Flights were expensive and time-consuming, favorite restaurants were closed, and foreign visitors were requested to be tested for Covid-19 on the 1st and 5th day of the trip is what Brian Lamberty and Paola Laird, two British tourists, experienced during their recent journey to Phuket (Thailand). They had prepared for the trip for a long time.

Before the trip to Thailand this February, Mrs. Laird had to spend almost three hours uploading all the documents such as vaccination records, hotel bookings and medical insurance certificates to an application in order to obtain a Thailand Pass, a mandatory entry requirement for international visitors during the pandemic.

Lambert and Laird were two of the first international tourists to return to Phuket, Thailand after a long period of closure due to Covid-19.

Besides Thailand, in recent weeks, many Southeast Asian countries have announced that they are open to fully vaccinated foreign visitors.

Last November, Thailand and Cambodia were two of the first countries in Southeast Asia to fully open their doors to international tourists. Following the appearance of the new variant Omicron, in December, Thailand halted the entry of most foreign visitors. In early February 2022, it resumed the "Test & Go" program. Accordingly, visitors have to stay at a hotel and wait for PCR test results on day one and rapid test results on day five of the trip.

Soon after, Bali also fully reopened to foreign visitors, with a quarantine period of three to seven days. But this March, this requirement was removed.

On February 10, the Philippines also announced that there was no strict quarantine but it asked for no big gatherings in some locations.

Vietnam has officially reopened its borders on March 15 for international tourists, with a one-day quarantine period at the hotel.

Malaysia in the latest statement announced that it will reopen on April 1 without quarantine request.

However, tourism operators are currently struggling with labor shortages, as well as potential risks of the pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine.

According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), before the pandemic, Southeast Asia was one of the fastest growing regions in the world in terms of international tourism, with a record 139 million visitors in 2019, an increase of about 8% compared to 2018.

But when Covid-19 pandemic broke out, popular tourist destinations in the region were mostly abandoned. Last year, the number of foreign visitors to Southeast Asia plummeted to 3.3 million, or about 2% of the record number in 2019.

This year, with the resurgence of international tourism, travelers will still face disadvantages.

According to The Times by Hopper, airfares from the US to Southeast Asia in February were about 30% higher than before the pandemic, due to fewer flights to the region. On average, visitors will have to pay $1,150 USD for a round-trip ticket.

However, coming to Southeast Asia, foreign tourists will have a multitude of accommodation options from budget hotels to luxury resorts.

According to online booking platforms such as Hopper and Booking.com, flight and hotel searches in Southeast Asia are on the rise. According to Google Destination Insights statistics, searches about Vietnam increased fastest in the world in the period from December 2021 to February 2022 with 75%. Airlines in the region are resuming their international routes.

Despite these positive signs, many tour operators do not expect an explosive development of tourism this year or even next year.

“It may take about two more years,” said Le Tuan Kiet, CEO of a cruise ship company based in Ha Long City, Quang Ninh Province.

The company has put into operation all 14 cruise ships and has focused on domestic visitors. However, they have attracted a relatively small number of tourists. During the pandemic, 250 employees of the company lost their jobs and had to go back to their hometown to work in factories.

They now don't want to leave their hometown to work far away, Kiet said.

Though Vietnam has officially opened the border for international visitors from March 15, Kiet said that his company will temporarily stop accepting bookings until September. In addition, the company will operate only six cruise ships and offer only three-day excursions at cheaper rates.

The situation in Russia may affect the number of tourists to Vietnam and Thailand, favorite destinations for Russians in Southeast Asia. 

Linh Trang

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