Tourism News
Get your daily dose of Tourism News in Thailand with the latest updates on exciting destinations, events, and travel industry developments. We provide relevant and insightful information about Thailand’s diverse travel scene, which includes innovative hospitality trends, cultural experiences, and sustainable tourism practices. Stay informed on various tourism-related matters, including visa policies and major infrastructure projects, to ensure you’re always one step ahead in the vibrant world of travel.
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Sponsored Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?
Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...
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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…
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Phuket re-opening could be postponed
The Tourism Authority of Thailand says plans to re-open Phuket to foreign tourists could be delayed as a result of the country’s first local case of Covid-19 in over 3 months in Bangkok. TAT governor, Yuthasak Supasorn, was speaking as officials visited the island to meet with local businesses and discuss disease prevention measures and preparations for a scheduled October…
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Thai traffic jam as tourists wait for the Koh Chang ferry
There’s been a traffic jam in, of all places, Trat, as impatient domestic tourists waited for the ferry to head to Koh Chang from the mainland. The island was invaded by Thais getting out of town for the long LONG weekend and, despite the forward bookings, the traffic police and ferry operator weren’t ready for the onslaught. The long weekend…
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Thousands head to Koh Chang, 3 hour wait for island ferry
Cars full of tourists headed to Koh Chang waited for hours in a 2 kilometre long line to get on the ferry to the island. More than 10,000 people are expected to visit the island for the 4-day weekend. Many have Friday and Monday off work as substitute holiday time for Songkran which was cancelled in April due to coronavirus…
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Food services return to Thailand’s domestic flights
If you’ve travelled on a Thai domestic flight recently you’ll know that it’s been a relatively boring experience. One the safety demo is over, that’s the last you see of the flight attendants as they head to the back of the plane and chat – there’s been nothing else for them to do because of the ban on food and…
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Tourism officials look to end dual pricing for expats
“The key factor is we have to treat expats like locals, without discrimination or a negative attitude towards foreigners.” Admission fees at national parks and tourist attractions are often drastically higher for expats than they are for Thai nationals. Foreigners sometimes even pay 10 times more than Thais. Tourism officials say they might put an end to dual pricing for…
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Holiday plans cancelled at border district, Koh Samui expects tourist boom
People are cancelling their trips to a Kanchanaburi district for the 4-day weekend after a coronavirus scare at a local school. Koh Samui is expecting the opposite. The southern province Surat Thani is expecting such a large influx in tourists that some airlines and ferries have doubled their services for the holiday. In Thong Pha Phum, Kanchanaburi’s border district, the…
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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…
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Don Mueang falling below passenger goal
Despite the return to the skies by many of Thailand’s domestic airlines – Thai Air Asia, Thai Lion Air, Thai VietJet, Nok Air Thai Smile, Bangkok Air – Don Mueang Airport has been quiet with only a third of the passengers they’re used to. The Bangkok airport, mostly serving the budget airlines, is even falling below the conservative goals they…
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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…
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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…
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Wow! TAT says they’ll give expats 500 baht to boost tourism
Where would you go with 500 baht? Probably not very far. The Tourism Authority of Thailand says they’re going to hand out 500 baht discount for each trip they take. TAT says they hope that the 2 million baht budget scheme will help stimulate domestic tourism. The 500 baht is expected to encourage the expats to “travel in the country…
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Thailand hopes to welcome long-stay visitors escaping winter in Europe
The Thai government is understood to be finalising a plan to open the borders to long-stay visitors escaping the European winter, aka. snowbirds. With borders closed to to most international arrivals, the country’s tourism sector is devastated and in desperate need of a kick-start. Boon Vanasin, from Thonburi Healthcare Group, says officials are considering the introduction of long-stay visas, enabling…
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UPDATE: Pushback from local associations over the Thai government’s “Phuket Model”
UPDATE: Amidst the “plans” and “models” being proposed by the government to re-open Thailand to some form of general tourism (nothing confirmed yet), there’s also been some pushback from operators in some of the hardest hit areas. The government had proposed the Phuket Model as a way of kicking off tourism from early October. But the model involves a mandatory…
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Plan on the table to allow Europe’s ‘snowbirds’ into Thailand for up to 9 months
Another day, another ‘plan’ flown up the pole to see if it will catch some wind. This time a prominent health provider claims the government is developing a new ‘visa’ for sunseekers. If adopted it could allow foreigners to stay in Thailand on a long-stay visa for up to 9 months. Nothing has been finalised as yet but Boon Vanasin, the…
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TAT launches “White Vest” tourism campaign
The Tourism Authority of Thailand this week launched its “White Vest” tourism campaign this week, based on intensive training to promote safety, hygiene and world class customer service at tourist spots throughout the country. Those who pass the campaign will be awarded a white vest and a certified ID badge that they can wear to signify to all tourists, both…
