Test and Go Reinstated but this time for All Countries - Will you visit Thailand Now?

[wulfgar]

The CCSA agreed in their meeting today to reopen Test & Go. will you travel to Thailand now?

[article22]

Typical as I am just doing the 7 day quarantine now...

Good news for the tourists to come back. Hope they also allow bars to open properly as well.

[Saddic]

Be careful, looks like they are changing hotel and insurance requirements... aka reaching deeper into your wallets...

wait for publish in Royal Gazette...

[bazkashmir]

Hassle again,you not only have to book sha+ hotel for 1st day but have to book Sha+ hotel again on 5th day for another test.  If you had plans to visit the village after negative test 1st day it is going to be a headache again because than you have to go somewhere else  and book sha+hotel for 5th test, If you around a lot of people during day 1 and 5 it possible you might get covid and get tested postive on 5th day test than your holiday is fucked, another way of  making money from tourists,is it really worth it maybe for someone going over for 6 weeks+ but i dont think i would take the risk personally.  

[alecranb]

I think the only people that will come are who can stay for long period.
There still some issue for tourist 2/3 weeks holiday

- Thailand, for some Europe country, it's still in group E, means you cannot go for tourism and when come back home you need quarantine 10 days (also some travel insurance doesn't cover if happen somenthing, or at least they will try not cover)
- If someone on your flight is found positive, you will go in quarantine
- restriction about bars a nightlife
- thai government change idea every few days (in good or in bad way)
- If found positive before come back you cannot take return flight

for 3 weeks holiday, if everithing go good, you make 3 weeks holiday; but in the worst scenario 3 weeks become 2 weeks of quarantine when you arrive if someone positive near you, 1 week holiday with all the actual restriction, during this week become positive, quarantine 2 weeks again in hospitel or hospital, go back home and maybe other 10 days quarantine
So 3 weeks holiday, become 1 weeks holyday and 6 weeks quarantine,  I know is the worst scenario, but if you are unlukly.....

If I have 2/3 months holiday I will come, if I have 2/3 weeks holiday I will go somewhere else

[Thomaz73]

I voted no even though I live here. I'm still advising mates back home to keep the powder dry. Anything less than a month+. No thanks! Not good enough.

[fun125]

Sorry but did they mention anything about more sandbox options ? chon bro pattaya ? i would apply for the new test n go even with 2 per tests but its a bit tight to book as i,ve got a flight booked february 3 rd to bkk

[fun125]

sorry chon buri 

[Farangkie]

2 minutes ago, Thomaz73 said:

I voted no even though I live here. I'm still advising mates back home to keep the powder dry. Anything less than a month+. No thanks! Not good enough.

What Thomaz said, the consequences of testing positive when you get here will ruin your holiday, especially if coming for only 2 weeks.

And the nightlife is a watered down version of it's formal self, no matter what the You Tube bar owners tell you. When all the Go Go's and bars are allowed to open without restrictions, that will be an indication that things are getting back to normal.

[petermik]

3 hours ago, article22 said:

Typical as I am just doing the 7 day quarantine now...

Good news for the tourists to come back. Hope they also allow bars to open properly as well.

Give it a few weeks and they will flip flop again...........

[bigmac9899]

Has anyone experienced this situation. I’m not coming until July but if the same test and go scheme is still in place, how does it work if I am flying from the US with my thai wife and her son?  Do each of us have to book our own room separate and I have to pay for 3 rooms that first night and then again on the 5th night?  Based on prices I have seen previously that would be 6 nights of hotel rooms at 125-150 usd per night.  Or is there a less expensive option?

[Kahoy]

For me the show stopper is the manadatory hospital stay if I test positive. I don't care about 2 nights in a hotel, that's hardly an imposition. If I got to stay in the hotel if positive I still would be ok with that but hospital rates, I don't think so.

[petehoax]

1 hour ago, fun125 said:

Sorry but did they mention anything about more sandbox options ? chon bro pattaya ? i would apply for the new test n go even with 2 per tests but its a bit tight to book as i,ve got a flight booked february 3 rd to bkk

test & go is planned for chon buri (pattaya), yes. 
you specifically asked about sandbox and i haven't read anything about expanding sandbox, but there's really no downside to use test & go if you want to go to pattaya directly. 

21 minutes ago, bigmac9899 said:

Has anyone experienced this situation. I’m not coming until July but if the same test and go scheme is still in place, how does it work if I am flying from the US with my thai wife and her son?  Do each of us have to book our own room separate and I have to pay for 3 rooms that first night and then again on the 5th night?  Based on prices I have seen previously that would be 6 nights of hotel rooms at 125-150 usd per night.  Or is there a less expensive option?

you can stay together in 1 room, sure. 

be aware that you (of course) count as high risk contact if anyone of you ends up testing positive. then everyone else needs to do quarantine (but only 7 days now going forward as a high risk contact).

7 minutes ago, Kahoy said:

For me the show stopper is the manadatory hospital stay if I test positive. I don't care about 2 nights in a hotel, that's hardly an imposition. If I got to stay in the hotel if positive I still would be ok with that but hospital rates, I don't think so.

you will most likely be able to stay in a hospitel (=quarantine hotel) if you test positive and don't show major symptoms. 

about the money: that's why you have insurance. you won't have to pay for it anyway... so personally, i don't really care what it costs. 

