Borders are finally starting to open across the globe.
Reporting just one new case of COVID-19 yesterday (May 30), the Thai government has now revealed that they plan to re-open their country to tourism – and it’s looking to be sooner, rather than later.
Announcing plans to welcome back visitors from July 1, the country will be entering their third stage of lockdown next month, which will see the end of all ‘business and activity lockdowns’. From June 1, cinemas, spas, theatres and zoos are permitted to re-open (with strict conditions), and many hotels have already been granted permission to allow locals to stay. Now, the popular destination is making preparations for extending their welcome to international guests again, after months of strict travel bans across many countries.
As expected, the Thai government will be implementing health and safety measures for tourists to follow, which will include the use of face masks and increased sanitation. And as an extra precaution to limit the spread of the virus in Thailand, the country will be looking at tourists’ country of origin, with the Governor for the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Yuthasak Supasorn telling CNN that this would be “to see if their situation has truly improved”. If a country’s situation hasn’t improved, visitors may be banned until things change.
While the country does intend to completely re-open, there could be restrictions put in place around where travellers can go. Supasorn added: “We have studied a possibility of offering special long-stay packages in isolated and closed areas where health monitoring can be easily controlled – for example, Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Samui.
“This will be beneficial for both tourists and local residents, since this is almost a kind of quarantine.”
Thailand joins countries such as Greece, Spain, Portugal and Iceland, who have all set in plans to allow international visitors, with increased health and safety measures in place to kickstart their economies again.