Why Thailand isn't reopening to international tourists yet

With news that many countries in Europe are reopening to tourism in time for summer, travellers with their sights set on Asia are anxiously awaiting word on when they'll be given the green light to visit their favorite destination.<br/>As of now, those with Thailand in mind will need to wait at least a few more months before packing their bags. "It is still dependent on the outbreak situation, but I think at the earliest, we may see the return of tourists could be the fourth quarter of this year," said Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). And even then, he said, there will likely be restrictions on who can visit and where they can go. "We are not going to open all at once," he added. "We are still on high alert, we just can't let our guards down yet. We have to look at the country of origin [of the travellers] to see if their situation has truly improved. And lastly, we have to see whether our own business operators are ready to receive tourists under the 'new normal'." Similar versions of this strategy are already being looked at in the region -- referred to as "tourism bubbles." "We have studied a possibility of offering special long-stay packages in isolated and closed areas where health monitoring can be easily controlled -- for example, Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Samui. This will be beneficial for both tourists and local residents, since this is almost a kind of quarantine." For now, Thailand isn't taking any chances and the country's borders are firmly shut. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has issued a temporary ban on all international commercial flights into the country until June 30, excluding repatriation flights. <br/>