TheThaiger has a video editorial analyzing the "vaccine passport" proposal from the Thai government...

 

I was hoping to return in November 2021...but not sure of anything now.

I, as most of you know, an already in Thailand as a long term expat resident.  From where I sit, the only certainty is uncertainty.  Every time I turn around, the rules change and/or the requirements for entering Thailand change.

I suppose we all can try to guess when farang can go to Thailand again, for all the good that will do, but I believe it all depends on how well Thailand is able to bring Covid under control and how well, vaccine or no vaccine, other countries bring Covid under control.

The next question - even if Thailand were to open for tourists tomorrow, you would be coming to what?  The bars are all closed.  You already can see most of the available boys on the apps - the rest of them have long since returned to their home provinces and obviously are not going back to Bangkok, Pattaya, or anywhere else to work in the bars if the bars are closed.  Another factor the boys have to consider - if the bars reopen, how long will they stay open before yet another shutdown.  And how many customers will there be to take them off?

You can't drink in bars right now because they're all closed.  In restaurants, the ones still open, you can't enjoy a glass of wine with your meal.  Just about everything now closes at 9:00pm.  Social distancing, wearing face masks, and use of apps such as Thai Chana are all requirements - and if you know what's good for you, you better comply.

Many hotels are closed.  Even if you make a booking for a hotel, can you be certain it will still be open when you arrive?  And they too have their own social distancing rules.  And their swimming pools are now closed.

For the time being, there are also many rules and regulations if you intend to travel from one province to another, and they all have their own rules. 

As a long term resident I still am very happy I am in Thailand, but my life, for one, is vastly different from being in Thailand as a tourist.  My life is well established.  I have no need for most of what farang tourists come to Thailand for.

I am sorry for coming across so pessimistically, but this is how I am seeing things appearing to be.

14 hours ago, pong2 said:

 

BTW-had some trouble with expired mail adresses etc and my subscription, I am just the old pong, but that forum name was thus taken.

welcome back

13 minutes ago, Gaybutton said:

I am sorry for coming across so pessimistically, but this is how I am seeing things appearing to be.

I dont feel your comments is pessimistic but rather realistic. But for most here, situation at our country are not much diff either. The major diff is the boys that we like might be there if we were in thailand lol. The several boys i know at least still surviving, and the few massage shops line acc i follow shows a great selection still. In fact, some shops selection are even better than i saw when thailand is open. Maybe due to covid, more new faces are entering the scene. 

In the end, all it comes down to me is whether ill have to quarantine in hotel or not is what determines my prospect of going to thailand. Of course, my own country also need to let their citizen to travel overseas freely first. 

2 hours ago, Gaybutton said:

am sorry for coming across so pessimistically, but this is how I am seeing things appearing to be.

Unfortunately it's the true, From the poll results here I see more then half of the forum members considered returning to Thailand till the end of this year it is an unrealistic wish most likely 2021 is another lost year for the int'l tourism and even if Thailand will open its borders it will take long time for the entertainment industry to recover closed bars and deserted beaches is not exactly appealing to potential visitors.we will have to wait and see what will happen in 2022.

10 hours ago, Gaybutton said:

Many hotels are closed.  Even if you make a booking for a hotel, can you be certain it will still be open when you arrive?  And they too have their own social distancing rules.  And their swimming pools are now closed.

For the time being, there are also many rules and regulations if you intend to travel from one province to another, and they all have their own rules. 

As a long term resident I still am very happy I am in Thailand, but my life, for one, is vastly different from being in Thailand as a tourist.  My life is well established.  I have no need for most of what farang tourists come to Thailand for.

I am sorry for coming across so pessimistically, but this is how I am seeing things appearing to be.

