[TominScotland]

Looks as if both Vietnam (15th March) and Malaysia (1st April) will be re-opening to fully vaccinated business and leisure travellers.

As these are both countries I urgently need to visit, am starting to organise my visit.

Any advice from those based locally would be welcome.

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tomwjsimpson

[MartynSinclair]

Hi TiS – I am also keen to go to Vietnam during my forthcoming trip to BKK. However, the two options I have:

1. go mid trip, but then I will have to go through the palaver of applying for another Thailand pass plus what will seem like daily PCR tests. I am currently on day 7 after applying, and still no Thailand pass…

2. try and schedule the Vietnam trip at the end of my my stay in BKK so when I return from Vietnam, I will be transit in BKK, on my way back to London. Way too risky in case the Hoi An or Hanoi to BKK sector is cancelled or delayed.

I think for a dual country visit, it will need another few months…

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Tom Otley

[K1ngston]

My advice is to hold off for the moment, the region has been very quick to say they are opening up and then doing a) nothing about it or b) realising that there will be another spike and rescind the idea….

To give you an idea how bat sh1t crazy some of the rules are here, last week Singapore was going to ease some of their self imposed restrictions in 2 phases, but due to the complexities of the rules that they wrote they have decided to wait to fully understand the implications ….. WTF!

I attended a webinar by SQ yesterday as they are trying to drive their Corporate customers to get into the air, and the general consensus is that the rules here are so onerous and easily misconstrued that Corporates will not be sending their executives anytime soon especially throughout the region.

Obviously to further afield where common sense prevails its not too much of a problem until you have to come back!!!!!! Good luck TiS with your plans

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Polly, Jeffrey, TGRW, Tom Otley

[stevescoots]

I little caution re Vietnam.

Although they have announced re-open on the 15th, less than a week from now, to anyone at the moment there is still no way to get a Visa if your previous one has expired.

The 15th is a resumption of commercial flights and anyone holding a current valid visa. Visa free travel as before Covid for some countries such as Uk has been discussed at length but still not confirmed.

With covid positive cases in the country climbing so high now the health authority is pushing back on what the rest of Govt wants to do.

If planning a VN trip then make sure it’s a fully flex ticket.

I fly to SGN on Thursday and had to go through all the Govt approvals that took 6 weeks even though I have had a TRC for 4 years which expired and could not renew in time…due to covid

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Polly, Tom Otley

[AMcWhirter]

[quote quote=1205697]If planning a VN trip then make sure it’s a fully flex ticket.[/quote]

Good advice with Bamboo Airlines now flying to FRA and will soon be starting service to LHR.

[MartynSinclair]

Beware when applying for a Thailand pass. Despite warnings on the opening page of the Thailand pass website about scams, my very official looking email requesting further information that was checked before opening, has necessitated my lap top being sent to IT for some cleansing. Also be aware, the new reduced covid travel insurance needed for entry into Thailand, now at US$20,000 benefit cost over double than when US$50,000 benefit was needed, in December. I was covered on my AMEX policy, but this could not be used, (see below).

The Thailand pass application is a hassle, you must upload in jpg – but any additional documents can be uploaded in .pdf and more importantly, only 1 sheet of paper for each requirement. So if your hotel and RT-PCR details are spread over 2 pages, ask the hotel to reduce the information onto 1 page. My American Express travel insurance and covid cover, which would have negated the need for the extra Thai policy, could not be used, as the benefit confirmation, was spread over 3 pages!! This has now been resolved by AMEX…

You can avoid the 1 night quarantine, by requesting a fast (1 hour) RT-PCR test on arrival through your hotel – but as in the UK, it has an additional cost.

All arriving passenger in one group/family need separate passes.

Thailand is open – but the hassle of the Thailand pass and the length of time it takes to come through…. is very off putting. There is talk about the Thailand pass being abolished, after all, you still need to show all the individual pieces of paper at the boarding gate and on arrival, even though to get the Thailand pass, they have all been uploaded… to a Government agency….

So the thought of trying to undertake a two country visit in a couple of weeks – will need two separate applications for the Thailand pass…. I just don’t have the energy, so Vietnam will need to wait until later in the year…

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Polly, DerekVH, Jeffrey

[Chris in Makati]

[quote quote=1205814]MartynSinclair[/quote]

@MartynSinclair

How did American Express resolve this? Did they send you a policy on a single sheet of paper?

I will be travelling to Thailand on May 19th, and assuming the Test & Go system is still in place then I’ll need Covid-19 insurance for my stay there. I was hoping that the insurance included with my Amex Platinum Card would cover that, but not sure if that’s acceptable to the Thai authorities.

[MartynSinclair]

[quote quote=1205821]How did American Express resolve this? Did they send you a policy on a single sheet of paper?[/quote]

Yes – but it took a lot of effort and insistence of speaking to someone outside of their call centre. However, the document only came through after I had purchased the cover through AXA (Thailand).

