Thailand plans to collect fee from foreign tourists from April
January 12, 2022, 5:16 pm

Thailand plans to collect fee from foreign tourists from April

Thailand-Buddha statue/Pixabay

The Arab News reported according to Reuters that senior Thai officials said on Wednesday, Thailand is planning to collect a 300 baht ($9) fee from foreign tourist from April to develop attractions and cover accident insurance for foreigners unable to pay costs themselves.

Thailand, one of Asia’s most popular travel destinations, has been badly hit by a pandemic-induced tourism slump, with about 200,000 arrivals last year, compared to nearly 40 million in 2019.

Recent efforts to revive the sector have been complicated by the rapid global spread of the omicron variant of COVID-19.

Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters: “Part of the fee will be used to take care of tourists."

Thailand-Grand palace in Bangkok/Pixabay

“We’ve encountered times when insurance didn’t have coverage for tourists ... which became our burden to take care of them,” he said, adding that funds would also be used to upgrade tourism infrastructure.

The fee adds to a list of requirements for foreign tourists seeking entry to Thailand, which include pre-payment for COVID-19 tests, hotel accommodation or quarantine, and having insurance with COVID-19 treatment coverage of at least $50,000.

Thailand has enough hospital space amid new COVID-19 wave: Health authorities

Thailand waived its strict quarantine measures in November in place of a “Test & Go” scheme for vaccinated visitors, but suspended that late last month over concerns about the spread of the omicron variant.

overnment spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said, the new fee will be priced in with airline tickets and is part of the government’s sustainable tourism plans.

Thanakorn said, Thailand expects between 5 and 15 million foreign arrivals this year, depending on policies in place in its main tourism markets.

Proposal to rewrite Thailand’s military-backed constitution fails

He said that foreign tourists are expected to generate 800 billion Thai baht ($23.97 billion) this year.

Thailand’s leading business group on Wednesday forecast foreign tourist arrivals for the year to be 5 to 6 million arrivals. ($1 = 33.3700 baht).

Source: arabnews

Prince Andrew to face civil case over sex assault allegations Iran frees British Council employee Aras Amiri accused of spying

Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.