India announced 500 000 free visas for tourists

[goji]

. Thailand??!

I paid £30 for the last Thai visa, plus £13.40 recorded delivery for the passports.

For a long holiday, this cost is irrelevant.

What I'd like to see as encouragement to visit Thailand is:

1 Visa free entry for a longer period of time, e.g. up to 6 months in any one year, with no pfaffing around. No visits to immigration etc.

2 If #1 is not possible, please do an e-visa so I don't have to post the passport. Thai immigration already have my passport details, photo and finger prints on file, so they should not need to see the passport AGAIN to issue a visa. They can even see I have followed the rules on past trips and departed on time.

3 No restrictions once I get to Thailand, no quarantine, no sandbox, nothing !

4 No COE


5 No compulsory covid insurance. By all means ask for proof of travel insurance or funds for unexpected medical expenses.

6 No threat of being sent to "hospital" if failing a covid test & havng no symptoms.

7 Open all the bars etc


Actually, for countries like India and China, lower visa fees might just be a suitable inducement. I think China charge UK citizens nearly £200 based on reciprocal pricing. Since I would rather make the first visit to China for just 2 weeks to see how it is, £200 is something of a minor deterrent. Already encouraging me to think I should go for a month, which puts me off. (Obviously this is pre-covid. Now it is out of the question.)

£30 for 60 days in Thailand, probably to be extended, is almost irrelevant.