Hotels:  When I was in Thailand, the governor of Chonburi ordered all hotels to close, so they could get government support to pay the staff.   In Pattaya, I was renting an apartment, in a block that will let for just one day if you want.  Rather like a hotel.   They stayed open throughout.   Also, any hotel with existing guests could apply to stay open.     When I moved to Bangkok, there were loads of nice hotel options, with prices discounted down to about 500 baht. All the visitor needs is one good hotel & I don't expect it would be a problem.  My experience was that getting a good hotel was easier.  

I've seen quite a few expats pass comment on what's available for tourists & say it's not worth a visit, whilst still living there themselves.  

Well not all tourists need to visit gogo bars 7 days a week.    Whilst it's nice to have the option, if I'm on an extended holiday, I can get by with less frequent visits to such places and perhaps more frequent use of Grindr.   I can also enjoy the good weather, the beach, the food and so on.    

In fact during my winter stay, there were 3 key advantages over the UK:

(i) Better weather (same every winter)

(ii) More places open & fewer restrictions

(iii) Much better selection of boys 

 

Of course (ii) is slowly reversing, but if I look ahead to next winter, I expect things will change for the better in Thailand.  

I don't expect to see the 9 pre-covid gay gogo bars re-open in Pattaya, but I do think Thailand will be one of the better places to spend a winter holiday.  

 

When do I expect to visit Thailand again? Next November provided:

1. The Thai entry requirements are the same, or easier, than last year. I stay for 3 months so the quarantine is acceptable.

2. The lockdown is over. I would not book to go if bars are closed and everything is closing at 9 pm, or there is a curfew. That said it means booking at the latest possible time and taking the risk that there is not another outbreak whilst in quarantine.

I was hopeful earlier this year. Now not so. My little hope is that when everyone is vaccinated we can really really go again in October. The coming months nearly everyone in the world will have the vaccin. 

For me the only positive thing out of all this is that I have never saved so much money in my live. Normally I spend so much on my three travels a year. I save it all now. 

I wish that were true. It's going to take a year or more for people to get the vaccine in much of the world. Look at how difficult Thailand is finding it to get the vaccine and get it distributed. Even Japan has only vaccinated 1% of their population. Australia struggling to get the vaccine out. Mainland Europe not doing great at this point either

On 4/22/2021 at 12:30 AM, Boy69 said:

closed bars and deserted beaches is not exactly appealing to potential visitors

I agree with you about bars part  but deserted beach can have  a lot of appeal to visitors

15 hours ago, abidismaili said:

 Normally I spend so much on my three travels a year. I save it all now. 

you are not alone, rest assured

 

To be blunt, I don't care..... were it safe and the hotels open, I'd be on my way there now. 

17 minutes ago, Londoner said:

To be blunt, I don't care..... were it safe and the hotels open, I'd be on my way there now. 

Safety:   Thailand still has a lower number of daily cases than the UK and if you also happen to have had at least one vaccine jab, I would personally not consider safety to be an issue.

Hotels:   Has Thailand actually closed hotels  ?       They seem to advertise them for availability now.

 

Pattaya hotels have been ordered to close by the Governor. For weeks I've been trying to sus-out the Agate situation. This what the management told me a fortnight ago.

Back in February, Pattaya hotels were ordered to close by the Governor, purely so that the government would pay the wages of staff.

However, rental apartments such as Mosaik were totally outside the scope of this & remained open.

Also, hotels could apply for exemption.   My stay in Pattaya carried on as normal. 

Then, up the road in Bangkok, there were plenty of hotels open.    Not all hotels, but those that were had some very attractive discounts.  It was easier to find a nice hotel than normal.

So this was no barrier to a visit to either Pattaya or Bangkok, unless of course the traveler is only prepared to entertain the idea of staying in a specific hotel.

I can't comment on the current situation.  

However, for anyone really thinking of travelling to Thailand, invest a little time checking the situation out.  Also, don't be put off by gloomy expats warning you off saying all the hotels are closed and so on.   What they really mean is many hotels are closed, which is very different.  As long as some nice hotels or apartments are open, this is no barrier.