Thai PM says the country will promote medical tourism in the post-COVID era

Thailand aims to attract more foreign visitors in the post-COVID era by promoting itself as a medical tourism hub, building on its excellent track record of handling the pandemic, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha said.

A virus task force headed by Prime Minister Prayuth will also consider demands to reopen pubs, bars, and other nightlife entertainment venues that have been shut for more than a year amid a rebound in tourist arrivals.

Lifting the curbs is vital to lure more visitors in the June-September period, considered the low season for Thai tourism.

Prime Minister Prayuth told a conference that the country had a proven track record dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. He added that they would use this to promote the country’s medical tourism and health treatment to attract foreign visitors after the pandemic.

Thailand expects tourist arrivals to triple to nearly 1 million a month from October as the country rolls back most of the pandemic-era travel curbs.

While the nation has scrapped mandatory COVID testing and quarantine for tourists, pre-arrival registration and insurance requirements are seen as deterrents with other tourism-dependent nations doing away with such restrictions

But with new COVID deaths and cases steadily declining, Prime Minister Prayuth has vowed to relax the remaining restrictions to boost economic and business activities, government spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said in a statement.