Tourism Leaders open appeal to the Thai Government

The #OpenThailandSafely campaign would like to make four public comments. This is the Social media message and open letter to the Royal Thai Government to consider re-opening the border.

Ahead of Top Level Government Meetings this Week on Opening Thailand’s Borders The Thai Government meetings in the week starting 15 March 2021 on possible steps to open Thailand’s borders, the #OpenThailandSafely campaign would like to make four public comments:

1. We are grateful that the Thai Government is recognising the urgency and importance of tourism and the need to help people dependent on international tourism. Thank you.

2. Open Thailand Safely urges Government officials to grasp the new opportunities that the successful rollout of vaccinations has given the world. The vaccines are a game-changer for tourism. This is the good news we have been waiting for.

3. Any form of quarantine is ‘old’ thinking. Tourism in Thailand cannot recover with ANY kind of quarantine.

4. Other countries such as Maldives, Greece, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Costa Rica, and others realize this and are opening their destinations with NO quarantine.

Thailand should do the same, otherwise, tourists will simply go elsewhere. “Safe opening of Thailand with proof of vaccination should occur anytime between 1st of June and 1st of July 2021.

This would give the tourism industry some time to prepare. Leaving it until October would be too late. Many companies won’t exist by then.”

“A June-July reopening would be a strategic opportunity for Thailand to show a leadership role among Asian countries and prepare the way for a solid recovery of the Thai economy” —

Willem Niemeijer, CEO, YAANA Ventures and Co-Founder of the Open Thailand Safely campaign (along with Luzi Matzig, Chairman of Asian Trails and William E. Heinecke Chairman of Minor Group