
As the southern island of Phuket grapples to keep its “sandbox” scheme running amid rising Covid-19 infections, tougher controls are being introduced for domestic visitors. From Thursday, until the end of the month, arrivals from the 10 “maximum controlled and restricted” and the 24 “maximum controlled” provinces, will need to meet stricter criteria if they want to visit Phuket. According…
- Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE: 9,539 new cases, provincial totals
The CCSA has confirmed 9,539 new Covid infections & 86 coronavirus-related deaths over the past 24 hours. 103 of today’s cases were reported from the Thai prison system. Here are today’s Thai provincial totals… • HERE is a list of restrictions starting tomorrow for all dark red provinces. It includes all the transportation restrictions, curfew details and provinces in the…
- Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE Sunday: 9,539 new cases, news briefs
Today the public health department reported 9,539 new Covid infections & 86 coronavirus-related deaths. 103 of today’s cases were reported from the Thai prison system. Today’s numbers indicate a flattening of new infections but still much higher than the week before. Provincial totals published just after lunch time. • The ministries of Public Health and Transport have prepared a 5,000-bed…
- Phuket News
Phuket Sandbox woes: 2 more foreign Covid-19 cases, Delta variant
The Phuket Sandbox has hit a few hurdles with the revelation of 2 more international arrivals testing positive with Covid-19, as well as the first cases of the Delta and Beta variants on the island. The news comes in the wake of the Governor ordering most of the islands’ schools to close for 14 days due to the rising risk…
- Phuket News
Phuket daily Covid-19 hits 10, 3 short of Sandbox threshold
As Covid-19 surges throughout Thailand and the provinces in the south and around Bangkok enact curfews and other lockdown measures, Phuket has been relatively safe with just a trickle of infections. Yesterday for the first time in weeks though, Phuket recorded double-digit new Covid-19 infections, edging closer to the threshold for reconsidering the Sandbox scheme. Phuket Provincial Public Health Office…
- Covid-19 News
Sandbox tourist forced to stay in ASQ hotel after fellow passenger on her flight tests positive
Stefanie came to Phuket as a kick start to a new adventure and a long term stay in Thailand. The Phuket Sandbox option would allow her to visit around the island for 14 days before heading off to other destinations in Thailand. But it didn’t work out as planned. Now, she’s stuck in a small room for up to 14…
- Covid-19 News
12 Sandbox travellers in quarantine request to leave Thailand
The strict rules and closed entertainment venues have discouraged many potential tourists from coming to the Phuket Sandbox just yet, but many who have arrived have expressed happiness to be enjoying the beauty of Thailand, even with the complex process and limitations on the ground. But predictably, one group of Sandboxers who have are in quarantine after one traveller tested…
- Thailand video news
Good Morning Thailand | Ask Tim and Sumi ANYTHING, lockdown and Covid update with Caitlin
Today Tim and Sumi try to answer all or at least most of your questions. The latest lockdown and covid situation in Bangkok with Caitlin. Welcome to Day 2 of our LIVE broadcast @ The Intercontinental Phuket Resort, Kamala. Drop in and say hello! Worst daily numbers announced for the past 24 hours. To contact Bernard, click the link below……
- Covid-19 News
Foreign Covid-19 case had Sinopharm, domestic infections bigger concern
More information is coming out now about the first Phuket Sandbox traveller to be infected with Covid-19 yesterday. The man from the United Arab Emirates was fully vaccinated with the Sinopharm vaccine more than 7 months ago and had tested negative before boarding his flight to Phuket. But while infections from abroad make headlines, the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office…
- Tourism News
Phuket Sandbox growing with 33 airlines requesting flights
The Phuket Sandbox is slowly bringing international travellers back to Thailand, and while it’s had a few problems, signs indicate that confidence is growing in the scheme. With El Al, Emirates, Etihad, and Qatar Airways bringing in flights from the Middle East, Singapore Airlines connecting people in Southeast Asia, and Thai Airways operating 5 flights from Europe, international flights are…
- Thailand video news
Good Morning Thailand | Thai property questions answered, Bangkok lockdown mulled, Latest covid update
Today Tim and Bill talk with Arina Kaiser and Mike Kenner all things related to property ownership in Thailand, and the ways we find properties to rent and buy. We look at the latest covid updates and what looks like a possible lockdown incoming for Bangkok. Welcome to our LIVE broadcast @ The Intercontinental Phuket Resort, Kamala. Drop in and…
- Thailand video news
Thailand News Today | Sandboxer infected, record community Covid cases, new Boss probe | July 7
A man who arrived in Thailand under the Phuket “Sandbox” has tested positive for Covid-19. The man is the first so-called “Sandboxer” to test positive for the virus since the island’s reopening last week. The Federation of Thai Industries is calling on the government to move factories away from residential neighbourhoods, following the devastating explosion and blaze in Samut Prakan,…
- Phuket News
Officials: Don’t believe viral video, Phuket bridge checking all entries
When the Phuket Sandbox launched, restrictions to enter the island by land were tightened to match, requiring any overland traveller to provide proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test within 72 hours of arrival or be denied entry. Authorities are once again reinforcing that messaging after a video has gone viral appearing to show vehicles passing freely through the…
- Tourism News
3 travellers escaped Phuket Sandbox but were quickly caught
In light of the recent discovery of the first internationally imported case of Covid-19 in the Phuket Sandbox scheme, the news that 3 people so far have “escaped” from the strictly regulated accommodations might be a little unnerving. While the Sandbox may not be airtight, authorities successfully located and handled 3 tourists reported missing from Phuket hotels this week. The…
- Phuket News
Phuket Tourist Police announce taxi fares, ask travellers to report rip-offs
Following criticism and confusion over the notoriously high taxi prices in Phuket, particularly relating to those arriving in Thailand under the “Sandbox” reopening scheme, the Phuket Tourist Police have announced the maximum taxi fares from the Phuket International Airport to popular destinations on the island province. For a ride in a 4-seater taxi from the airport, the driver can charge…
- Thailand video news
Good Morning Thailand | All about Samui, Covid update. Live from Cafe Waya
Today Tim and Able talk with James McManaman about Samui Plus, (Samui sandbox). The daily covid update. Welcome to the final day of our week long LIVE program @ Cafe Waya in Boat Avenue Cherng Talay, Phuket. Drop in and say hello! To follow Able, please visit her page @emceeable and @findyourvoiceasia on Facebook, instagram and Linkedin.
