Thailand hopes vaccinated Chinese tourists will return to Phuket during partial reopening from July 1
- Phuket’s plan to waive quarantine for inoculated visitors is part of a gradual reopening of borders by Thailand, where tourism contributed to about one-fifth of pre-pandemic economy
- Coronavirus has devastated Thailand’s economy. Last year, there were only 6.7 million foreign tourists, down from nearly 40 million in 2019, who spent more than US$61 billion
The holidaymakers may generate about 105 billion baht (US$3.4 billion) in revenue in the second half of the year, according to Vichit Prakobgosol, vice-president of the Tourism Council of Thailand. It will be the first time in more than a year the island allows visitors without the mandatory two-week quarantine.
China, Russia, the UK, Germany, France, Sweden and the US are likely to be the key origins for tourists to Phuket, Vichit said. The Chinese, who were the biggest group of tourists to Thailand before the pandemic, are expected to return in July on chartered flights, while visitors from Europe will likely start arriving during the winter months.
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“It’s good that the majority of countries with high numbers of vaccinations are the main markets for Thai tourism,” Vichit said on Monday. “The focus for the government should now be to finalise agreements and vaccine passports with various countries to allow visitors to return without having to quarantine.”