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Koh Samui to allow quarantine-free travel from October
Southern Thailand tourist island Koh Samui plans to allow quarantine-free access to travellers if they have been vaccinated.
It will start quarantine-free access from 1 October, according to Ratchaporn Poolsawadee, president of the Tourism Association of Koh Samui.
The island has joined the tourism sandbox pilot scheme, which allows certain destinations to accept international visitors who have been vaccinated before the whole country reopens borders.
Phuket is also working on a similar ‘green zone’ scheme.
"The island’s economy and infrastructure were built around foreign tourism, and businesses here have been struggling without foreign visitors over the past year," Ratchaporn said.
"We need to reopen as soon as possible to be able to compete for visitors with other countries."
Koh Samui has its own international airport on the island which allows it to offer more safeguards against infections in the local community.
The start date of schemes in Koh Samui and Phuket will ultimately be determined by the number of local residents vaccinated by then, with a target set at 70% of the population.
It will also be conditional on the number of vaccinated front line tourism workers.
Thailand is hoping to reopen in full by the fourth quarter of 2021 possibly starting from April when the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration will start reducing the length of quarantine gradually in the coming months, subject to Covid-19 containment measures.
It also plans to start rolling out a ‘vaccine passport’ app for travellers which may happen by late summer.
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