- Tourism News
Entry registration under “Samui Plus” reopening planned to open this week
The registration for entering Thailand under the slated “Samui Plus” reopening scheme is planned to open this week. Similar to the Phuket “Sandbox,” the programme will allow foreign tourists who are vaccinated against Covid-19 to travel to the trio of islands in the Gulf of Thailand off the Surat Thani coast. Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan, and Koh Tao are…
- Phuket News
Phuket official says taxi fares have gone down since the pandemic
Following posts shared on social media on the notoriously high taxi fares amidst Phuket’s reopening under the “Sandbox” model, a provincial transport official is apparently saying the posts are old and the prices do not reflect the current rates. A local transport official says the prices have actually gone down. The Facebook post from a tourist planning a trip to…
- Phuket News
Phuket reports 7,347 “sandbox” hotel bookings for July
There have been 7,347 hotel bookings made for the southern island of Phuket as its “sandbox” re-opening continues. In the first 4 days of the scheme, the island has welcomed 1,416 international arrivals, most of whom are foreign nationals. Below is the breakdown: Day 1: 479 (303 foreign nationals, 176 Thais) Day 2: 544 (467 foreign nationals, 77 Thais) Day…
- Thailand video news
Thailand News Today | Factory explosion, Covid visa extensions, Samui ‘Sandbox’
This morning a plastics factory exploded in Samut Prakan, a province just south and east of central Bangkok. rom July 15, the islands of Samui, Koh Tao, and Koh Pha Ngan will start on their own versions of Sandbox. Notoriously high taxi rates in Phuket have been looked into after reports of overcharging of early “Sandbox” tourists. Siriraj Piyamaharajkarun Hospital…
- Phuket News
Phuket reviews taxi rates after “Sandbox” tourists report high prices
The notoriously high taxi rates in Phuket have been looked into after reports of overcharging the “Sandbox” tourists. The governor says he ordered local authorities to review claims of overpriced rides and found that rates are appropriately priced. From the Phuket International Airport to Patong, a “Sandbox” tourist can pay 600 to 1,050 for a ride. One tourist planning a…
- Thailand video news
Good Morning Thailand | Sandbox Success? Will Aussies return to Thailand?
Today Tim and Bill talk with Tim Shaw from Sydney, a Canberra-based political journalist and board member of the national press club of Australia, the early days of sandbox and the current Covid situation in Thailand. Welcome to Day 3 of our week long LIVE program @ Cafe Waya in Boat Avenue Cherngtalay, Phuket. Drop in and say hello!
- Covid-19 News
South Korea launches Sandboxesque reopening
Vaccinated travellers can avoid 14-day quarantines as long as they have proof of World Health Organisation-approved vaccination, a negative Covid-19 test, are not travelling from a high-risk country, and get advance approval before travelling. Wait, wait! Before you click away, this isn’t yet another Phuket Sandbox story; this is the strikingly similar reopening plan enacted by South Korea that also…
- Tourism News
1,324 arrive in Phuket Sandbox, government denies COE delays
The Sandbox is underway with relatively few hitches on the ground in Phuket, though the same might not be true of the approval process before international travellers depart to the southern Thai island. This weekend saw over 1,300 international travellers arrive to the Phuket Sandbox, and even with complex processes and restrictions, many are just happy to be there. Today…
- Tourism News
Inside Phuket’s Sandbox – Questions answered | VIDEO
Tim tries to answer as many Phuket Sandbox questions as possible as the fourth day of the ‘reopening’ emerges. So far, so good. Vaccines, tourism, getting back onto the island as an expat, flights, etc. The Sandbox is the first step in reopening Thailand to vaccinated travellers, without a formal 14 day quarantine in a hotel. Unfiltered, unshaven, unscripted. I…
- Phuket News
Flights and passenger numbers slowly rising in Phuket Sandbox
As we enter day 4 of the Phuket Sandbox reopening, while numbers aren’t anywhere near earlier estimates or historical totals, they are steadily growing day by day. Each day has brought a few more flights and passenger numbers to Phuket and the arrivals are steadily creeping up. By today, the original first-day estimate of 1,500 arrivals, should be surpassed. Today’s…
- Tourism News
Despite struggles, Phuket tourists are happy to be here
One thing many forget when they’re considering the condition of Phuket for the returning international tourists is that, while we are comparing it to the pre-Covid-19 glory days of Phuket, those travelling in the first days of the Sandbox are comparing it to their life at home now. While Covid-19 has wreaked havoc on the Thai economy and tourists are…
- Covid-19 News
Covid UPDATE Saturday: 6,230 new infections, news briefs
(Provincial totals will be published after lunchtime) This morning the public health department reported 6,230 few infections and 41 Covid-deaths. 294 of today’s total were from the Thai prison system. The average number of deaths each day, over the past 5 days, has been 50 people. Yesterday, there were 6,087 new cases reported as the week displayed a steady growth…
