Phuket during the Corona

So how do you get to Phuket in Corona and what is required to do?

As mentioned, from April to July 2021 it will be possible to come to Phuket only as tourists and after a negative corona test (to be carried out upon arrival at the hotel) and a week's isolation it will be possible to travel freely on the island.

Even before that, you will be required to issue a visa to Thailand if your visit is planned to be longer than 30 days. This is actually in accordance with the normal procedure of issuing a visa to Thailand, and if you require a visa, you will receive a special authorization called STV (Special Tourist Visa) which will be valid for 60 days and with which you can stay in the country for this period.

For all the details on issuing a visa to Thailand >> click here

Entry into Thailand in general will only be allowed to those who have been vaccinated (with a "green card") and they too will have to perform a corona test within 72 hours of landing in Thailand, and present a negative result of course. Upon arrival at the hotel, you will be subjected to another inspection.

It will be necessary to download an app called ThailandPlus to your mobile device. This application will generate a QR code for you that will be scanned when you enter the country, and will also allow tracking of your movements as long as you stay in Thailand. This action is intended to ensure that you do not leave the borders of Phuket, and of course you do not violate the isolation that you must.

Also, you will have to insure yourself in travel insurance which covers hospitalization from corona up to a ceiling of 100,000 dollars, and present a certificate for making such a policy.

All of these are of course in addition to the instructions of the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Health in Israel, which require reporting and registration when leaving and entering Israel.

Vacation in Phuket - step by step

Step 1 – COE registration

1. You must first register in the CEO system as travelers who wish to come to Thailand. Click here to enter the system and register.
2. You must fill in all the information you will be asked for, as well as attach a photo of your passport in JPEG or PDF files (files of this type only).
3. After registration you will receive a 6-digit number. Keep it, because it will serve you throughout the process. The initial approval to continue the process is given within 3 days.  
4. Please note that if you have started the registration process and declared certain dates, you cannot change the details in case something has changed. In case you need to change, you will have to contact the service representatives of the CEO (this can be done through the system) with a request to cancel the locking of the form.

Step 2 – finding a flight

1. From the moment you receive the approval, you will have 15 days to complete the entire process, and the first step will be to find a flight for the dates you declared. If you do not do this within 15 days, the certificate will lose its validity and you will have to start the process from the beginning.
2. Please note that you must purchase a round-trip ticket, and it will not be possible to enter Thailand with a one-way ticket.
3. For details on Flights to Phuket click here.

Step 3 - Closing a hotel for isolation in Phuket (for those who need it)

Please note that those who are vaccinated and come from a country where the level of morbidity is low are not required for this step! If you arrived from Israel, and you are vaccinated (non-vaccinated are not allowed to enter at all at the moment) you are not required for this step.

1. If you are not vaccinated (recovery only - those who are not vaccinated and do not recover cannot enter Thailand at this stage) or you are not coming from Israel, you will have to find a hotel within 15 days from the list of isolation hotels in Phuket (at this stage only Phuket is open to tourists), for the entire isolation period (14 days) )
2. A reference from the hotel confirming the reservation must be entered into the country entry system (the CEO system - the same website where you registered). You must also do this within 15 days of receiving the confirmation from the hotel.
3. See below the full list of hotels where you can stay in isolation.

Step 4 – Travel insurance

1. You must take out travel insurance that includes full coverage even for hospitalization in case of infection with Corona, up to a total of 100 dollars.
2. You must also enter the confirmation of the insurance preparation into the CEO system, and again - within 15 days of receiving the confirmation.
3. You can also purchase insurance through the system itself, which will automatically report to the authorities in Thailand that you are insured. Both options are acceptable.

Step 5 - Entry and stay in Thailand

1. Before arriving in Thailand, download the app ThailandPlus And in it you will receive a QR code that will be scanned upon entering the country.
2. This app will also be used to track your movements in Thailand, to make sure you are not breaking the rules, so keep it installed on your phone throughout your stay in Thailand.
3. To download the app click here.

Other important things to know

1. The confirmation of the vaccination must include: first name, last name, date of birth, nationality and passport number.
2. The vaccination information must include: the number of vaccinations received, the date of the last vaccination (must be no less than 14 days before the date of travel).
3. Vaccinators arriving from Israel are not expected to have a problem in obtaining the approval.
4. Upon landing you will be required for another PCR test. 

Hotels for isolation in Phuket

The authorities in Thailand, in cooperation with selected hotels, have prepared "isolation packages" for tourists who arrive in Phuket and are required to stay a week on the hotel grounds. It should be clarified that we are not talking about some prison facility or other depressing place, but rather the existing hotels in Phuket, some of which are also luxurious hotels of a very high standard, as you are used to finding in Phuket and Thailand in general.

Therefore, it is mandatory to coordinate in advance with a hotel from the list your arrival and close all the details before the trip. If in the past it was only a matter of "calming your mind" before the trip, now it is a mandatory task so that they can receive you in Phuket in an efficient and comfortable manner, and make your isolation time easier.