Phuket Sandbox

Thailand news, views and comments
Post Reply
User avatar
stattointhailand
udonmap.com
Posts: 19114
Joined: October 25, 2007, 11:34 pm
Location: Oiling the locks on my gun case

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by stattointhailand » July 21, 2021, 1:00 pm

As said before , whatever the restrictions imposed for the sandbox. if you can get out and about it has to be better than being locked in your hotel room for 14 days (even convicted murderers get let out of their room for an hour a day)



User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 22, 2021, 7:50 pm

Conditions for re-entry through Phuket Sandbox - entering on a Tourist Visa (visiting Thailand for not longer than 60 Days)

I pulled up the Link below and its all good reading. A simply couple of questions, to those who know,

1. Does anyone know someone, who has recently re-entered Thailand, through the Phuket Sandbox process, or even know someone who is about to re-entered Thailand, through the Phuket Sandbox process in the near future: Re-entering Thailand on a Tourist Visa (visiting Thailand for not longer than 60 Days)

2. If so do you know,
a) Which Thai Insurance Company these purchased their medical Insurance from
b) What Policy Plan they Purchased
c) How many Days did they buy the Insurance for - 30 days or 60 days?

The answers to or details of Item 2, may help some weary travelers, which still trying to overcome the hurdles, from afar. It is specific to someone coming back into Thailand on a 30-60 Day Tourist Visa, which a number of people entering the Phuket Sandbox must be doing.

I see the Link, to siam-legal/axa but their must be other Options?

https://www.thaiembassy.com/travel-to-t ... quarantine

pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 22, 2021, 8:10 pm

I went on line through the, siam-legal/axa Link, (In the Phuket Sandbox) and filled it in, for the 60 and 30 Day option

For the 60 Day Stay, it came to B 4,860 for Zone 1 (which I presume is applicable if you only stay in Phuket). Price will also vary, depending on you Age, where you are Traveling from (Departure place), what Dates you are planning to Travel, based on the information in the Form.

Interesting, that it doesn't ask for you Nationality. It must presume that it is the same as your place of Departure

AXA 60 Day Insurance Policy.PNG

Hope this helps, someone.


pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 23, 2021, 10:48 am

pipoz4444 wrote:
July 22, 2021, 8:10 pm
I went on line through the, siam-legal/axa Link, (In the Phuket Sandbox) and filled it in, for the 60 and 30 Day option

For the 60 Day Stay, it came to B 4,860 for Zone 1 (which I presume is applicable if you only stay in Phuket). Price will also vary, depending on you Age, where you are Traveling from (Departure place), what Dates you are planning to Travel, based on the information in the Form.

Interesting, that it doesn't ask for you Nationality. It must presume that it is the same as your place of Departure


AXA 60 Day Insurance Policy.PNG


Hope this helps, someone.


pipoz4444
This one is from LUMA (for 60 Days) and doesn't appear to be confined to Zone 1
LINE Application LINE ID: @luma


LUMA Medical Insurance with Covid 19 Cover for 60 Days.PNG

pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

bamakmak
udonmap.com
Posts: 309
Joined: October 6, 2006, 7:16 pm
Location: Udon Thani

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by bamakmak » July 24, 2021, 12:30 am

I am in the process of returning to Thailand on 19 August via the Phuket Sandbox. For those interested, I will share my experience so far.

The COE application is a two-part process, both done on-line. (I am going through the Chicago Thai Consulate). In Part One, you submit:

1. Basic personal information (name, foreign address, Thai address, etc.)
2. Upload copy of your first page of your passport.
3. Upload copy of passport page showing re-entry permit.
4. Upload copy of my Thai Marriage certificate.
5. Upload Vaccination card.
6. Upload Covid Insurance policy confirmation. A change from my return to Thailand last October is that then I only needed Covid insurance for me. This time, I had to get $100,000 Covid insurance for BOTH my Thai wife and me. I purchased both policies from Luna Insurance. A 90-day policy for me was 7,400 thb and a 30-day policy for my wife was 3,100 thb. There is ONLY 30-day policies available for Thai citizens.

I received my COE pre-approval the next day. My wife's pre-approval arrived three days later.

With Part Two of the application process, I uploaded:

1. Airline flight confirmation.
2. Hotel confirmation (needs to be SHA+ approved).
3. Receipt of prepayment of 3-Covid tests while in Phuket. (Cost of the tests for each of us was 8,000 thb, for a total of 16,000 thb).

I am now waiting for the final approval with my COE.

User avatar
tamada
udonmap.com
Posts: 17220
Joined: February 21, 2007, 4:03 am
Location: Down two...then left

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by tamada » July 24, 2021, 6:09 am

^ WRT to "2. Hotel confirmation (needs to be SHA+ approved)." Does that have to be pre-paid with the proof of that prepayment?

bamakmak
udonmap.com
Posts: 309
Joined: October 6, 2006, 7:16 pm
Location: Udon Thani

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by bamakmak » July 24, 2021, 6:28 am

tamada wrote:
July 24, 2021, 6:09 am
^ WRT to "2. Hotel confirmation (needs to be SHA+ approved)." Does that have to be pre-paid with the proof of that prepayment?
Yes. The hotel provides a paid receipt with details of your stay. You also prepay for the Covid tests with the hotel.

