News Forum - Renewed calls to ditch Thailand Pass, PCR test on arrival

[Thaiger]

Key figures in Thailand’s tourism industry have renewed their calls for the Thailand Pass and PCR testing on arrival to be scrapped. The sector is now concerned about the potential impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on future tourism numbers. According to a Bangkok Post report, hoteliers now say they fear the invasion could see international arrivals dropping to 10% of pre-pandemic levels. Speaking at the Thailand Tourism Forum in Bangkok yesterday, the chairman of global hotel operator Minor International, renewed his call for the government to ditch the Thailand Pass system. Bill Heinecke has been vocal on issues affecting […]

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[Pompies]

This is nothing but a waste of time by the usual players. On the one side the desperate tourism industry and on the other side a bunch of control freaks who simply are not listening. The so called government has no intention of loosening the grasp it has on the throats of the hotel operators etc. 

[EdwardV]

I wish it would be dropped, I’d get a ticket tomorrow. However I don’t see it happening until after summer. Oh well.

[Guest1]

37 minutes ago, Thaiger said:

hoteliers now say they fear the invasion could see international arrivals dropping to 10% of pre-pandemic levels.

I am confused, wouldn't 10 % of pre pandemic be a rise of the actual numbers?

I mean, of course, the real numbers. Not the TAT predicted ones and seen for all over Thailand, not just for Phuket and Bangkok, perhaps?

[remo940]

Gentlemen,  the horse has already left the barn

[DoUKnowWhoIAm]

I think we can expect slow tip-toeing.

2 hours ago, Thaiger said:

Thailand Pass and PCR testing on arrival to be scrapped

Not enough. Tourist will choose countries without. Pre departure PCR and insurance.

[PATRIQUE]

............Tourist will choose countries without. Pre departure PCR and insurance. ....

I dont think thats right ......the Thailand Pass is the key point ..... for me it is exactly the same I ve been looking to go to asia for a couple of months aswell from next month but I will not do the Thai Pass and would prefer to go to Phillies instead .

insurance. ....I think people without any health insurance in Thailand.........you might want to leave out on anyways - covid or no covid

[JJJ]

Pre-departure antigen test is all that is needed. In the US and Europe it’s going to get even more difficult to get pcr tests soon. Antigen tests might miss an infection by one day as such Singapore requires a 48 hour antigen test. 

[Perros]

It seems a lot of countries are waking up to the fact that maybe it's in their best interests to make it easy to come into a country.  Just have a negative test and go.

 

https://www.traveloffpath.com/14-countries-open-for-unvaccinated-travelers/

It looks like the website should change their url to 30-countries-open-for-unvaccinated-travelers.

[yasar]

 

This decision would be a very good decision for Thailand. In a very short time, the number of tourists would double and continue to increase. Many European and Turkish travelers are waiting for this decision

 

[riclag]

The quote is from the original BP article!

 “She says if the government really is serious about encouraging its citizens to live with the virus, which it plans to declare endemic by June, it needs to abolish the Test & Go entry scheme and allow people to arrive with proof of vaccination and a pre-departure negative PCR test result”

It shouldn’t  matter lady ,vaxed or unvaxed imop.

A pcr should be sufficient !

Isnt the  major concern for travelers coming here  , to make sure you don’t have covid!

 

[fpschubert]

Better option would be:

 

1. 48hr negative RT-PCR 

2. Self-administered ATK at airport arrival 

 

Basically, what Singapore is doing.. 

[Cabra]

So boring. Blah blah blah. Preflight testing (PCR or ATK) should be the only hurdle. And if you can produce proof of vaccine then any insurance requirements should be waived. That's the dream. Maybe someday.

[JJJ]

11 minutes ago, fpschubert said:

Better option would be:

1. 48hr negative RT-PCR 

2. Self-administered ATK at airport arrival 

Basically, what Singapore is doing.. 

Singapore allows predeparture antigen test. The new antigen test isn’t at the airport anymore. You can go to any approved clinic—there’s tons—within 2 days of arrival. There’s no isolation in between. 
 

Also the arrival procedures at Survanabhumi should be gotten rid of. The whole private transport and cluster f is useless. A taxi driver is much more likely to be exposed out in Bangkok than from a foreign arrival. 

