Ukraine sanctions trap thousands of Russians in Thailand, unable to find flights or pay for things

Cancelled flights, credit cards that no longer work, a currency in free fall – over 7,000 Russians are said to be caught in Thailand, as are some Ukrainians

‘We have to be good hosts,’ Thai tourism chief says. Hotels have been asked to lower prices and businesses may be asked to accept payment in cryptocurrency

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Russian tourists on a beach in Phuket this week. Thousands of their compatriots are stuck in Thailand, unable to find flights or pay for things because of Western sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. Photo: Reuters

Published: 1:45pm, 9 Mar 2022Updated: 4:54pm, 11 Mar 2022

Thousands of tourists from Russia have been left stranded in Thailand as a consequence of Western countries’ sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine.

Flight cancellations, a rouble currency in free fall and payment problems arising from Russian banks being cut off from the global Swift system have left more than 7,000 Russians in limbo in places such as Phuket, Koh Samui, Pattaya and Krabi, Thailand’s tourism authority chief said on Tuesday.

“We have to be good hosts and take care of everybody,” Yuthasak Supasorn said. “There are still Russian tourists on their way here.”

Russia’s embassy in Bangkok did not immediately respond to request for comment on its citizens.

A tour agency in Phuket, Thailand, that caters to Russian visitors. Some 1.4 million Russians travelled to Thailand in 2019. Photo: Shutterstock

In 2019, Thailand received 1.4 million Russian visitors. In January, it counted about 23,000 Russians, representing about a fifth of the total arrivals.

About half of those stranded are on the island of Phuket.

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