Photographer: Lillian Suwanrumpha / AFP through Getty Images
Photographer: Lillian Suwanrumpha / AFP through Getty Images
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A popular Thai island for its beaches is drawing up plans to completely reopen vaccinated visitors by October to revive the destroyed tourism industry.
More than a dozen business groups, including the Phuket Chamber of Commerce and the Phuket Tourism Association, plan to raise funds to vaccinate 70 percent of the island’s population over the age of 18 without waiting for the government to launch. They bet it will be safe to open the region to foreign tourists once the local population gets immunity from the herd.
The plan, which will need government approval, also seeks to drop a mandatory 14-day quarantine requirement. major obstacle for many potential travelers. This will allow thousands of vaccinated Europeans who usually spend the winter months in Phuket to visit, according to Bhummikitti Ruktaengam, president of the tourism association.
the plan is the latest attempt to revive Thailand’s tourism-based economy. A previous initiative to reopen Phuket for international visitors has faced several delays before taking place in October, but the response was lukewarm, as few travelers wanted to be quarantined. A second wave of Covid-19 infections also came as another obstacle, prompting a new round of economic incentives to support companies and individuals.
Closed business
At least 931 registered companies in the Thai tourism sector closed in 2020
Sources: Department of Business Development, Bloomberg
“It simply came to our notice then. If we have to wait, we will not survive, ”said Bhummikitti, whose association represents about 300 members, including luxury resorts and five-star hotel operators. “If we miss this peak winter season, we should wait another year.”
Thailand was sold as a Covid Paradise refuge. Nobody came
According to the plan, called “Phuket First October”, the tourism industry will import vaccines through private companies and could obtain photos from Sinovac Biotech Ltd., the Chinese manufacturer whose vaccine is expected to be approved by the Thai regulator this month. The government’s launch of vaccines is expected to boost the herd’s immunity by 2022, according to health ministry officials.
A deserted Bangla road in Patong, Phuket, on December 19, 2020.
Photographer: Taylor Weidman / Bloomberg
With the expansion of the Thai tourism industry losses and hundreds of thousands of jobs in danger, William Heinecke, president of Minor International Pcl, which manages more than 500 hotels in 55 countries, last week urged Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-Ocha to prioritize tourism workers along with the front line and health employees for inoculation. The measure could facilitate quarantine-free travel for people with “vaccination passports,” Heinecke said in a letter to the prime minister.
Thai beaches will not reopen completely until vaccines are available
Phuket could be a pilot site for Thailand, and once successful, the model could be launched in other destinations, Heinecke said, citing the example of Seychelles, which last month announced quarantine waivers for vaccinated visitors.
“Phuket has always contributed to the Thai economy,” Bhummikitti said. “It simply came to our notice then up to takes control of the situation. We don’t have much money now, but we are giving one last push, hoping this will save us. ”