Thailand Ministry of Health reports 14,053 new COVID-19 cases and an additional 129 deaths since yesterday. The ministry also announced an additional 16,782 patients recovered from the COVID-19 virus.
Many tourists still prefer Thailand’s regional counterparts for vacations such as Vietnam due to the less complicated process. Most of them do not favor the Thailand Pass requirement which became very confusing and expensive. They also mentioned that the process is hard to navigate.
An assistant spokeswoman for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), Dr Sumanee Wacharasint, the government will vow to make the process smoother.
“The procedure involves checking vaccination certificates, proof of hotel bookings, insurance documents, and documents for booking RT-PCR tests upon arrival,” said Dr. Sumanee said.
Beginning May 1, the Test and Go program has been canceled. Meaning tourists no longer need to book the expensive RT-PCR packages to enter the country. It is now been replaced by an ATK test upon arrival for fully vaccinated passengers. This has become a problem for hotels that have had bookings since April since they would now need to refund the customers.
The option for ATK testing is only available for fully vaccinated people. “Therefore, Thailand Pass registration has remained in place, and there should be no problems from May 1. But the CCSA will monitor the situation regularly. If the situation improves, a further easing of entry rules is expected to follow,” she said.
From May 1, fully vaccinated visitors will not be tested for Covid-19 upon arrival. They will be urged to self-test with antigen kits during their stay. Vaccinated travelers must register for entry via Thailand Pass and present proof of vaccination. If they test positive, they can enter their Covid-19 insurance process or take care of their own treatment.