General Reports

[QUOTE=Turgid;2501785]Tripadvisor takes action regarding Thai hotel responsible for jailing American who posted harsh review of the hotel. [URL]https://www.yahoo.com/news/thai-hotel-jailed-american-gets-153324553.html[/URL].[/QUOTE]Good for you Tripadvisor. While this guy's online rant was hard to take for any establishment the way to deal with him was either ignoring him or simply explaining their side of the story. Bad reviews whether true or not are part of doing business nowadays. Using the police and locking him up is sadly just one more nail in the coffin in Thailand losing its Land Of Smiles appeal which charmed and enchanted us when we first arrived.

[URL]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfF3CGVwrs4[/URL]

60 Minutes have a spicy piece on the Thai King, his live-in mistress and 4 legged the poodle he appointed to head up the Thai air force.

[QUOTE=Tomasb;2500610]What would Thailand be like if the King was forced to divest half his wealth with 20 b going to his citizens / subjects?. He would still be one of the richest men in the world and perhaps then would enjoy a certain amount of respect in his country. Just saying.

There are 70 mm Thais so do the math.[/QUOTE]Despite all his moolah the king has borrowings from city of London investment funds and banks, in the millions for investments somewhere, which is surprising. Another greedy thai billionaire which owns 50% of everything thai and promotes a feudal system which keeps Thais poor.

[QUOTE=Flak3;2503131]$100,000 medical insurance, 14 day quarantine, and proof of 500,000 baht in assets during the last 6 months to apply. If approved, before your flight you'll need a PCR Test.

[URL]https://www.forbes.com/sites/johannaread/2020/11/12/new-thailand-tourist-visa-you-can-now-spend-60-days-in-paradise/?sh=6d561300369a[/URL][/QUOTE]Forbes is an American publication so it wants to give hope to Americans. Let's face it, Americans aren't getting in to Thailand. I am now predicting 2023, if that. Key to article is that people from any country can APPLY. Reality is China only for the foreseeable future. I have yet to read any Thai publication that gives any glimmer of hope that US citizens are even on the radar, with good reason.

[QUOTE=BananaBoi;2503228]Forbes is an American publication so it wants to give hope to Americans. Let's face it, Americans aren't getting in to Thailand. I am now predicting 2023, if that. Key to article is that people from any country can APPLY. Reality is China only for the foreseeable future. I have yet to read any Thai publication that gives any glimmer of hope that US citizens are even on the radar, with good reason.[/QUOTE]Thai embassies and most of the travel websites have the same story. Forbes was the easiest to read and understand. They left out the prison like quarantine rules though.

Diplomats, business visa, retirement visa, and married to Thais are being allowed back into Thailand from the US. So why would the Thai government stop regular American tourists from joining them with all the hoops (safety precautions) people have to jump through.

It's good business. Maximize profit and minimize risk. 15 k baht in Covid testing. 100 k to 200 k baht for hotels. And each person volunteers to be locked up, checked twice per day, and monitored on their cell phones for 15 days. And if they get sick, they have a minimum 500 k baht in the bank plus a $100 k USD insurance policy.

Not for your casual traveler but die hard mongers Thailand is open for your money.

[QUOTE=BananaBoi;2503228] Let's face it, Americans aren't getting into Thailand. I am now predicting 2023, if that. Key to article is that people from any country can APPLY.[/QUOTE]BB, That is a rather dark forecast. While I concede that the Thai Government might choose to keep Thailand in lockdown mode, I think there is much higher degree of probability that they will allow certified vaccinated North Americans, Australians, and Europeans in dropping the 14 day quarantine and other prohibitive restrictions. I could be wrong, but as I keep saying, There are plenty of extremely viable alternatives, it will be Thailand's loss if they act against their own interests as other Asian countries will most definitely open for certified vaccinated travelers and add to the growing list of some very nice countries that are already open (no quarantine).

BTW, there are some great pay later / free cancellation BKK hotel deals available for March, April, May. For example, I saw the JW Marriott for $35/ night, the Sofitel Sukhumvit for $60/ night, and the Grand Hyatt for $60/ night. Normally I am not a big fan of these hotels, but those rates are real deals.

I wouldn't bet the farm on Thailand opening up with just a vaccination cert no matter where you originate from.

I get the buzz around vaccines but this country is so paranoid of even a single infection it's hard to know if even they will be sufficient to change the mindset here.

So you get vaccinated, Moderna 95% effective Pfizer 90% none are projected to be 100% which means a percentage of people vaccinated could still be infected and become transmitters.

Will they still require 72 hours before you fly negative PCR test, a straight into 14 day quarantine where you have to test negative twice again plus insurance, fit to fly certificates yada yada.

I am not taking any vaccine shot to be allowed back in to bonk LBFMs and I don't think the Thai government will worry about that. They could do well allowing in Chinese, Japanese and Korean groups and excluding Cheap Charlies, who only spend pennies on pussies and beer.

