The last Covid holdouts in Asia are throwing open their doors for travel — except for China and Korea, where they’re still on lockdown as doctors try to figure out how to contain the outbreak.
In Japan, the death toll from the coronavirus is nearing 1,000. In China, the death toll is still rising. In South Korea, there are fewer than 10,000 confirmed cases, but the country is under lockdown.
In Southeast Asia, Thailand — the world’s largest tourism destination — is already testing travelers for COVID-19 and has placed stringent restrictions on the flow of tourists, suspending scheduled arrivals at key destinations and suspending all arrivals to the region’s two major islands.
Now, some of the last big players in Asia, including Singapore and Vietnam, are beginning to get on board.
But for now, here’s a look at how the region’s major tourism hotspots in Southeast Asia are faring:
Thailand
Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok is the world’s most visited destination city, so it’s understandable that everyone’s attention is on the World Cup, soccer’s world championship, on the cusp of starting next month, and on all of the tourists it expects will come to Thailand for the festivities.
For now, though, Bangkok is still a hub, a place for tourists just about anywhere else in Southeast Asia to seek adventure or relaxation after a long international flight. The city is still getting used to the idea of being hit by a worldwide pandemic, with restaurants, hotels and attractions shuttered and public gatherings banned.
The city is still seeing a flood of tourists from China, the main source of new cases. That’s mostly because of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China, but it’s also because of the economic and political turmoil in Southeast Asia, with Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam locked down because of the virus.
The impact of the coronavirus has been evident on the streets of Bangkok — where traffic jams, construction zones and business hours have all been converted
