Thailand plans to resume tourism with ASEAN in the second half of the year

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan

                  / KUCINTA SETIA

Image courtesy : AFP

After the success of the anti-epidemic measures, the Thai government plans to restart the tourism industry. The authorities plan to establish a "travel bubble" with ASEAN countries, that is, the two sides will open international travel to each other without having to isolate 14 days to allow foreign tourists to return.

According to the Director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Utasa said that after the covid epidemic, the first batch of tourists visiting Thailand is expected to come mainly for conferences, incentive tourism, conferences and exhibitions (MICE), and medical tourists.

The Thai authorities hope to use its relatively successful fight against the epidemic to make Thailand a destination where tourists can travel with peace of mind in order to revitalize the tourism industry.

Thai Prime Minister Pak Yuk said earlier that the government plans to establish "travel bubbles" through bilateral agreements to allow exchanges between countries with better control of the epidemic; Thai Tourism and Sports Minister Phi Pha said recently that it expected that The plan will be implemented in the second half of this year.

Thailand added eight new confirmed covid caseson 7 June 2020 from abroad. Thailand has not experienced community infections for 13 consecutive days. So far, 3112 cases have been confirmed and 58 deaths have been confirmed.

Thailand Coronary Disease Response Management Center spokesman Thaksin said that merchants who have not yet been allowed to resume business can ensure that they have established measures to prevent the spread of the virus, and they will be able to resume business before the arrival of the last unsealing stage.

Thailand’s epidemic prevention and control has maintained good momentum. The deregulation measures have entered the third phase. The fourth or last unsealing phase is tentatively launched on 1 July. The economic activities will be fully unsealed at that time, and it is exemplified as a high-risk places like lounges, bars, massage parlors, amusement parks and other commercial facilities can be resumed, and inter-government tourism and international flight entry bans will also be lifted.

Tawisin said that the tourist attractions will be reopened in the next phase of unblocking. In order to prevent tourists from gathering and triggering a new wave of covid, the authorities are planning to introduce new measures to limit the flow of people in scenic spots.

Pan Phimo, the director of the Thai Health Bureau, said that it may be necessary to follow the practice of restricting the number of visitors in shopping malls, and also set a limit on the number of visitors to tourist attractions. She also called on relevant agencies to develop measures to control the number of beach tourists and prevent the beach from being overcrowded. This includes requiring tourists to register when entering or leaving the beach to facilitate tracking.

She proposed that tourists and attendants must wear masks on the beach, provide disinfectants and hand sanitizers for beach tourists, and clean the beach toilets and bathing rooms every two hours.