No body has been able to explain though why the cost of the insurance has doubled, for what is basically less than half the benefit.

HOWEVER – I have just put the additional cost of the Thailand insurance as part and parcel of getting into Thailand. Annoying as it is, it is not really going to stop me from making the business trip.

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Polly

[MarcusGB]

I have to agree about The Thailand Stay & Go system just put in place.
It took over 5 hrs of booking tests, Government certified hotel for the first night, and then buying a test for landing at HKT.
I travel with Swiss from LCY via Zurich, and then connect in BKK.
Most Airlines are using Thai Smile, where the seats are all Economy and packed right up to your knees. So Business class or not, you go economy either via Singapore and Australia’s Jetstar (Economy) if booked with KLM or AF.
Swiss and LH, Austrian all have a premium seat on Bangkok Airways.

But like a set of dominos, one aspect of the multi process in place, and you will lose everything, whether you take paper copies which is highly recommended, as well as the uploads. I copied the uploaded process also on my phone camera.
It remains a painfully slow process, and if you make a mistake, you have to go back and start all over again! The site is very amateur, and no proper contact base in English!

Gone are the days when you can Stopover in SE Asia, or fly down to Australia and Dare now, to stopover in KUL, SIN etc, or visit several countries.
Then each Airline has different rules, and what about the risks of going through BKK airport with so many travellers and International to Domestic flights merging with many Airlines to connect on?

Typically extra hassle, but then they are A Military Government still.

I strongly feel IATA should be pushing for Airlines to streamline their Covid processing, and Countries to link in with that, especially for frequent flyers.
No one seems to have any sense of it still. Every country and Airline is different.
Don’t forget you have to then upload all this to your Airline within 48hrs of flying too!
So many aspects, and just one needs to go wrong and your trip will not happen.

We also now have to ensure safe travels and routes flying down through Southern Europe, negotiating the Middle East Conflicts, due to the Atrocities being committed in Ukraine. I would like to hear more from the Airlines about their Safety plans for flights during this very dangerous time for World Conflict, this time at the Edge of Europe!

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Polly, Jeffrey

[jjlasne]

The VN consulate in San Francisco said that it will start issuing visas on 01 April.

[jjlasne]

Let’ s get political. It is interesting to note that SE Asia, Australia and Kiwilandia all had very low numbers but are/were slow to re-open. I also suspect that Kiwilandia wants to remain isolated forever, a sort of sanitary island concentration camp. See how long that last. On the other hand, Europe – Sweden in particular – and America were willing to sacrifice a small number of their populations while at the same time accelerating the production of viable vaccines and forcing vaccination although the mandatory part was not always very well received. Australia closed its statelines or state borders. This could never have been imaginable within America although Hawaii and Alaska were de facto unreachable by land or sea.

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Polly

[stevescoots]

[postquote quote=1205917]

I have heard this as well and that visa free will return to pre covid countries as well, however still nothing official. I arrived in SGN tonight and the change is obvious already.previous flights in had between 10-20 passengers, My flight on QR was pretty full, on landing an EK flight had also just arrived and it was clear that there was not enough staff on hand as it was looking like at least an hour or more wait just to check health declarations. I confess that for the first time ever I can recall I was very un British…and jumped the line by going to the toilet then joining the front of the chaos

Got to my Vn home and drank 2 cups of Yorkshire tea to refill my British stiff upper lip meter 😊

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Polly, K1ngston, jjlasne

[globetrotter96]

Yes, Malaysia border will be opened soon but I think it is always important for us to follow SOP. Before making your decision, I think you can also check on other info such as the time, climate, and weather.

You can read about it here: https://www.paulhypepage.my/malaysia-time-climate-weather/

[stevescoots]

Vietnam is now officially open and people are alreday coming in. rules are similar to before covid.

countries that had visa free travel such as UK (max stay 15 days and departure ticket needed)
Other countries that need visa can apply either at the Vn embassy or do online for collection on arrival. You get an immigration letter to show on check in, as before

RT-PCR test needed in English or Vietnamese no older that 72 hours before departure. Antigen test also acceptable no older than 24 hours before flying.
no need to be vaccinated
no quarantine or test on arrival
need to install the PC-covid app but reality is nobody is using it any more.
Need to do online health declaration no earlier than 24 hours before arrival. some airlines (QR) demand you do it before boarding, other just remind you to do it on arrival. you will need to do it before immigration as you have to show the QR code.

Omicron is everywhere but life is going on, masks are needed in public but not once in a bar or resturant and there are no other restrictions. Apart from few tourists Saigon is back to its busy self.

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Polly, BPP, Tramor01, MartynSinclair, Jacob

[K1ngston]

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/evening-update-todays-headlines-from-the-straits-times-on-march-24-2022

Singapore professing to open up (slowly and cautiously) having been here before we shall see

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Polly

[Author]

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