Thailand limits outdoor drinking, reveals plan to tighten visa rules

Following multiple accounts on local and social media of lewd and unruly behaviour by tourists, Thailand’s government is lining up tighter rules for entry as well as mandatory insurance following the introduction of limits on public boozing.

And although the increasingly polluted air over Bangkok and the onset of the rainy season, with its daily thunderstorms and drenching downpours, make outdoor drinking less appealing, the updated rules mean no more sitting around in parks having a few cans of Singha or Chang. Roadsides, trains and stations are among further locations deemed off-limits.

On May 11, the same day the alcohol regime was announced, Surasak Phancharoenworakul, the tourism and sports minister, told local media that plans were being drawn up to ditch the blanket 60-day visa-free entry granted to visitors from 93 countries.

The revision will see a country-by-country approach tailored to reported behaviour of visitors, the minister said. Reducing the permitted stay would not affect the industry as the average length of stay by tourists is nine days, he says.

While the restrictions have not been finalized, Thailand previously granted 28-day on-arrival permits to visitors from many European countries – a duration the minister says should be sufficient.

Many visitors to Thailand come as part of a holiday taking in other countries in the region, such as Cambodia, Laos and Malaysia, which are accessible by land or via a short budget airline flight.

The minister said that a proposed 300 baht ($9) per arrival tourism tax, which was announced last year but still has not been implemented, remains part of the government’s plans.

Two weeks ago, the government revealed it was considering making travel and health insurance a prerequisite for visitors. The proposal comes after complaints by some city authorities and hospitals that tourists were leaving the country without covering medical bills.

Between January 1 and May 10, Thailand received 12.4 million foreign tourists, a nearly 3.5% drop year-on-year. The fall is a further indication that the industry, which makes up around 10% of gross domestic product, is encountering difficulties.

Thailand’s visitor numbers fell by around 7% to 33 million last year as the country’s military was embroiled in an intermittent border war with Cambodia.