Nations all over the world are preparing to open their countries to tourists in a bid to get their economy kick-started again after global travel has essentially ground to a halt.
The number of Covid-19 cases in Europe is reportedly dropping, and Italy and Spain are amongst the numerous European countries slowly reopening their borders as they balance the containment of the virus.
On the other side of the world, travel is still pretty much restricted here in Southeast Asia; there are plans in Singapore to gradually reopen borders with countries in talks with each other as to how best to get travel going again with the necessary safeguards.
As of right now, Thailand is still closed off to international tourists, but the country is looking to relaunch tourism and the focus has been placed on their beautiful islands.
The Reopening Of Islands
Phase 1 of Thailand’s tourism relaunch is the reopening of their islands, many of which are solely dependent on tourism to flourish.
From Koh Samui to Phuket, the Thai islands are one of Southeast Asia’s most popular beach destinations and many of them are highly dependent on tourism as the number one key economic driver.
With the reopening of these islands, there will not be any quarantine imposed, but visitors will have to present health certificates, buy health insurance, as well as undergo what the Thai authorities deem as a “rapid Coronavirus test” upon arrival.
A Form Of “Self-Isolation”
There is a delicate balancing between the health of the economy and health of its people, leading to no small amount of risks when a country decides to reopen its borders.
While these islands needing a tourist revival no doubt factored heavily in their reopening, there is another core concept which many may not realise.
The simple answer is that the choice of reopening these islands first allows for a “controlled” reopening: this is what the Thai government deems as a “tourist corridor”, a buffer between the locals and international visitors.
In this case, the “corridor” takes the literal form of the sea.
Place all international visitors on the islands, and you kill two birds with one stone – the islands get the economic injection they need from tourism, and you minimise contact these tourists have with the general population living on mainland Thailand.
There is no news thus far on the exact dates of the reopening but looking at the developing trends around the world, it wouldn’t be too long now.
