When there are no tourists and group events are banned, there’s not much hope for Pattaya travel agents.
Vikrom Malhotra, a tour operator mainly serving the Indian, Asian and European markets, has been devastated by the Covid-19 pandemic. But fresh outbreaks in India and Thailand this spring have inflicted even more damage.
India is being hit by a new wave of cases driven by a coronavirus “double variant” that, on April 21, saw the country report more than 300,000 cases in a day, the most any country totaled in 24 hours during the entire global pandemic.
Thailand, meanwhile, is struggling to get on top of a British variant-driven third wave that has shut down entertainment businesses and forced the closure of any place or event where 50 people might meet up.
For Vikrom, who looked to domestic tours and events as a way to offset foreign revenue, it’s been a double whammy. Instead, he has turned to selling baked pork, fried chicken and French fries at various events.