Mongers are not even a consideration in all this. Better to get the shop shop shop brigade in, than the LBFM addicts. It is a golden opportunity for those who matter to go up market.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2503330]BB, That is a rather dark forecast. While I concede that the Thai Government might choose to keep Thailand in lockdown mode, I think there is much higher degree of probability that they will allow certified vaccinated North Americans, Australians, and Europeans in dropping the 14 day quarantine and other prohibitive restrictions. I could be wrong, but as I keep saying, There are plenty of extremely viable alternatives, it will be Thailand's loss if they act against their own interests as other Asian countries will most definitely open for certified vaccinated travelers and add to the growing list of some very nice countries that are already open (no quarantine).

BTW, there are some great pay later / free cancellation BKK hotel deals available for March, April, May. For example, I saw the JW Marriott for $35/ night, the Sofitel Sukhumvit for $60/ night, and the Grand Hyatt for $60/ night. Normally I am not a big fan of these hotels, but those rates are real deals.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=BananaBoi;2503228]Forbes is an American publication so it wants to give hope to Americans. Let's face it, Americans aren't getting in to Thailand. I am now predicting 2023, if that. Key to article is that people from any country can APPLY. Reality is China only for the foreseeable future. I have yet to read any Thai publication that gives any glimmer of hope that US citizens are even on the radar, with good reason.[/QUOTE]I can't say here, but I know for a fact you are not well informed. Check with the Thai Embassy Web pages for who and how people can get back. It is not easy and expensive. But there are at least 2 avenues for retirees (not tourists) to return. They are the only group motivated enough to go through the hellish process.

[QUOTE=Franciscass;2503377]So you get vaccinated, Moderna 95% effective Pfizer 90% none are projected to be 100% which means a percentage of people vaccinated could still be infected and become transmitters.[/QUOTE]I doubt that a vaccination certificate will be sufficient to gain entry into Thailand without quarantine. But, I believe that vaccines will be the path to regained Thailand tourism.

Right now each Western infected person infects more than one other person, the number of COVID patients increases. I've read rates anywhere between 1.5 and 3.5 newly infected people for each new patient. As long as that rate is above 1.0, COVID builds. Drop the rate below 1.0 and the number of new COVID cases reduces. By vaccinating people, this rate of new infections goes down.

My personal projection is about 70% of the population of Western nations will be vaccinated by August 2021. Gradually, the number of new COVID cases will be small enough so the Thai government will allow visitors. Perhaps they will require vaccination certificate. My guess is Thailand travel will be easy by about October 2021.

[QUOTE=HorseTrader;2503439]I doubt that a vaccination certificate will be sufficient to gain entry into Thailand without quarantine. But, I believe that vaccines will be the path to regained Thailand tourism.

Right now each Western infected person infects more than one other person, the number of COVID patients increases. I've read rates anywhere between 1.5 and 3.5 newly infected people for each new patient. As long as that rate is above 1.0, COVID builds. Drop the rate below 1.0 and the number of new COVID cases reduces. By vaccinating people, this rate of new infections goes down.

My personal projection is about 70% of the population of Western nations will be vaccinated by August 2021. Gradually, the number of new COVID cases will be small enough so the Thai government will allow visitors. Perhaps they will require vaccination certificate. My guess is Thailand travel will be easy by about October 2021.[/QUOTE]Once any vaccine from a reputable company is "finalized", J&J, Pfizer or Moderna, the businesses around the world will demand that everything return to normal in order for national economies to begin to rebound. Every government will want "normalcy" and those vaccines will provide the justification for reliance on modern science to allow the world economic situation to begin again. To wait according to your belief that only a 100 percent vaccine will allow return to normal activity will be the death knell for that country's economy.

Your belief that it would take until August 2021 to get the world completely vaccinated will not apply to the western world. The United States will be completely vaccinated by the end of March 2021 based on the latest news. Other western countries will follow suit. (Interestingly, the PRC company that was conducting test trials of their "vaccine" in Brazil was halted by the Brazilian government recently due to "adverse reactions" to the "vaccine". So I don't think any PRC produced vaccine will be "accepted" by any nation as a free pass to enter. LOL!

[QUOTE=Rodwint2;2503492] The United States will be completely vaccinated by the end of March 2021 based on the latest news. [/QUOTE]No way the US will be 100% vaccinated by March. First, they won't have 700 million doses ready by then (The Pfizer vaccine requires 2 doses). More important, they can't even convince half the country Covid is real and to wear a mask. People in South Dakota are dying in ICUs still thinking Covid is fake. People in the US fight measles vaccines. They don't even get flu shots. California, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada won't even accept a vaccine until they've independently tested it. Blue states don't trust Trump and big pharma. Red states don't believe in science. LOL.

