As a result of the pandemic, Thailand's tourism sector is in ruins,
and officials are scrambling to reopen the country to international tourists.
The pandemic's early waves ravaged several countries.
Still, Thailand managed to escape largely unscathed last year
by closing its borders. Therefore, the country's tourism economy collapsed.
Only over 70,000 foreign tourists entered the nation in the first eight months of this year,
compared to nearly 40 million in the entire year of 2019.
During the same time, tourists spent an average of $1,520 dollars each visit,
making it one of the world's most profitable tourist attractions with a $60 billion income.
According to World Bank figures, the tourism industry contributed $100 billion to GDP in 2018,
accounting for one-fifth of overall activity.
Thailand now looks ill-equipped to survive without tourism
COVID-19 has had a particularly negative impact on the hotel industry, with both big and small
hotels around the nation reporting declining business due to a shortage of travellers
52% of hotel operators are considering temporarily closing their doors
in comparison, 9% want to close permanently,
according to recent research by the bank of Thailand and the Thai Hotels Association
in mid-June Thailand's prime minister surprised everyone by promising that the
country would be accessible to international tourists once again before the end of the year
in October, he said the time had come to take that calculated risk
at the time few people took him seriously
since April of last year,
Thailand has enforced quarantine and mountains of paperwork at its borders
however, by June of this year, infection rates had risen significantly
and the government had been criticized for being too slow to start vaccination
to open in October felt like an impossibility
in any case, the great reopening appears to have begun albeit in minimal steps as he promised
libraries and museums will be able to reopen when the curfew is set to 10 pm
travel between provinces, including air travel, has been allowed to resume
the option of getting massages and going to the spa are available
but it is still mandatory to wear a face mask in public
whether indoors or outside and frequent temperature checks are the norm
those who refuse to wear masks face a monetary penalty
due to the curfew at 10 p.m, Thailand's famous nightlife
has been shut down since early April 2021 and no alcohol is allowed in restaurants
on the tourist island of Phuket, this regulation is slowly being relaxed
visitors will find empty beaches and drastically cheap accommodation options
even though international tourism has resumed since this summer in the southern island,
Phuket continues to struggle
the beaches are almost deserted and the majority of businesses are closed
during the first two months of the sandbox program, Phuket had just over 26 000 tourists
well short of the government's objective of 100 000 visitors by the end of September
even if actual numbers are fewer than projected, a trickle of visitors may ultimately become a stream
over in Chiang Mai, Thailand's northernmost province, thousands of people lost their
employment and made travel-related companies closed as a result of COVID-19
while this is happening, resort towns close to
Bangkok are cashing in on the resident's desire to vacation
this includes Hua Hin, a beach resort town southwest of the capital
various requirements for new COVID-19 tests while travelling to different provinces make
trips to other parts of Thailand excessively expensive, but now restrictions are mostly relaxed
there are signs of acute economic suffering throughout Thailand,
including empty businesses, enormous lines for food handouts
and furious unemployed young men who have joined the anti-government protest movement
showing up every weekend to engage in street battles with police in Bangkok
this is what compelled an unpopular government to take action
even so, the much-anticipated reopening without quarantine
plan for this November marks the beginning of something bigger
despite their progress, they still have a way to go
international tourists who have received their full vaccination
will now only be quarantined for seven days rather than 14-days
unvaccinated international tourists require 10 days
in November a few more easing are expected; most noteworthy is the no quarantine for fully
vaccinated tourists but for that to happen 70% of the adult population needs to be fully vaccinated
it's still a long way short of its declared goal despite
considerably increasing its orders of vaccinations
nevertheless, this is good news for the businesses but it won't bring visitors back in droves
at the end of September, just about a fifth of Thais had received two doses
those who received the inferior Sinovac vaccination now had to obtain booster shots
the newest COVID wave peaked in July and August,
when all of Bangkok's intensive care unit beds were taken
causing families of critically sick patients to scramble across the nation to find room elsewhere
nobody wants to witness a recurrence of such a traumatic event
however, because of the well-documented infectiousness of the delta variant
many medical experts feel that even vaccinating 70%
of the population is insufficient before Thailand can completely open its doors to foreign visitors
on the other side, the tourism authority expects
1.2 million foreign tourists to visit Thailand this year
while things have begun to look up for some,
it will be a long time before Thailand sees a significant increase in tourists
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