Travel Industry, News and Analytics

Phuket Sandbox Program Drives Travelers to Thailand

One month after the start of the Phuket Sandbox program, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) shared the first results along with the number of arrivals and revenues received by Phuket hotels. Officially launched on 1 July 2021, the Phuket Sandbox program is aimed to attract international guests to the region that traditionally heavily depends on tourism. In just one month, Phuket welcomed more than 14,000 tourists from different parts of the world. These foreign guests generated an income of 829 million Baht for the local economy.

Over the course of the month, 14,055 tourists visited Phuket. The United States is the biggest source market with 1,802 arrivals from this country, followed by the UK (1,558 visitors), Israel (1,455 visitors), Germany (847 visitors), and France (839 visitors). According to TAT, as many as 100,000 foreign visitors are expected to arrive in Phuket in the period from July to September 2021. Together, they may generate up to 9 billion Baht for the local economy.

The Phuket Sandbox program allows fully vaccinated travelers to enter Phuket without any quarantine requirement. Guests can enjoy their vacation in Thailand and are not locked in their hotels in Phuket. To deliver foreign travelers, Thai Airways International launched direct international flights from many large cities, including London, Paris, Copenhagen, Zurich, and Frankfurt. Additionally, there are direct flights from Singapore by Singapore Airlines, Tel Aviv by EL AL Israel Airlines, from Doha by Qatar Airlines, Abu Dhabi by Etihad Airways, and from Dubai by Emirates.

SHA Plus certified hotels, which participate in the sandbox offering, had 190,843 nights booked in July 2021. There are already 109,694 room night bookings for August and 9,182 room nights booked for September. In total, current room nights booked for the third quarter of 2021 reach 309,719. As the actual number of booked room nights in July was significantly bigger than the number of advance bookings (190,843 vs. 106,883), we can expect far better results for August and September.

Here are the biggest spending categories of Phuket guests. Out of 829 million Baht of the generated revenue, 282 million were spent on hotel rooms. Products and services generated 194 million Baht, followed by food and beverage spending (175 million), and 124 million Baht spent on health and medical services. The average cost of a Phuket vacation was 58,982 Baht in July 2021.

Individual City Guides

Irkutsk travel guide

Irkutsk was founded about 300 years ago. During this period, it managed to accumulate a lot of beautiful architectural monuments, which attracts a significant part of modern travelers. The land on which the city is located was opened by the Cossack ataman Ivan Pokhabov. Since ancient times, the main value of these places remains amazing nature; Lake Baikal is one of the outstanding natural objects of the world. In the second half of the 17th century the Cossacks built a prison here. In … Read further

Cuisine of Sardinia

Original dishes of Sardegna are called healing ones for a reason; the fact is that only natural and organic products are used to cook. Today, a significant part of the national menu consists of fish dishes, but a hundred years ago, it was completely different. Indigenous people felt fear of the treacherous sea that has taken lives of fishermen and therefore preferred to cultivate land. Today, wonderful fruits and vegetables are grown on the island. Seafood began to appear in the menu only in … Read further

Traditions and festivals in Kadavu Island

Over thousands of years, the culture and traditions of Kadavu have become multifaceted. The first settlers came to the island over 3.5 thousand years ago. They were skilled hunters and fishermen. Fishing is still one of the main deeds of many locals. A lot of interesting legends are connected with it. According to one of them, thousands of years ago, the natives armed with quite primitive tools hunted giant tortoises. The main hunters’ weapon was their voice. They lured tortoises to the … Read further

Gomel cultural sights

Gomel is a very charming Belarusian city, full of unspeakable charm. Many visitors of the city prefer to stroll through its picturesque streets in the evening, because in the light of the lamps Gomel looks simply unique. The main historical landmark of the city with a centuries-old history is the Gomel Palace and Park Ensemble. The central facility of the ensemble is the palace of Rumyantsev-Paskevich, which is made in the style of strict classicism. Its construction took place during the … Read further

Lugano attractions and entertainment

During the warm season the main entertainment for city visitors is beach recreation as the lake shore has several well equipped places. Tourists are provided with various water entertainments including water skiing, paragliding, windsurfing and boating. The outdoor recreation enthusiasts will love Lugano with its piedmont suburbs offering many walking routes. One can explore the scenic areas on foot or by bicycle and the fans of horse riding can make a horse tour. The popular beach Lido di … Read further

Konya for families and kids

Konya is a great place to relax with children. The city has a lot of unique attractions and entertainment. A great place to relax in the fresh air will be Alaeddin Hill Park. It is located on the top of a hill. There are several important historical sites located here, including the Alaeddin Mosque. The park is characterized by a variety of large trees and exotic plants. There are shops everywhere and a mass of free space for active games. From the observation platforms of the park opens a chic … Read further

Shopping in Kalimantan Island

There is something you should definitely bring from your trip to Kalimantan. We talk about the gemstones. Here, till the present day, diamonds, agates, rubies, sapphires, and other jewels are mined using opencast methods. Anyone can roll the dice, that’s why there are enough people, who want to get rich, selling rare gemstones. According to the market, high competition and a relative “cheapness” of the pray, lead to the prices, which are twice or three times lower than those of the … Read further

Extreme and fun in Liege

Tour of Liege on a Two-Tiered Vessel “Vauban”. You can visit the tour agency to take a tour of Liege. It is located on the 92 Feronstree Streets. You can choose from several options for excursions around the city that suits you best. For example, you will be given the opportunity to choose a cruise on the Meuse River on a small two-tier vessel "Vauban". You can board it at the pier. It is located near the Quai Édouard van Beneden promenade. The trip along the river will last 60 minutes. … Read further