The Phuket Thailand Sandbox – Next Pattaya Sandbox?

What conditions and qualifications for those who wish to travel to Phuket for the Sandbox project?

Can you stay at any hotel? When can you leave Phuket? What’s the catch? We have gathered that information for you here.

As many of you already know. Phuket is the first province to allow international travellers to enter the country for the first time without quarantine in over a year, ever since the travel restriction.

This is called the Phuket Sandbox, as Phuket is a large island making it possible to contain everyone on the island.

Last year, there was a plan called Phuket Model.

Where they were risking the reopening the borders along with the two weeks quarantine. Now the Phuket Sandbox is without any quarantine.

If the Phuket Sandbox is successful, you can expect other parts of the country will be allowed to do the same.

The Mayor of Pattaya wants to reopen the city with the Pattaya Sandbox. Who knows, maybe in a month or two, there will be one. But by October, the entire country should be ready to reopen to fully vaccinated travellers without any quarantine.

Starting July 1^st and onwards, the Phuket Sandbox is in effect, with no quarantine.

Travellers are allowed to leave Phuket to any other part of the country after spending 14 nights in Phuket.

Available in more than 60 countries/territories (as of June 30th, 2021)

As for Japan, Phuket accepts only business people to come to negotiate business.

For travellers entering Phuket Sandbox, there are different conditions for the type and purpose of travel.

Let’s say you’re country is on the list and you want to travel here. What other requirements do you need?

1. You must stay in one of the alow countries for at least 21 days before entering Phuket.
2. You need something called a Certificate of Entry or COE. Thais and foreigners may register that on this website.
3. You receive your vaccination shots and are fully vaccinated 14 days before you travel. You will also require a document stating you received your shots, which is called the vaccination certificate. Suppose you have children under six years old. They do not need the vaccination certificate.
4. You need travel insurance that will cover your health care and medical expenses. It must include coverage for covid-19 throughout your stay, with insurance coverage not less than $100,000.
5. You will need a medical certificate with laboratory result indicating that you do not have covid using the RT-PCR, is the gold standard in testing covid-19, and other viral diseases like Ebola. The RT-PCR test must be done 72 hours before you depart.
6. Once you enter Phuket, you will get tested again with RT-PCR and wait in a room for 1 night for the result. If you are positive, I would assume you will be taken to the hospital for treatment.
   So you can’t fake the test to get inside the country. Some people try to get a fake certificate, and they get deported back home and blacklisted.
7. When the test comes back negative the next day, you can’t stay at any hotel you what.
   You must stay at a hotel that received the SHA PLUS standards for 14 nights. These hotels will at least have 70% of their hotel staff received a full dose of vaccination. But you can leave your hotel whenever you want and go anywhere you wish around Phuket Island. After 14 nights, you are allowed to travel outside of Phuket to any part of the country.
8. Several other things you need to be aware of when you’re here.
   You will require to have an App install, and I believe it is your phone. But it could be an actual device attach to you to track your movement with GPS tracking.
   BTW, some people going through the sandbox right now don’t turn on their GPS, and the immigration tracks them. One guy didn’t even show up at his hotel and went to stay with his wife in Phuket. I’m not sure why he didn’t let his wife come to his hotel and so forth.
   You also need to wear your mask. You need to do social distancing. Wash your hands, all that stuff.
9. If you stay for fewer than 14 nights, you will be able to leave—those who stay longer and wish to leave Phuket after 14 nights. You will need to do another RT-PCR test. So 3 RT-PCR tests in total and proof you stayed at the SHA PLUS hotel if you want to leave Phuket. Along with your passport and visa.

You too will need some documents.

1. You must have been fully vaccinated or have one dose of AstraZeneca vaccine for at least 14 days.
2. Or you have recovered from the symptoms not more than 90 days
3. Or have been bested with RT-PCR or Antigen Test for no more than seven days
4. Must install the APP on your phone so the authority can track you.