Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Thailand is Cambodia's neighbor to the West, and this forum is dedicated to Thai news, stories, reviews, blogs, videos, Thai people and anything else related to the country. A lot of expats have both lived and worked in Cambodia and Thailand, and this area is a place to discuss all aspects of life in Thailand and what's going on there. Most topics are about Bangkok and Pattaya because of their larger populations of expatriates and tourists in those cities, but this is for all things Thai.
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ExPenhMan
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by ExPenhMan »

I'll be part of the first wave, arriving Nov. 5, based on the Certificate of Entry old format. Actually, the Thailand Pass is the same arduous process, requiring all the same documents. The TP bonus is a QR code that is supposed to absolve you from having to print out everything to show officials on arrival. Yeah, right.

The embassy vetted all my documents for the COE, which I received yesterday after beginning the process 8 days before, yet I still have to show them all on arrival. What a farce. COE was a 3-stage process: check that you have the appropriate visa/re-entry permit; passport page photos; proof of insurance. Then your COE is pre-approved and you can then access the COE to add more documents in Stage 2: airline ticket, vaccine record, and paid hotel booking.

Stage 3 is the COE approval. But you have to sign off on the health statement (the so-called T8) and get the PCR test result at departure origin. Both of which you need to copy and add to the pile. Don't have to upload. What a circus!

Each one of these items is not something you just pick up with ease, as a friend and I found out. Days (about 10) of unanswered emails and phone calls (I'm talking about you, embassy) to get each one of these things sorted and paid for. Then there's a half hour of self-copying at an office supplies store, multiple sets, because the two airlines will want some of these same things. Yes, separate sets for each (just in case) due to separate needs and no time spent by airline officers checking over digital proofs.

The only good thing is that we were lucky to get a short total trip time, Toronto via Zurich to Bangkok, 21 hours in 6-7 hour hops and only a 2 hour layover in Zurich, arriving at 05:50 in Bangkok. Cheap return airfare too (CA$1221/about US$900) And then it's another nose picking PCR test upon arrival.

Throw in the constantly changing playing field due to moronic Thai authorities, well, never again. If you're double vaccinated, that should be enough.
Last edited by ExPenhMan on Tue Nov 02, 2021 7:10 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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CEOCambodiaNews
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

Thailand reopening: There are no foreigners and no foreign flights at all - at least in the north
Posted yesterday at 02:03 AM
The chief of Thailand's northern hoteliers' association was forced to admit on Sunday that there were no foreign bookings at their hotels.

Today - Monday November 1st - was hailed as D-Day for Thailand's grand reopening as advertised by the government of Prayuth Chan-ocha and his optimistic tourism authorities.

But it looks like the dampest of damp squibs at least in terms of expectations in the north.

La-iat Bungsrithong told Thai PBS that there were 100 SHA and SHA+ hotels who had bought into the reopening plans in Chiang Mai.

But they had no foreign bookings.

Right now the city of Chiang Mai would have to make do with domestic tourists on government stimulus packages, she lamented.

News from the airport in the northern Thai capital was just as grim.

There was not a single foreign origin flight due today, tomorrow, the next day or the next.

They just hoped that Jeju Air would fly in from Incheon on Friday.

Other airlines have expressed an interest but they have made no firm commitments.

Again, domestic flights between 70-102 a day will have to take up the slack from the missing foreigners.

Earlier Prayuth attempted to woo nationals from an enlarged quota of 63 "safe" nations.

But so far - if the north is anything to go by - his goals of filling up Thailand with foreigners champing at the bit to visit the kingdom look to have been optimistic.

-- © Copyright ASEAN NOW 2021-11-01
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yong
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by yong »

yong wrote: Tue Nov 02, 2021 6:52 am Last week I was applying the Certificate of Entry for the wife who is supposed to get in on 1st Nov. I was using this website to apply https://coethailand.mfa.go.th knowing very well it will be changed to the new platform Thailand Pass on 1st Nov with website here https://tp.consular.go.th/

Anyway I was unsuccessful with the COE so told wife to come back on 6th Nov while I try the new platform on 1st Nov

So yesterday I tried but always after spending 10 minutes inputting all information at the very last minute it kept showing this error message.