Personally, I'm waiting to make sure the cure isn't worse than the disease.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2503330]BB, That is a rather dark forecast. While I concede that the Thai Government might choose to keep Thailand in lockdown mode, I think there is much higher degree of probability that they will allow certified vaccinated North Americans, Australians, and Europeans in dropping the 14 day quarantine and other prohibitive restrictions. I could be wrong, but as I keep saying, There are plenty of extremely viable alternatives, it will be Thailand's loss if they act against their own interests as other Asian countries will most definitely open for certified vaccinated travelers and add to the growing list of some very nice countries that are already open (no quarantine).

BTW, there are some great pay later / free cancellation BKK hotel deals available for March, April, May. For example, I saw the JW Marriott for $35/ night, the Sofitel Sukhumvit for $60/ night, and the Grand Hyatt for $60/ night. Normally I am not a big fan of these hotels, but those rates are real deals.[/QUOTE]I'm more in agreement with you? If people check there is and never has been a vaccine that is 100%, Trump whether you like him or not and he is no longer President so leave him out of the discussion people want to think like Harris that she wouldn't take it because Trump made it is one of the reasons I wouldn't ever vote for the dump two face *****. Every expert article I read from science that the vaccine yes made and name by Trump " Warp Speed " is 90% effective and that is damn good in their opinion the best in history has been only 95%. In the USA Freedom reigns and at times too much is the problem nothing ever gets done.

Right now USA Has already made an agreement with several sources they will get a minimum of 100-300 million doses does anyone expect by spring 2021 everyone will get vaccinated in the USA I say wake up and get real or get your head out of the sand or stop watching too many fantasy movies. The objective will never be made to get everyone vaccinated but to slow it down so once it is out if it starts to work and does slow down you will see more and more people get it that is just common sense if that is in the equation.

As for Thailand, they have already arranged with a company to make it here doing so means money and recognition knowing Thailand they aren't going to make something and then say we aren't going to certify it because it isn't 100% effective I being stuck here is hoping they will lower the restriction or completely remove them so I can travel abroad and return to Thailand without jumping through the hoops. Being Thailand, let's leave out the corruption even the stupidity from their leaders, and say they will go this route. Continue to lock down like they are now no matter how much of a brush they want to paint how wonderful their country is to invest, how low their rate of infection and death no country can be an island. Their poor are suffering and dying.

When the vaccine comes out I was hoping that it gets some certification from Thailand to catch a flight home to the U.S. arrange my vaccine but it looks now if I need to get two shots based on the time I was staying that wouldn't be possible. So my hope is Thailand has it I will take it if they certify it for me to return with no strings attached otherwise my wait continues like the rest of you. When and if it is certified I will take the 10% chance to me that is good odds to getting off this fucking rock for two weeks.

People complain about the effectiveness of the vaccine but not being available isn't really an option how long you think the world can go on like this? Thailand should be more attentive to how many are dying from road accidents and Dengue fever!

[QUOTE=Flak3;2503496]No way the US will be 100% vaccinated by March. First, they won't have 700 million doses ready by then (The Pfizer vaccine requires 2 doses). More important, they can't even convince half the country Covid is real and to wear a mask. People in South Dakota are dying in ICUs still thinking Covid is fake. People in the US fight measles vaccines. They don't even get flu shots. California, Oregon, Washington, and Nevada won't even accept a vaccine until they've independently tested it. Blue states don't trust Trump and big pharma. Red states don't believe in science. LOL.

Personally, I'm waiting to make sure the cure isn't worse than the disease.[/QUOTE]Big pharma have nothing to do with the vaccine anymore. The US government wil most likely pay a single price per vaccine.

[QUOTE=TConor;2503418]You are WRONG

I can't say here, but I know for a fact you are not well informed. Check with the Thai Embassy Web pages for who and how people can get back. It is not easy and expensive. But there are at least 2 avenues for retirees (not tourists) to return. They are the only group motivated enough to go through the hellish process.[/QUOTE]

Clearly my comment was to the general TOURIST population of Americans but you are making some claim that you can't say that I am wrong and your claim is ONLY related to RETIREES and not 99% of the guys who read this thread.

What is written on a web page and reality are 2 different things. Do you actually know Americans who have gotten back in to Thailand recently? I'm sure we are interested in hearing stories. Maybe some of the other guys fall in to the same category as some of these fortunate Americans who got back in. Married to Thai wife. Kids in Thailand. Significant business/property owners in Thailand.

With its current status of being number 1 in active cases, the general US population will be last in to many countries, not only Thailand. I will put money on that. Germany borders have been open to a list of non-Schengen countries for months. Americans are not welcome.

You are correct. I am not well informed about Thailand. I've only ever been there once for a 12 hour layover. Somehow I know 1000s of Thai gogo/bar girls though.