Skift Take
It’s not an unexpected move for a location with one of the longest pandemic shutdowns. Travel just keeps getting more pricey.
Lebawit Lily Girma
Thailand is preparing to collect a 300 baht ($9) cost from foreign tourist from April to establish attractions and cover mishap insurance coverage for foreigners unable to pay costs themselves, senior officials stated on Wednesday.
Thailand, one of Asia’s most popular travel locations, has actually been severely struck by a pandemic-induced tourist downturn, with about 200,000 arrivals in 2015, compared to nearly 40 million in 2019.
Current efforts to revive the sector have been made complex by the fast international spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.
“Part of the cost will be used to take care of tourists,” Tourist Authority of Thailand guv Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters.
“We’ve experienced times when insurance didn’t have coverage for tourists … which became our concern to look after them,” he stated, including that funds would likewise be used to upgrade tourist infrastructure.
The charge contributes to a list of requirements for foreign travelers seeking entry to Thailand, that include pre-payment for COVID-19 tests, hotel accommodation or quarantine, and having insurance coverage with COVID-19 treatment protection of a minimum of $50,000.
Thailand waived its strict quarantine steps in November in location of a “Test & Go” scheme for immunized visitors, but suspended that late last month over concerns about the spread of the Omicron variant.
The new charge will be priced in with airline tickets and is part of the government’s sustainable tourism plans, federal government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said.
Thailand expects between 5 and 15 million foreign arrivals this year, depending upon policies in place in its primary tourist markets, Thanakorn stated.
Foreign travelers are expected to generate 800 billion Thai baht ($23.97 billion) this year, he said.
Thailand’s leading company group on Wednesday anticipated foreign tourist arrivals for the year to be 5 to 6 million arrivals. ($1 = 33.3700 baht)
(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat; Composing by Chayut Setboonsarng; Modifying by Martin Petty)
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