[Pinoydave]

I still can’t see this being a game changer for Pattaya businesses…… same points as above, but then in a couple of months it goes into the too hot n humid…… better to wait until October and then maybe make a decision 

[Pinoydave]

1 minute ago, petehoax said:

 

about the money: that's why you have insurance. you won't have to pay for it anyway... so personally, i don't really care what it costs. 

I thought most only paid out if you actually test positive……. If your a close contact and told to isolate, you pay your own bills

[neilm1986]

Not sure how reliable this source is but the information seems comprehensive.

Mentions extending sandbox to Pattaya.

https://www.tatnews.org/2022/01/thailand-resumes-test-go-scheme-reopens-pattaya-and-ko-chang-sandbox-from-1-february-2022/

[petehoax]

7 minutes ago, Pinoydave said:

I thought most only paid out if you actually test positive……. If your a close contact and told to isolate, you pay your own bills

yes. the BM i quoted said "For me the show stopper is the manadatory hospital stay if I test positive."

most insurances will not pay out if you're classified (and ordered to quarantine) as close contact, that's correct 

but: the risk of getting classified as "close contact" does not really change with or without a day 5 test. if you sat next to a guy on your flight which tests positive on day 5, this has (to my understanding) 0 influence on you. 
close contact: the guy on your right or on your left OR in transport to test & go hotel tests positive on arrival. that's it. 

so that situation / risk is completely unrelated to the question if there's a day 5 test or not. 

at least that's my understanding, maybe i miss something. 

Edited January 20, 2022 by petehoax

[Kahoy]

10 minutes ago, petehoax said:

you will most likely be able to stay in a hospitel (=quarantine hotel) if you test positive and don't show major symptoms.

I read that if over 65 this wouldn't be an option regardless of symptoms. Can you confirm or deny this? It's really the only thing stopping me from going soon.

[petehoax]

Just now, Kahoy said:

I read that if over 65 this wouldn't be an option regardless of symptoms. Can you confirm or deny this? It's really the only thing stopping me from going soon.

sorry, i cannot. someone else posted more info about it, but i can't remember the specific criteria. afaik it's also quite dependant on the situation on the ground and on whoever "decides your fate". 

but again: what's the problem with a hospital stay? it's not really different to a hospitel stay... you're restricted to your room (normally), get kinda shitty food 3x a day and will get your temperature measured and a few other things... i don't see the big difference. and as i said: it's paid by insurance anyway (at least most likely, as long as you pay one that covers asymptomatic infection). yeah, a quarantine hotel is probably slightly more comfortable, but 14 days in a room are 14 days in a room. it sucks anyway. 

[Kahoy]

1 minute ago, petehoax said:

sorry, i cannot. someone else posted more info about it, but i can't remember the specific criteria. afaik it's also quite dependant on the situation on the ground and on whoever "decides your fate". 

but again: what's the problem with a hospital stay? it's not really different to a hospitel stay... you're restricted to your room (normally), get kinda shitty food 3x a day and will get your temperature measured and a few other things... i don't see the big difference. and as i said: it's paid by insurance anyway (at least most likely, as long as you pay one that covers asymptomatic infection). yeah, a quarantine hotel is probably slightly more comfortable, but 14 days in a room are 14 days in a room. it sucks anyway. 

Just the cost really. I have the impression that an actual hospital would be much more expensive. I have read various posts suggesting anything from 30,000 to 300,000 for the 2 weeks.

[ronthebrummie]

Not for me was booked 28/1 for 5 weeks had to cancel, won’t be back till it’s all back to normal 

[petehoax]

3 minutes ago, Kahoy said:

Just the cost really. I have the impression that an actual hospital would be much more expensive. I have read various posts suggesting anything from 30,000 to 300,000 for the 2 weeks.

yes, a hospital will be more expensive (for the insurance).
but again: you tell them "here's my insurance info / letter, deal with them" and that's about it. 

there's a tiny risk you'll run into problems, but that's why you have mandatory covid insurance for a thailand holiday. book axa insurance, pay the 2250 thb for covid insurance for 30 days and mostly forget about the cost of hospital vs hospitel. 

anyway, i said my part, no reason to repeat myself any further... sorry

[wulfgar]

I said "no", but I'm considering going on Feb 23, after my trip to Colombia. Provided one or more of the following happens by then, I may pull the trigger: 

• the 5 day pcr test disappears
• the pcr test on arrival changes to rapid-test
• testing on arrival is dropped completely
• the insurance requirement is cancelled
• stay in hospitel rather than hospital for all asymptomatic cases is confirmed
• no more quarantine by association
• bars open
• no more curfews on businesses 

Edited January 20, 2022 by wulfgar

[likeaking]

4 minutes ago, wulfgar said:

I said "no", but I'm considering going on Feb 23, after my trip to Colombia. Provided one or more of the following happens by then, I may pull the trigger: 

• the 5 day pcr test disappears
• the pcr test on arrival changes to rapid-test
• testing on arrival is dropped completely
• the insurance requirement is cancelled
• stay in hospitel rather than hospital for all asymptomatic cases is confirmed
• no more quarantine by association
• bars open
• no more curfews on businesses 

^ This, but most of the above must be enacted. I'm waiting until October for some stabilization.

[Minstrol]

Test and go then come back and test and go again. Load of rubbish can't imagine this being very successful. I was considering it, but the day 5 test and curfews have put me off completely.