While the bigger question of whether Thailand's ongoing third wave can be brought under control soon, the country's tourism authorities are adamant about reopening Phuket come July 1.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand has reiterated that plans will proceed with the reopening of Phuket to foreign travellers sans quarantine.
A key tenet for Phuket's 'sandbox' plan was to vaccinate 70% of the island’s population against Covid-19 to achieve herd immunity ahead of the reopening date.
However, a virus surge beginning last month threatened to topple the July timeline, since the vaccines needed to be shared with other provinces.
To date, the island has attained a vaccination rate of 22%, but it is still a long way from its 70% target, local news site Thaiger reported.
Thailand's vaccination rollout is expected to gain pace starting June, when domestically produced AstraZeneca vaccines become available.
The TAT has, meanwhile, announced a city marketing plan to highlight the high level of safety in Phuket and other sandbox areas to build up tourists' confidence.
The tourism board gathered some 60 hotel operators over a virtual meeting earlier this week, urging the hospitality players to carry on with global communications in building confidence for what will be a confirmed execution of the project Phuket sandbox.
In attendance were hospitality names including Accor, Dusit Thani, Centara Hotels and Resorts, Marriott International, Minor Hotels and Onyx Hospitality Group, led by the Thai Hotels Association.
The TAT added that regular updates of Phuket's reopening plan will soon be available on a dedicated 'Countdown to Reopen Phuket' — detailing Covid-case count, vaccination progress, the public health system's capacity, and livestreaming travel experiences from the Andaman islands, said the same Bangkok Post report.
British expat Richard Barrow who has lived in Thailand the past 27 years, tweeted on 20 May that TAT has "even invited influencers like Mark Wiens to help promote the island" among other expected key opinion leaders, travel bloggers and film crews.