Pattaya city is planning to introduce its own “Pattaya Model” to attract foreign tourists, particularly Chinese and Russian tourists, to visit the city under the Special Tourist Visa (STV) scheme.
Pattaya Mayor Sonthaya Khunpluem told the Associated Press yesterday, October 28, that the tourist proposal aims to accommodate foreign tourists traveling under STV visas as well as other groups that are verified and approved by the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA).
The Mayor said: “Last year, there were 3 million Chinese tourists visiting Pattaya, followed by Russian tourists with 1.1 million. The CCSA is targeting these two groups to visit the country under the Covid-19 health measures to boost the local economy.”
“Currently, we are in the process of establishing a committee between Pattaya City and the private tourism sector, such as the Eastern Thai Hotels Association and the Chonburi Tourist Attraction Association, to potentially plan the Pattaya Model.”
According to the Mayor, private travel agencies are in talks of drawing potential groups of Chinese and Russian tourists from cities with low risk of Covid-19 for visiting Pattaya, such as St. Petersburg, Guangzhou, Shanghai, and Shenzhen.
Pattaya authorities are also coordinating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to consider welcoming foreign tourists who are interested to visit Pattaya to perform a state quarantine at a Alternative Local State Quarantine (ALSQ) hotel in Pattaya without having to stay in an Alternative State Quarantine (ASQ) hotel in Bangkok.
The plan is believed to bring more tourists and spur the domestic tourist economy into the city during the implementation of the national Emergency Decree to prevent the local spread of Covid-19.
“Meanwhile, we are following up with the government on when U-Tapao airport will be open to accommodate STV tourists since it is fully prepared to support direct flights and to strictly abide by public health measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19,” Sonthaya concluded.
