News Forum - CCSA delays easing entry restrictions to Thailand… until after Songkran festival

[Thaiger]

The CCSA has announced today that they will hold off on adjusting the current entry restrictions for foreign travellers to Thailand until after next week’s Songkran festival, as they continue monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in the country. After today’s meeting, CCSA officials said they plan to adjust their measures in May, depending on the Covid situation after Thai New Year celebrations. Possible changes to the current entry restrictions may include: •  Thailand Pass: fewer documents required •  Insurance: less insurance coverage required •  Test & Go: fewer conditions •  Quarantine: decreased quarantine period Meanwhile, the CCSA said that Thailand […]

The story CCSA delays easing entry restrictions to Thailand… until after Songkran festival as seen on Thaiger News.

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[DoUKnowWhoIAm]

7 minutes ago, Thaiger said:

Insurance: less insurance coverage required

 While the premiums remains unchanged

[Ramanathan.P]

Thank You Thailand.....see you when you totally remove all conditions....Good luck to the Tourism Industry

[Janneman]

Well, with 25k new local infections every day (maybe more...) it is a wise decision to protect the visiting foreigners from being infected.

[Loong]

How can the local infection rate possibly make any difference to whether people from other countries are infected or not??????

Anyway, I doubt that there will be any increase in (reported) local infections.

The Thais that I know are being isolated after a positive ATK and there is no PCR test to follow up. As ATK results are not included in the figures, the rate will not rise.

[Graham]

They are obviously looking at keeping the cash cow in place for as long as possible without it looking too obvious that the whole scam was a money making exercise. 555

[Burapha]

Thailand is at least a month behind the West with this so numbers will go up, even without Songkran. I can't see them coming down there until June.

[AdvocatusDiaboli]

1 hour ago, Thaiger said:

The CCSA has announced today that they will hold off on adjusting the current entry restrictions for foreign travellers to Thailand until after next week’s Songkran festival,

Like THAT will make any difference to the COVID19 numbers in Thailand …. Maybe if they had these restrictions for travelling between Thai provinces they may make a difference. The only real people being protected here is the Tourists, the ones that don’t come.

[riclag]

58 minutes ago, Loong said:

How can the local infection rate possibly make any difference to whether people from other countries are infected or not??????

Anyway, I doubt that there will be any increase in (reported) local infections.

The Thais that I know are being isolated after a positive ATK and there is no PCR test to follow up. As ATK results are not included in the figures, the rate will not rise.

Especially in the beloved tourist destinations imop

cant give the impression that these areas are suspect to high positive cases.

 

[michaelbrear]

My God.   They just won't let go. Why do the powers that be not understand that still having to do this stuff is faff. Tourists won't just think oh now it's wonderful and come back in droves. 

[DJM]

3 hours ago, Loong said:

How can the local infection rate possibly make any difference to whether people from other countries are infected or not??????

That is a great question! Covid is already in Thailand, Omicron is already in Thailand and Thais do infect each other, so in terms of epidemiology how is one linked to the other? The virus doesn't care about race, citizenship etc. That's why I don't see how insisting on stricter measures based on a recent international travel history make any sense from a scientific perspective - unless you applied the very same measures (tests etc.) constantly on everybody in the country. In other words: An ordinary Thai person who spent his/her entire life in Thailand poses no greater risk than a foreigner who just arrived from abroad. Period. 

Anyway, let's face it - Songkran is in a few days. Did we expect anything to happen by then? Were there even any changes announced to happen by then? 

[JJJ]

Btw the arrival numbers have been horrendous. Even by the government’s rosey estimates as reported in BP:

“About 470,000 foreign tourists arrived in the first quarter of this year, surpassing the total number last year, 420,000, according to the CCSA.”

Seriously? If there’s only been a 10% increase versus COE Thailand’s in big trouble.  Ultimately entry restrictions are only part of it. No one wants to visit with more restrictive covid rules than their home  

 

[Houndogjess]

I come to Thailand because my wife is Thai and I live here when I'm not working. It's a complete farce . If I was a tourist I wouldn't jump through all the money grabbing hoops.

[BBY]

Honestly, it’s like listening to a broken record. 

There should be no such thing as a “Thailand Pass” anymore. It’s not necessary and it’s as simple as that.

I am afraid it’s now as case of

Question      “Fancy a trip to Thailand”

Answer         “pass”

[Marc26]

8 minutes ago, BBY said:

Honestly, it’s like listening to a broken record. 

There should be no such thing as a “Thailand Pass” anymore. It’s not necessary and it’s as simple as that.

I am afraid it’s now as case of

Question      “Fancy a trip to Thailand”

Answer         “pass”

Kind of ironic you say it's like a "broken record" when this whole forum has been whining about the same restrictions for a year, over and over again.................

[Soidog]

10 hours ago, Janneman said:

Well, with 25k new local infections every day (maybe more...) it is a wise decision to protect the visiting foreigners from being infected.

In what sense? How is making foreign arrivals have a PCR test protecting the visiting foreigners? I don’t follow your point. 

[BBY]

1 hour ago, Marc26 said:

Kind of ironic you say it's like a "broken record" when this whole forum has been whining about the same restrictions for a year, over and over again.................

Quite right, fact is they shouldn’t have had too. 

[Marc26]

36 minutes ago, BBY said:

Quite right, fact is they shouldn’t have had too. 

True, but the fact is they do..........whining about it over and over for a year isn't going to change it

 

Decide to go or not................

[XSX]

Too many 'families' will lose too much when restrictions finally come down.

[BBY]

2 hours ago, Marc26 said:

True, but the fact is they do..........whining about it over and over for a year isn't going to change it

Decide to go or not................

I prefer to look at those people, certainly most of them, as people with a passion, rather than whiners, petitioning for change is what you do if you want to campaign to write the wrongs that are so obviously happening to thousands of thai’s. Those that lost their jobs, lost their income, relied on handouts to eat, have become laden with debt and sadly some that have even ended their own life’s. So yes you do it over and over again util the penny drops.

 

 

 

[HiuMak]

16 hours ago, Thaiger said:

The CCSA has announced today that they will hold off on adjusting the current entry restrictions for foreign travellers to Thailand until after next week’s Songkran festival, as they continue monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in the country. After today’s meeting, CCSA officials said they plan to adjust their measures in May, depending on the Covid situation after Thai New Year celebrations. Possible changes to the current entry restrictions may include: •  Thailand Pass: fewer documents required •  Insurance: less insurance coverage required •  Test & Go: fewer conditions •  Quarantine: decreased quarantine period Meanwhile, the CCSA said that Thailand […]

The story CCSA delays easing entry restrictions to Thailand… until after Songkran festival as seen on Thaiger News.

Read the full story

Thai mentality. Enjoy Songkran first....talk others later

[Wfh]

Today is supposed to be my flight and the start of my 2 week trip there but I canceled it. Test n Go is too much hassle.

[Marc26]

1 hour ago, HiuMak said:

Thai mentality. Enjoy Songkran first....talk others later

And US, and Canada and England

 

Pretty much every country made concessions when it came to holidays

 

 

Weighing a surge Vs giving the people the holiday to enjoy

 

So it's not Thai mentality 

[Koen]

Ease restrictions, like full vaccination certificate required, and perhaps a travel insurance required. OK. But this kind of  "easing", persisting on tourists to undergo all that hassle from degree 5 to degree 4 to degree 3, sorry, no.