Since Thailand announced the reopening of the Phuket Sandbox for all fully vaccinated travellers from any country, airlines are gearing up to provide flights for eager travellers. AirAsia Malaysia (flight code AK) will resume flights between Kuala Lumpur and Phuket with four (4) weekly services from Kuala Lumpur beginning 5th November 2021.
UPDATE: The removal of PCR testing on arrival in among changes announced at a meeting on 22nd April, the details are available HERE and all incoming travellers will be classified by their vaccination status.
Getting to Phuket Sandbox
Book flights to Phuket from RM189 one way by 31st October for travel between 5th November 2021 and 30th March 2022 using the ‘Flights’ icon on the airasia Super App. Pick up some great value flights+hotel deals via the ‘SNAP’ icon on the Super App starting from RM549 for travel within the same dates. If you prefer to book your hotels separately, check the ‘Hotels’ icon in the app. Book hotels in Phuket provided by SHA Plus and get an extra 10% off using the promo code AAHOTEL10.
Of course, some conditions do apply, given that border restrictions are still in place in many countries. Fully vaccinated travellers from Malaysia wishing to travel under the Phuket Sandbox Program must meet the requirements set by the Thai Government and successfully receive the Certificate of Entry by applying on Thailand’s Certificate of Entry Registration System prior to purchasing their flights. You will need to allow at least 3 days to receive your approval before booking your tickets.
Riad Asmat, CEO AirAsia Malaysia is very encouraged by the success of the Langkawi travel bubble in Malaysia and sees the reopening of the Phuket Sandbox programme to travellers from Malaysia as a big milestone. This heralds the much awaited opening of international leisure travel to Thailand and AirAsia looks forward to adding more flights on this very popular leisure route.
…. From an operational standpoint, we have extensively prepared for the resumption of flights to ensure all of our guests can travel safely, seamlessly and with peace of mind. Riad Asmat
He also assured travellers of the stringent health and safety protocols enforced on all of AirAsia flights, which use highly trained crew. The airline has used the period of downtime in travel over the past one-and-a-half years to further improve and revamp its flight procedures and processes. Only fully-vaccinated employees operate flights and serve on-duty at airport terminals.
In addition, their robust Covid-19 mitigation plan includes accepting only fully-vaccinated guests onboard, making it mandatory to check-in via the airasia Super App which integrates with vaccination records on MySejahtera. They will soon launch a unique FACES facial recognition boarding system to make the entire journey fully digital and contactless.
Mrs Nongyao Jirundorn, Director for Malaysia & Brunei, Tourism Authority of Thailand said that Thailand is currently working hard on its reopening borders. She added
….Thailand is Malaysia’s No.1 favourite holiday destination and we look forward to welcoming Malaysians with more cities opening up soon.
Still worried to fly?
Despite mostly not flying for a good part of the past 20 months, all AirAsia’s aircraft have been properly maintained according to procedures set by the manufacturer. AirAsia has set up an in-house maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) unit Asia Digital Engineering provides services not only to AirAsia but also to a number of other airlines. All its pilots and cabin crew are regularly sent for mandatory refresher courses and are ongoing retraining so that they are always on top of their job.
For more information on AirAsia’s safety measures and travel SOPs including vaccination requirements, please read the latest travel advisory. Get more information on Phuket Sandbox SOPs and list of SHA Plus hotels in Phuket from this link in AirAsia support.
This Post Has 2 Comments
when will airasia return to flying avv to hkt?
There have never been direct flights between these two airports. AVV – KUL is an AirAsiaX route, which will hopefully return soon, if the airline’s restructuring is successful. You can fly from KUL to HKT as soon as flights resume, expected 5th November. You’ll just have to get to KUL first. Good luck. Every passing day is a day closer to travelling again.