[dingdong]

thailand must be strong here and put a ban on russians and not accepting their passports anymore...the members and supporters of this war crime country should never ever be allowed outside of their land...they can spend their holidays in sibiria or on krim that they stole from ukraine...

Edited March 2, 2022 by dingdong

[vlad]

They are well aware of what needs to be done, they will wait till the Election comes along then use the " Vote for us and we will end all Rules and open up " The old Carrot and Donkey trick and most Thais will fall for it.

[Artemis080]

Covid is rife here, so PCR tests are pointless.

But, I do think that you must have insurance, not for quarantine, but for actual medical treatment that might become necessary for covid, or just anything else.

Some tourists used to skip out on medical bills. You should not be a burden to the Thai health care system.

[Somchai]

The major problem is not the cost of testing and insurance, as they are negligible compared to the total cost of a 2 week holiday.

The main obstacle is all the paperwork of getting the insurance, booking the test, booking SHA hotel package with airport transfer, then completing the Thailand Pass , uploading lots of documents.

If someone is not fluent in English, he wont be able to do all this.

 

 

[Manu]

1 hour ago, fpschubert said:

Better option would be:

1. 48hr negative RT-PCR 

2. Self-administered ATK at airport arrival 

Basically, what Singapore is doing.. 

Better option would be:

1- Nothing

Bascially what more and more countries are doing...

[JJJ]

5 hours ago, Somchai said:

The major problem is not the cost of testing and insurance, as they are negligible compared to the total cost of a 2 week holiday.

The main obstacle is all the paperwork of getting the insurance, booking the test, booking SHA hotel package with airport transfer, then completing the Thailand Pass , uploading lots of documents.

If someone is not fluent in English, he wont be able to do all this.

The costs are not negligible especially if your home uses the same as Thailand. A trip from Malaysia could cost $400 or more in testing assuming the same rules as Thailand (I don’t know what returning Malaysians have to do). Compared to $80 or less round trip flight that is a lot. 
 

Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos made up a huge percentage of foreign arrivals in the past. 
 

As for the cost of the hotel, that’s equivalent in a lot other destinations. So yes paying an extra $200 for the pleasure of visiting a country with outdoor mask mandate and bars still closed “officially” will be a turn off.  

[WR2]

The restrictions do absolutely nothing for public health.  If there was no covid in Thailand then I could sort of understand, but at this point these bureaucratic baffoons pretending like the are doing something is laughable.  I'm not coming back until ALL restrictions are dropped, and that includes the most stupid of stupid rules: requiring masking while outside.  Masks are useless, haven't you figured that out yet?  Oh, 2 years in, spreading constantly despite all those mask mandates, and you still think that masks do anything?  You're a clueless sheep.

[Grumpyoldman]

So many people still seem to think a pre-departure test is important. Why? If covid is declared endemic then there should be no requirements..... at that point its the flu or a cold or nothing at all. We never got denied boarding etc for the flu or a cold before.

 

At the moment its still an unnecessary procedure. So what if you have covid? Almost everyone is asymptomatic now and so if you pass it on, the same applies. They are happy you can catch it in Thailand, so whats the difference?

 

It's the now well known risk of incarceration after a positive test thats scaring away people. A policy that has never achieved anything but misery and economic disaster, seeing as by the time someone was identified as having covid, they had passed it on to many more than were evert traced.

[Buzzkill]

this tracing app is invasion of privacy dont you think 

[Buzzkill]

Estimated usa population 140 million had covid and have immunity and on top of that in colorado 90 % have had at least  a dose of the largest forced medical experiment 

[Nick]

2 hours ago, Grumpyoldman said:

So many people still seem to think a pre-departure test is important. Why? If covid is declared endemic then there should be no requirements..... at that point its the flu or a cold or nothing at all. We never got denied boarding etc for the flu or a cold before.

At the moment its still an unnecessary procedure. So what if you have covid? Almost everyone is asymptomatic now and so if you pass it on, the same applies. They are happy you can catch it in Thailand, so whats the difference?

It's the now well known risk of incarceration after a positive test thats scaring away people. A policy that has never achieved anything but misery and economic disaster, seeing as by the time someone was identified as having covid, they had passed it on to many more than were evert traced.

Spot on, it's the worry of a positive test and being arrested even if it's false that puts me off.  Mexico again this year for me.