Image

I tried more than 10 times and also with my mobile phone, a complete waste of time. Check with my travel agent she told me there're lots of comments and complains in the social network about this too so I was at least relieved its not my fault.

This mornming at 6am I decided to try again and bingo this time it was good

Image

Now is just the waiting
Just an update after yesterday's application of the ThaiPass got a reply in the evening as follows

Image

So because of this wife's coming back date had been shifted once again: from 22th/Oct to 1st/Nov to 6th/Nov and now to 12/Nov
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by CEOCambodiaNews »

Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Thailand.

7,982 new Covid cases, 68 more deaths
published : 4 Nov 2021 at 14:15
writer: Online Reporters
There were 7,982 new Covid-19 cases and 68 more fatalities recorded during the previous 24 hours, the Public Health Ministry reported on Thursday morning.

There were 7,838 cases in the general population and 144 among prison inmates.

The number of new cases rose from 7,679 announced on Wednesday, when the country recorded 56 more deaths.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... ore-deaths
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jaynewcastle
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by jaynewcastle »

Compared to the UK, 35000-50000 infections a day & 150-300 deaths a day the last few months, Thailand seems quite safe in comparison
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phuketrichard
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by phuketrichard »

interesting> lets see if they can get it up to 10,000/day this month
and 20,000 in dec;
Image



not sure that means that caught it in THailand or tested positive on arrival
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
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ExPenhMan
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by ExPenhMan »

I flew through Zurich yesterday (Nov. 5) on the way to Bangkok. Saw an inordinate number of couples, Euro/Thai and Thai/Thai -- some with babies -- about to board the BKK-bound Swiss Air jet. As well, saw a number of single Thai girls travelling with their "sisters."

Only 10.5 hours to Bangkok, which really appealed to my need to cut down hours in the air. Normally for me, out of Canada, it's 14 to 15+ hours for one leg to Taipei, Seoul or Hong Kong.

FYI travellers to Thailand: Arrived at 0600. Whisked through doc check (had COE) as they had a lot of checkers. Think we were the only plane at that time. No lineup at Immigration. The greatest chaos was outside the luggage area, where the hotel wranglers tried to find their guests and guide them to their pre-hired, PPE-equipped drivers.

I only did one night at the AQ hotel waiting for the PCR test result, which came about 12 hours later. So I checked out immediately and went to my nearby apartment in Phra Khanong. I felt that getting there very early helped my odds of getting the heck out of the hotel and home. Pre-paid, of course, but didn't care, despite being given some 4-5 meals for my 12 hour-ish stay.
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phuketrichard
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by phuketrichard »

something to think about if ur thinking of traveling to thailand:

The Nightmare of Testing Positive on Arrival in Thailand

https://www.getrevue.co/profile/richard ... and-848695
In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: not necessarily to win, but mainly to keep from losing completely. HST
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yong
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by yong »

Just an update about ThaiPass.

In my first application for the wife on 1st November the system was overwhelmed I guess as I was unable to submit.

Only on 2nd November I was successful. The approval came in on 5th November for her 6th travelling however because we panicked on the 4th evening not receiving it so travelling date was changed to 12th.

We the new travelling date I applied again on the 6th (Saturday) afternoon and next day 7th (Sunday) morning got the approval. I wish to report and update this just so everyone knows the system is somewhat very efficient now with next day approval.

Happy travel
WillieW
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Re: Thailand Travel Restrictions and Info

Post by WillieW »

jaynewcastle wrote: Fri Nov 05, 2021 2:39 am Compared to the UK, 35000-50000 infections a day & 150-300 deaths a day the last few months, Thailand seems quite safe in comparison
these numbers don't really mean anything. A lot depends on how much testing is done
Be your own toy.
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