Coronavirus: Thailand to allow tourists to extend stay; Japan increase in cases due to Bon holiday
- Foreigners from 18 territories coming to Thailand under the visa on arrival category will be allowed to stay for up to 30 days from October to March
- Japan posted more than 260,000 infections on Friday, reflecting increased movements by people during the country’s Bon summer holidays in mid-August
Thailand will permit an extended length of stay for foreign tourists between October and March in a bid to support its economic recovery as pressures from Covid-19 ease.
Foreigners from 18 territories coming to Thailand under the visa on arrival category will be allowed to double their length of stay for up to 30 days, Taweesilp Visanuyothin, a spokesman for Thailand’s main Covid-19 task force said on Friday. Those from more than 50 places that currently get 30 days will be able to stay for up to 45 days.
Thailand is hoping rising tourist arrivals will help boost its economic growth this year even though the pace is still expected to be the lowest in the Southeast Asia region. Between January 1 and August 17, the nation gained 176.3 billion baht (US$4.9 billion) in revenue from 3.78 million foreign arrivals. The number of tourists jumped 3,214 per cent from the same period last year.
“We are looking to extending their stay”, Taweesilp said. “This will help boost tourist spending, revive the economy and reduce impact from the pandemic”.
Earlier this month, a government spokesman said the nation expects to attract 10 million international tourists this year, compared with the 6.1 million forecast in April. The number of visitors is seen rising to 30 million people next year, still shy of the 40 million who travelled to the country in the year before Covid-19 spread.
Thailand will downgrade Covid-19 from a “dangerous” communicable disease to one that “needs monitoring” starting from September, a month earlier than scheduled.