User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 24, 2021, 3:48 pm

bamakmak wrote:
July 24, 2021, 12:30 am
I am in the process of returning to Thailand on 19 August via the Phuket Sandbox. For those interested, I will share my experience so far.

The COE application is a two-part process, both done on-line. (I am going through the Chicago Thai Consulate). In Part One, you submit:

1. Basic personal information (name, foreign address, Thai address, etc.)
2. Upload copy of your first page of your passport.
3. Upload copy of passport page showing re-entry permit.
4. Upload copy of my Thai Marriage certificate.
5. Upload Vaccination card.
6. Upload Covid Insurance policy confirmation. A change from my return to Thailand last October is that then I only needed Covid insurance for me. This time, I had to get $100,000 Covid insurance for BOTH my Thai wife and me. I purchased both policies from Luna Insurance. A 90-day policy for me was 7,400 thb and a 30-day policy for my wife was 3,100 thb. There is ONLY 30-day policies available for Thai citizens.

I received my COE pre-approval the next day. My wife's pre-approval arrived three days later.

With Part Two of the application process, I uploaded:

1. Airline flight confirmation.
2. Hotel confirmation (needs to be SHA+ approved).
3. Receipt of prepayment of 3-Covid tests while in Phuket. (Cost of the tests for each of us was 8,000 thb, for a total of 16,000 thb).

I am now waiting for the final approval with my COE.
Thanks bamakmak, much appreciated.

If Thailand gets this current outbreak under some sort of control and and lessens the restrictions on inter provincial travel, I should be landing some ten weeks behind you. \:D/ \:D/

pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

User avatar
samuel
udonmap.com
Posts: 893
Joined: July 31, 2014, 11:00 am
Location: Udon Thani

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by samuel » July 29, 2021, 8:43 pm

Richard Barrow in Thailand
july 27, 2021 20:40

🔴 BREAKING
Phuket goes into partial lockdown. Apart from a few exceptions, no-one is allowed to enter Phuket by land, sea or air from 3rd to 16th August. People arriving internationally via the #PhuketSandbox aren’t affected. They are also allowed to leave.
Exceptions for the ban on domestic entry to Phuket includes ambulances, transporting medical supplies and other goods, going to the airport (must have same day ticket), court appointments, people on official business etc. These people must also be vaccinated and have covid test.
The domestic entry ban to Phuket via land, sea and air basically only affects Thai and expat tourists and those looking for work on the island from 3-16 August. People flying in internationally via the #PhuketSandbox are not affected. People are also allowed to leave.

User avatar
stattointhailand
udonmap.com
Posts: 19114
Joined: October 25, 2007, 11:34 pm
Location: Oiling the locks on my gun case

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by stattointhailand » July 29, 2021, 11:28 pm

Are they gonna get the international tourists to work a shift at the local ma/pa shop in place of the un vaxed staff who are not allowed back to open up?

User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 31, 2021, 6:15 pm

The Phuket Sandbox is still an option

After the dust has settled on this latest outbreak, the old freedoms of being able to wander around Phuket during the day and to a large extent at night, up until 9.00pm to 12.00 midnight, will return in full. That will still make the Phuket Sandbox a much more pleasant place to stay, rather than being locked in a room, looking at four walls, in an ASQ Hotel in Bangkok. Even a few more current restrictions to opening hours and venues, won't dampen too much of the international traveler enthusiasm, short term.

The recently imposed restriction on domestic coming into the Phuket Sandbox and both Domestic and Internationals, to varying degrees, more notably Domestic travels coming into the Sandbox area, this is only temporary, maybe for 4 weeks or a bit more, until some new case number control returns to those external provincial areas. When it does return, in these other Provinces, Red will turn to Orange and Orange will turn to Green and so on, and travel restrictions in and out of Phuket Sandbox will ease and venue will re-open within the Sandbox.

I for one, would volunteer to work a Night Shift in Phuket. \:D/ \:D/

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/21 ... id-upticks

pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

User avatar
parrot
udonmap.com
Posts: 10925
Joined: March 19, 2006, 8:32 pm

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by parrot » July 31, 2021, 6:34 pm

We spent 14 days quarantined in Bangkok......for sure, we'd take Phuket if we had to do it again. That said, I don't see any relief until vaccinations gear up on the local population, not just Phuket, but nationwide. From what I can see, that's not going to happen in the next 4 weeks.....maybe 4 months if they're lucky.
I would be interested to know how many of the Phuket visitors are returnees.....expats or locals who returned from overseas. Given the degree of travel restrictions in Asia and ongoing spike in Thailand, I'll be surprised if the numbers of tourist visitors amounts to more than a few thousand.
When the sandbox kicked off, there were few restrictions. Now with airlines/bus/train/off island visits limited or non-existent, the sandbox looks more like a cat litter box.

