Thailand holidays are back on the cards for vaccinated Brits, as the country has scrapped quarantine rules this week.
Double jabbed visitors arriving from 63 countries - which includes the UK - will no longer be required to quarantine when arriving in Thailand, although there are still other entry requirements in place.
This includes needing to get approval to visit by Thai authorities, and taking a PCR test before leaving the UK.
Once in Thailand, travellers will need to take a second test on arrival, then stay in their hotel room until a negative result is confirmed (this shouldn't take more than six hours). An antigen test will also be required on day 6-7 of your visit.
You can get the full details in the Foreign Office's Thailand travel advice as well as Thailand's Tourism Authority website.
As for coming back to the UK?
Thailand is no longer on the red list - in fact, there are no countries left on the red list at the time of writing - so you won't need to stay in a quarantine hotel. However, there are differing requirements depending on your vaccination status.
For those who are fully vaccinated, you'll only need to take one test, a PCR test or a lateral flow test on day two after landing.
For those who are unvaccinated/partially vaccinated arrivals, you'll need to take a pre-departure test, and PCR tests on days two and eight. You'll also need to self-isolate for 10 days.
There are plenty of firms already offering holiday packages if you're thinking of booking a getaway. For example:
- LoveHolidays has packages from £425pp - book here.
- British Airways has holidays from £509pp - book here.
- Virgin Holidays has packages from £676pp - book here.
- First Choice has deals from £731pp - book here.
- TUI has packages from £741pp - book here.
Thailand has long been a firm favourite with Brits looking for winter sun holidays, so it's not surprising to see that travel firms noted a rise in interest following the change in restrictions.
In fact, travel search engine KAYAK saw flight searches for Thailand from the UK surge by 246% month-on-month after it was first announced that Thailand would change its rules for November.
Laure Bornet, General Manager, KAYAK EMEA, said: :Thailand is one of the UK's favourite overseas destinations, especially here in the winter months, and the reopening is certainly leaving many Brits optimistic to travel to Thailand once again. We had expected that the searches would increase, but it surprises us that they increase as sharply as we see right now."
November through to March tend to offer the best time to visit Thailand, when the weather is hot and sunny.
There's everything from beautiful beachside resorts to awe-inspiring temples and bustling cities - in fact, we've tried to help to narrow it down by rounding up our top pick of the best things to see and do if you're planning a trip.
Then of course there are all of those beautiful islands and incredible beaches you'll want to add to the bucket list - and with average daily temperatures of 31C come November/December there's ample opportunity to make the most of the landscapes.
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