Relaxing, not eliminating, quarantine rules will do nothing to boost foreign tourism, a Pattaya city councilman said.
Sinchai Wattanasartsathorn, a former president of the Pattaya Business & Tourism Association, said March 16 that the proposed “Area Hotel Quarantine” – also called “resort quarantine” – is a step in the right direction but won’t appeal to any foreign visitors.
AHQ allows those in quarantine to leave their hotel rooms and have the run of a resort if they pass a negative Covid-19 test after a third day of isolation. But they still cannot leave the hotel grounds for 14 days.
That simply won’t cut it, Sinchai said. Virtually no one will come to Thailand for a holiday if they continue to be forced to quarantine for 14 days. The only way to revive the industry is to eliminate quarantine requirements entirely, especially for tourists vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Sinchai also criticized the government’s slow rollout of Covid-19 vaccines, repeating the belief of tourism industry leaders that 70 percent of the Thai population needs to be vaccinated to reopen the country. To date, less than a million Thais have been vaccinated.
The councilman said tourism companies are willing to buy their supplies of vaccines imported from overseas, but they need government assistance.
