However, visitors will still need to take an RT-PCR test 72 hours before traveling to Thailand and spend their first night in hotel quarantine or at other approved quarantine facilities. Unvaccinated travelers can also enter Thailand, but will be required to undergo a 10-day quarantine in an approved hotel.

The move marks the full reinstatement of the that the Thai government introduced at the start of November, when it from more than 60 countries, ending 18 months of border closures that brought the country’s economically vital tourist industry to a standstill.

Just before Christmas, Thailand suspended the scheme out of caution following the appearance of the fast-spreading Omicron variant. “Test and Go” was reinstated at the start of February with some additional restrictions. According to , the move follows requests from the local tourism industry to remove obstacles to its revival, as more countries, including several in Southeast Asia, ease border controls to lure holidaymakers.

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On February 9, the Philippines announced its full opening to vaccinated foreign travelers, five days after Indonesia opened the island of Bali to tourists. Earlier this month, Malaysia’s government raised the possibility of opening its borders in March, but is the second quarter of the year.

The Thai announcement came despite the country’s health authorities reporting , the highest since the August peak of last year’s devastating Delta outbreak. But as in many other countries, the Omicron wave has been accompanied by relatively low rates of hospitalization and death.

According to , spokesperson Taweesin Visanuyothin said the death toll this year has been as low as 0.19 percent, which gave the government the confidence to loosen restrictions on foreign travelers, especially given the importance of the country’s tourist sector. Yesterday, Thailand recorded 39 deaths, a day during the peak of the Delta surge.