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There is no date for the reopening of general tourism in Thailand, except Phuket
Deputy government spokesperson Traisulee Traisoranakul says Thailand will not be “fully reopened to foreign tourists” along the lines of Phuket’s “safe and sealed” model, because the government and CCSA has to consider too many details. Thailand’s largest island, Phuket, is going to be a pilot program for the partial re-opening to any tourist that wants to visit – but with…
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Debate rages behind closed doors on allowing return of foreign tourists
The debate over allowing foreign tourists back into Thailand is heating up, even as plans are being made for the “Phuket model” and airlines cautiously begin announcing charter flights for long-stay foreign tourists later in the year. Thailand has gone nearly 100 days without a confirmed locally spread case of Covid-19, putting it in a tough spot compared to countries…
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New lease on life for 7 of Thailand’s budget airlines
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha today threw a lifeline to 7 of Thailands’ domestic low-cost airlines, beginning with the injection of 24 billion baht in soft loans for the struggling aviation sector, battered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Representatives of Thai Air Asia, its long haul division Thai Air Asia X, Thai Smile, Thai Lion Air, Thai Viet Jet, Bangkok Airways and Nok…
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TAT governor says tourism sector must learn lessons from pandemic
The governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand says the sector must take on board the lessons of Covid-19, including the need to shift to a “value over volume” tourism model. Yuthasak Supasorn says, should a second wave of Covid-19 engulf the world in 2021, effective risk management will be crucial in overcoming the challenges thrown up by the outbreak.…
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Expats to be offered travel deals at Bangkok event
Ready to go on a holiday? Expats are being offered some travel deals to boost domestic tourism. The Tourism Authority of Thailand plans to hold an event next month for foreigners. “Expat Travel Deal 2020” is September 11-13 from 10am to 10pm at Quartier Gallery at Bangkok’s EmQuartier shopping centre. It’s free to attend. Travel agencies from all over the…
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Pattaya beach vendors pay parking fees to attract visitors
In a bid to attract beachgoers and day trippers, Pattaya’s beach bed, umbrella vendors and boat operators are paying visitors’ parking fees. They say fewer tourists visit Pattaya beach as there are no free parking spaces and traffic enforcement officers are strict compared with nearby Jomtien Beach. 63 year old Nikom Apidet, a boat operator seen placing a sign that…
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Chon Buri proves most popular in domestic tourism stimulus package
Although the uptake of incentives offered under the government’s domestic travel stimulus package is lower than expected, Chon Buri is proving a hit. The Pattaya News reports that nearly 34,000 room bookings have been made at hotels in the eastern province under the “We Travel Together” rebate scheme. This is more than in other seaside destinations popular with domestic tourists,…
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International tourists ‘essential’ to Thai economy, PM says
“If nothing is done, things will get worse. Premises will be shut down. Employees will be laid off. How can the government afford to help them all?” Thailand needs tourists to pick its economy back up, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says, adding that a system needs to be put in place that would both prevent the spread of the coronavirus and…
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Which country in the world is the most confident to re-open its borders for tourism?
You’ll be surprised by the answer. Cooped up in our offices and homes, we’re all yearning to travel again. Whilst the suitcase is gathering dust, travellers around the world are wondering when and how they’re going to be able to return to their favourite holiday destinations. A comprehensive international survey has come up with some surprising results about the confidence…
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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…
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Will Phuket’s ‘safe and sealed’ campaign attract foreign tourists?
Summer starts to wane in the northern hemisphere with thoughts of autumn leaves and, then, colder weather. Naturally the eyes of the world’s travellers, largely cooped up inside their own borders since March, look at their suitcases and ponder a trip… to Thailand! That’s now a possibility although there are plenty of hoops to jump through in Thailand’s planned re-opening…
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Want to go to prison? Thailand’s prisons may become tourist attractions
Yes. Really. Prisons could become more like zoos in Thailand as those locked behind bars could become part of a grand plan to turn dozens of prisons into tourist attractions. Sounds bizarre, but it’s a real proposal from the Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin who announced the idea yesterday. 72 of Thailand’s 143 prisons could be open to tourists as soon…
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Expats should be able to share in the government’s tourism incentive programs
by Expat Life Newly elected President of the Thailand Hotels Association and Vice President of Sukosol Hotels, Marisa Sukosol, was asked what her thoughts were about the Thailand Together government travel stimulus campaign. Although close to 5 million people have registered, only 600,000 hotel rooms have been booked at this stage, well below initial estimates. “The project would have more bookings if…
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Heavyweight doctors oppose Phuket plan to admit tourists
A number of prominent physicians, some advisors to the Ministry of Public Health and the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, have posted on social media this weekend that they strongly oppose opening Thailand to tourists in any way, shape or form. Their concerns follow the government’s announcement yesterday of its plan to cautiously reopen the southern resort island of Phuket…
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