Foreign Office relaxes Thailand travel advice
16th November 2011
The Foreign Office has relaxed advice for those travelling to Thailand, as the country begins to recover from severe flooding
The Foreign Office is no longer advising against all but essential travel to the capital, Bangkok and other areas in central, north-eastern and eastern Thailand. However, the FCO still recommends all travellers exercise caution when visiting any of the 22 provinces that were severely affected by the flooding.
The Foreign Office is also still advising against all travel to the Preah Vihear and Ta Krabey/Ta Moan temple areas, and all but essential travel to Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and Songkhla.
Although it is now safe to travel to Bangkok a large amount of flood water remains in the capital's north, east and west suburbs and needs to pass through the city to reach the Gulf of Thailand. There is a potential risk that this water could leak into central Bangkok. Thai authorities are working to limit the damage, by containing the water with a series of barriers, dykes and canals.
Nomad Travel has warned travellers of possible health risks, "There is a possibility of a rise in gastrointestinal illness due to contaminated water, escalation of mosquito-borne illnesses including dengue and malaria and the occurrence of outbreaks of diseases such as measles due to crowded conditions.
"Travellers should seek expert travel health advice prior to their trip."
There continues to be some disruption to road and rail transport, and Bangkok's Don Muang airport, which operates mainly domestic flights, remains closed with flights being diverted through Suvarnabhumi, Thailand's main international airport.
Most key tourist destinations and attractions in Bangkok and other parts of the country have reopened to visitors. However Ayutthaya, which was forced to close due to severe flooding, remains closed but will reopen once clean-up is complete.
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