Foreign Tourists Keep Coming to Phuket

The authorities have clarified that Phuket is open to foreign tourists as part of the Phuket Sandbox campaign, debunking speculations that the campaign had been discontinued.

The administration’s COVID-19 economic task group stated that Phuket remains accessible to fully inoculated visitors participating in the Phuket Sandbox program, with no amendments to existing restrictions anticipated.

Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, CESA’s spokesman, has said Wednesday that visitors would be welcomed under the same terms and limitations as previously while asking the community not to spread fake news that stating the campaign has stopped because of an increase in COVID-19 cases.

Mr. Thanakorn mentioned that 4,778 foreign tourists got to visit Phuket since the island’s official reopening on July 1. The officials expect a total of 100,000 foreign tourists in the first three months, generating a revenue of 8.9B baht. He stated that the Phuket Sandbox campaign is essential for Thailand’s economy, which became highly reliant on tourism, and acts as a critical pilot project for Thailand’s reopening tourist industry.

Tourists coming to Phuket from outside the country must be fully inoculated at least 14 days before departure to avoid quarantine upon arrival. They are, however, still subject to an arrival screening and future screenings based on the duration of their stay. Since the campaign’s launch, some foreign visitors have been COVID-19 positive. All infected tourists have been hospitalized, and close contacts have been quarantined under the guidelines set by the government.

Phuket has issued additional travel restrictions for local visitors from ten tight control provinces and 24 highest control provinces going to the island province by air, land, or sea. These new measures will take effect starting from July 15 to July 31, mandate all inbound travelers to be fully inoculated against COVID-19 at least 14 days before arrival or got a dose of AstraZeneca vaccine 14 days before arrival, or manage to recover from COVID-19 by not more than ninety days before arrival.

With the enhanced vaccination or recovery regulations, incoming domestic passengers must additionally show a negative COVID-19 test document obtained through antigen testing or reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) no more than seven days before arrival. All tourists going to Phuket are required to download and activate the Mor Chana app on their mobile devices, with location settings turned ‘on’ during their stay.

Source: Pattaya Mail

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