When they're gone, gone with them will be that local charm that makes Thailand so special to so many of us, imo

while enjoying their covid discounts. If anything, those of us remaining should be tipping extra in such places for the added enjoyment of having it almost to ourselves, and to help keep them in business

@Kool ******

you might not feel the same way when all the local businesses in the tourist areas you love are bankrupt and selling very cheap to rich developers to bulldoze and replace with even more chain convenience stores and 5* hotels... careful what you wish for

@Sree ******

they are still using it, they call it self-isolation. I'm not sure how effective it is at stopping incoming cases, because it relies on everyone complying and is very difficult to monitor. I think it is fairly safe to say it would not be a good way to ensure Thailand remains a safe haven from covid. It's more of a 'better than nothing' approach for places that already have a lot of covid cases everywhere.

@Narak *****

my pleasure

@Andrew ********

beef is free if you honk your horn at a 4x4 with stickers all over it, even if he just intentionally ran you off the road. ;)

p.s. they might want to consider allowing some lower-end hotels to get on the ASQ list, because not many people are going to spend that much and go through 14-16 days of quarantine to be a tourist here, and the tourism industry (at least at the local level) is seriously struggling already. A forced expat exodus could be the nail in the coffin.

The covid response measures were excellent, communicated to us in both Thai and English, including live Q&A sessions with the local police, which was very helpful. I was very impressed with how seriously they took the pandemic and how effectively they kept the outbreaks very local and prevented major spreading.

Sadly now the visa rules are making many of us incredibly anxious and worried about finances and the future. I'm not against quarantine, but I'm against being told to leave and apply abroad and then do quarantine to get back in, just to complete a 2 year study plan which was previously possible to do without exiting. This only became impossible after covid, which is quite difficult to comprehend. I'm already in the country... surely at this time all people all over the world who are in covid-free countries should have the right to remain there until the storm passes, not cast out into it and separated from loved ones, at great financial emotional and mental health costs.

@Wylie ******

hoping not to need to exit, reenter, but it is a big relief to discover that hurdle isn't actually a hurdle for me (blessed, some are not so fortunate). Thanks again

@Wylie ******

perhaps. Or as we say on our side of the pond: assumption is the mother of all f-ups. My investment portfolio would not be described by anyone as a bank statement though. They are not a registered bank as far as I know.