babyg_wc

Put simply people cant be trusted - tests can be fudged/made up, there is no global standard that all countries are following... Countries like NZ, Aus are returning to normal (within their own borders) - and they like thailand are making it hard for every man and his dog to get in.... I agree that at small scale (ive just travelled to Seychelles from the UK) it can work... but i doubt similar scheme will work on a large scale. Cases spiralling = people die.... i think some countries prefer to keep people alive and then revive the economy later.. you cant do the reverse.

PS Caribbean is tiny... like the Seychelles - so pre/during tests may work..... Thailand not so much

champair79

Essentially this is why they’ve banned all non-essential travel into the country and introduced state quarantine for everyone. They know people (Thais or Tourists, it makes no difference) are unlikely to follow the rules. You only have to look at the UK’s lax attitude to quarantine. Assuming the COVID figures are correct, you have to admit they’ve done a pretty good job of stopping it’s spread although the restrictions seem very heavy-handed.

How the country re-opens is open to debate. Even with the much reduced footfall into the country, people are still testing positive in state quarantine albeit at very low levels. The current military government recognise that tourism is integral to how the country functions but they want to use this as an opportunity to re-market Thailand. The salient points I’ve picked up from reading publications and my own experiences are (in no particular order):

-Farangs - the current government generally dislikes ‘farangs’ and only tolerated them before the pandemic because of the money they brought into the country.
-China - is heavily invested in Thailand. There are a lot of Thais with Chinese ancestry as well including influential ‘hi-so’ people (high society) so they want to strengthen this partnership. Essentially they want to ‘out’ the western backpackers and encourage the Chinese to spend and invest in Thailand.
-Pollution. Cleaning up beaches and tourist areas and promoting sustainable tourism is a key aim of the government (whether that will happen or not is another question!).
-Healthcare. Thailand (more specifically Bangkok) has some world class hospitals and is marketed a lot for medical tourism. I think there is the recognition though that the critical care capacity of these hospitals is limited and they would be quickly overwhelmed if there was a big outbreak of COVID in Bangkok. Medical care out in the sticks is much, much poorer.
-Lack of testing. Just because hardly any cases have been reported means nothing if the government is only conducting low-level testing of the general population.
-Public opinion - believe it or not, the general Thai population (possibly with the exception of those working in tourism) broadly support the government’s stance on restricting foreign travellers coming into the country. You’d have to be a very brave minister to reverse the restrictions and risk your (already damaged...) reputation.

There is a political storm simmering below the surface which occasionally ignites and may lead to military action, coups or removal of the current military junta. The longer this goes on, the more likely I think it is to happen. That could lead to a change in direction but it may take a year or two before anything happens.

I hope I haven’t offended anyone with my musings above. I’ll prefix everything I’ve said with “this is all my personal opinion” but those of you familiar with Thailand and Thai politics will probably see where I’m coming from.

champ

Confus

Agree with everything above. If you have a big country with (traditionally) large flows of foreigners in and out through multiple borders, a largely poor population with underfunded and limited healthcare facilities, and civil unrest brewing from an increasingly disillusioned populace, allowing open access for tourists is a recipe for disaster. Particularly if those tourists often come from countries which don’t really follow restrictions at home either (e.g. the UK). They have enough domestic and export industry that they can cope ‘closed’ for a while, albeit at a stretch, and if they can use the time to reposition themselves in the meantime, so much the better. They’re more sensible than a lot of people give them credit for.

SKT-DK

I think you highlight a lot of valid points throughout your post, and I agree with your perspective (and do not see how it could offend anyone )
One thing I may add to the farang point, I think it is not a general dislike of "us" foreigners throughout the government, but rather among a select few ministers. I support the point of keeping the "less desirable tourists", but what they are doing is treating every foreigner the same as the ones they do not want - even those of us who hold work permits, live and pay tax in the country.

babyg_wc

As you predicted the flights to BKK in Jan are now cancelled :-(
Anybody know if BA have changed their stance on re-routing on QATAR?

simonsmith

Just received notification of our BKK flights cancelled April 30th back May 9th
part of a trip to Bhutan
I will leave well alone at the moment

HarryKUK

My ticket Bangkok to London in WT+ on 26 June has just been cancelled. Can’t change to any other date a week either side. I don’t want a refund, I got it in the 50% off Avios sale!! Was an absolute steal. Such a shame.

jm419

hi, Longtime lurker.
My flight in August (BA9 10th August 2021) just cancelled.
Quite a problem as i had 9 family members on avios on this flight.
(en route to Vietnam where this years holiday cancellation has resulted in large amounts of internal flight/hotel vouchers with a 1 year expiry)
and the gold/non gold lines are not taking calls
Anyone got any insight?

KARFA

BA have allowed rerouting on to QR for a while for BKK. At various stages this has been extended to cover new travel dates. Currently it covers ticketed travel dates up to 27 March and you can move to any new travel date up to 27 March. Redemptions are not covered.

babyg_wc

why cant you change? what is stopping you?

babyg_wc

ah its a redemption... guess the only way is to book with somebody else and do the claim back afterwards... have spent alot of money on visa/quarantine hotels etc... so have to fly...

SK AAR

Claim back? Nobody is going to reimburse you for a cancellation of a Aug 2021 flight. Take the refund, rebook elsewhere and move on.

Besides, you are quite optimistic that you will be allowed to enter VN by summer. Maybe; maybe not.

babyg_wc

youve mixed up my dates (jan 10) with another persons..
rebook somewhere else? - thanks for you input... but you shouldn't assume that everybody is travelling just for the fun of it....

HarryKUK

Just says no seats available on any date I pick. I assume the route has been pulled? I can reroute via Hong Kong but not doing that yet in case HKG is closed to transit in June 2021. Will keep the ticket live for now and decide what to do later. It’s an Avios ticket so have the option to refund the Avios anyway.

babyg_wc

Just got off the phone, ba have rebooked me on QATAR (BA codeshare, but definitely Qatar)... yay result..