User avatar
stattointhailand
udonmap.com
Posts: 19114
Joined: October 25, 2007, 11:34 pm
Location: Oiling the locks on my gun case

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by stattointhailand » July 31, 2021, 6:51 pm

I heard on one of the news channels that there had been approx 6000 actual tourists (as opposed to returnees etc) arrived in Phuket in the first 4 weeks

bamakmak
udonmap.com
Posts: 309
Joined: October 6, 2006, 7:16 pm
Location: Udon Thani

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by bamakmak » July 31, 2021, 7:56 pm

I think that Stat's report of around 6,000 tourists coming through the Sandbox in July is spot on. Total arrivals for July will be around 13,000, meaning that around half will be returning, like my wife and me, to our Thailand home rather than as a tourist.

In my specific situation, our original flight into Phuket on was scheduled for Thursday, 19 August. Low and behold, due to "mechanical issues", that flight has been cancelled and we are now re-scheduled to arrive on Friday, 20 August. Coincidentally, roughly 80% of international Phuket passengers arrive on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It's pretty obvious the airline's "mechanical issue" was passenger load.

In any case, because of the revised arrival date, my final COE approval (which needs to show the specific date of arrival), has been pushed back to this coming week (hopefully).

Given all the hoops and extra expense, you would have to be nuts to want to come to Thailand right now simply as a tourist.

User avatar
Giggle
udonmap.com
Posts: 1895
Joined: October 18, 2016, 4:24 pm
Location: In your head

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by Giggle » July 31, 2021, 10:10 pm

Never underestimate the adamant insistence that this is f'n paradise! resonates strongly among the believers.
Ashli Babbitt -- SAY HER NAME!

User avatar
pipoz4444
udonmap.com
Posts: 2040
Joined: April 8, 2011, 1:33 am
Location: All Over the Place

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by pipoz4444 » July 31, 2021, 10:13 pm

Agreed bamakmak, not the right to come, now :-k

Man in the Video: Not too bad a Summary - B 605 Million from 10,000 Tourist x 11 Days Average Stay x B 5,500 Average Spending per Day \:D/ \:D/ At least it is something for the Local Economy




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o-YNdmzxoM

pipoz4444
That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.

User avatar
papafarang
udonmap.com
Posts: 4300
Joined: August 2, 2013, 10:14 am

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by papafarang » August 1, 2021, 7:06 am

5500b a day , with most places closed i wonder what their spending it on ? sunbeds, tuk tuks ,jet skis . family of 4 spending 22,000b a day sitting on a beach. sounds very expensive. a couple of friends got back from koh kong last week, cheap rooms ,cheap food and nearly all places closed . spending 1200-1500b a day.
Hansa village clubhouse . Tel 0981657001 https://www.google.co.th/maps/place/Han ... 5851?hl=en

User avatar
AlexO
udonmap.com
Posts: 2505
Joined: June 8, 2015, 11:45 am
Location: Nong Lat Udon

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by AlexO » August 1, 2021, 10:06 am

pipoz4444 wrote:
July 31, 2021, 10:13 pm
Agreed bamakmak, not the right to come, now :-k

Man in the Video: Not too bad a Summary - B 605 Million from 10,000 Tourist x 11 Days Average Stay x B 5,500 Average Spending per Day \:D/ \:D/ At least it is something for the Local Economy




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o-YNdmzxoM

pipoz4444

That probably includes 3000/3500 hotel room spend as well. What can you spend 5500baht on in a closed down island.

bamakmak
udonmap.com
Posts: 309
Joined: October 6, 2006, 7:16 pm
Location: Udon Thani

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by bamakmak » August 3, 2021, 7:59 am

My wife and I just received our approved COEs for our arrival in Phuket on 20 August. Overall, a simpler, less stressful and less expensive option than using the old 14-day Bangkok ASQ quarantine, which I went through last October. Total approval time was 13-days. Had the airline not changed our flight, the approval time would have been 10-days.

Apparently, there has been a change regarding the phone app we need to install before arriving in Phuket. I had been reading for weeks that we needed two apps: Morchana and Thailandplus. However, our instructions from the Thai Consulate are to only load Thailandplus.

Time will tell how active Phuket is, but I think the belief that it is "dead" is probably overstated. Our hotel is in Patong about 30 meters away from the beach and the beach road in that area actually seems to be fairly active. I've confirmed that, in addition to a number of Thai restaurants, there are at least two seafood, one Italian and two Indian restaurants within a 5 minute walk from the hotel. In the past, we also have been to a few restaurants in Chalong, Railay and Laguna that I'm sure are open.

Bangla Road is dead, but that really isn't an attraction for me anyway. Oh, and at least 15 massage shops in easy walking distance that are open.

I doubt the my wife and I will be spending 11,000 thb per day, but I'm sure going to try!

User avatar
jackspratt
udonmap.com
Posts: 16079
Joined: July 2, 2006, 5:29 pm

Re: Phuket Sandbox

Post by jackspratt » August 3, 2021, 8:02 am

bama can you give us an indication of the fixed costs for the Sandbox?

Post Reply

Return to “Thailand News”