Stakeholders have confirmed at the Hua Hin Airport Roadshow that the province is on track for its reopening in October.

Following the same rules set under the Phuket Sandbox Programme, Hua Hin Recharge, which is run by local tourism businesses while working with state organizations, hospitals, local health authorities and tourism associations to speed up vaccinations, is set to commence in Q4 after 100% of the healthcare and hospitality workers as well as 70% of the general population have been inoculated. Moreover, all tourism establishments must be registered in Thailand’s Safety and Health Administration (SHA) and following COVID-19 protocols.

Under Hua Hin Recharge, vaccinated international travellers who tested negative for the coronavirus will no longer need to quarantine, but they must stay in Hua Hin for 14 days. With over 60 hotels and 400 attractions, Hua Hin is slightly smaller than Phuket and Koh Samui so it was easier to manage.

Banking on its proximity to Bangkok, the province estimates to welcome around 100,000 tourists and generate more than THB1.2 billion (USD37 million) of tourism revenue.

With the aim to lure a million international travellers in the next three years, the Hua Hin airport is currently under a major facelift under the Phoenix Plan. The airport aims to sign more airlines to fly directly to Hua Hin and to make the airport a destination itself. The airport also aims to build partnerships with Singapore and Hong Kong, which are Asia’s gateways to further its reach.