Ep 155: South East Asia Starts to Reopen for Travel - One Year On!

Test & Go. Vaccinated Travel Lanes. ‘The Most Open Country in South East Asia.’ One year ago, on 1 November 2021, Thailand introduced the Test & Go tourism entry policy. In the same month, Singapore accelerated its Vaccinated Travel Lanes and Cambodia made travel easier for visitors than anywhere else.

This week, Gary and Hannah rewind to November 2021 – the month that reignited travel in South East Asia after 20 months of lockdowns and labyrinthine travel restrictions. Thailand and Singapore claimed the headlines, although their reopening strategies contrasted notably. Cambodia made the fullest reopening move, but garnered less media attention.

Elsewhere, Malaysia and Vietnam launched Sandbox-style schemes on the islands and Langkawi and Phu Quoc.

Twelve months on, how should we reflect on those progressive, yet imperfect, government-driven efforts to reboot travel and tourism?

And how has the language of travel changed in the interim?