Vaccine a help but no panaceaFor a couple of weeks prior to the flop that will be this year's Songkran holiday, the stage truly looked set for the triumphant return of domestic tourism after the Covid-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on travel plans all over Thailand. Then a third wave of coronavirus poured cold water on all the excitement, just as it was about to heat up. Stimulus cheques were disbursed to kick-start the economy's recovery, travel subsidies were approved, and plans were drafted to restart tourism on a bigger scale. At least five other provinces are planning to scrap quarantine requirements for inoculated foreign arrivals, starting on Oct 1. Public cooperation will be needed to prove that the island's tourism model is replicable elsewhere, which will bode well for the country's effort to reopen to foreign tourists.

Source: Bangkok Post April 10, 2021 23:37 UTC