BANGKOK, July 7 — Three resort islands in Surat Thani in southern Thailand – Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao – are preparing to welcome fully vaccinated foreign travellers starting July 15 in bid to revive their badly hit tourism industry.
Seven days after the launch of “Phuket Sandbox” on July 1, Thailand now moves its focus to “Samui Plus” where international travellers from low and medium COVID-19 risk countries can visit these islands without undergoing 14-day quarantine in hotel room.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said Certificate of Entry (CoE) application for “Samui Plus” is scheduled to open this week.
TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said it is estimated at least 1,000 foreign travellers will arrive and generate about 100 million baht during the first 30 days since its reopening.
He expects fewer visitors under “Samui Plus” as this approach comes with more restrictions.
“The islands will attract a specific group of travellers who are already fans of Koh Samui, such as tourists seeking health and wellness experiences or those wanting to learn to dive,” he was quoted saying by National News Bureau of Thailand.
The “Samui Plus” initiative is awaiting approval from the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) .
Starting July 1, Thailand’s resort island, Phuket welcomed vaccinated foreign travellers under a pilot project to restart its tourism industry hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the first five days, a total of 32 inbound flights landed in Phuket International Airport from Europe, the Middle East and Asia, bringing in 1,896 travellers.
Thailand is planning for wider reopening to vaccinated visitors to help revive its battered tourism industry following the Covid-19 pandemic.
Following its strict entry requirement and quarantine measures last year, tourist arrivals in the kingdom plummeted to 6.7 million last year compared to nearly 40 million visitors in 2019.
On June 16, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan o-cha announced Thailand will reopen to fully vaccinated visitors within the next 120 days or by mid-October to revive its economy impacted severely by the Covid-19.
Under “Samui Plus” initiative, vaccinated foreign travellers from low and medium COVID-19 risk countries will skip the quarantine but must stay on the islands for 14 days before traveling to other provinces in the kingdom.
Foreign travellers must apply for CoE and purchase a medical insurance that coves treatment for COVID-19 up to the cost of US$100,000 as well as negative RT-PCR test within 72 hours before departure.
Besides that, a foreign traveller must be fully vaccinated with vaccine approved by Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health or the World Health Organisation (WHO) no less than 14 days before their travel date.
Also, all travellers must book and pay for accommodation at Safety and Health Administration (SHA) hotel.
For visitors arriving in Koh Samui, after testing negative for COVID-19 they must stay in their hotel room for the first three days, only allowed to leave the room for designated areas within the hotel.
On day four to seven, these visitors can travel within designated routes and on tour programmes on Koh Samui only, and on day eight to 14 they can travel within Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao.
The visitors, if tested negative again for COVID-19 on day 15, they can travel to other provinces in Thailand.
