Cambodia announces phased reopening to vaccinated tourists

Cambodia’s government announced plans Tuesday to reopen the country in several stages to fully vaccinated foreign tourists starting from the end of next month.

The program beginning Nov. 30 will allow visitors who are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus to skip being quarantined if they stay at least five days in designated areas, the Tourism Ministry announced.

The first such areas are two seaside provinces, Sihanoukville and Koh Kong, on the Gulf of Thailand.

On arrival, visitors must show proof they have been vaccinated and take a rapid results test for COVID-19. They can proceed without quarantine if the results are negative.

Siem Reap province, home to the famous Angkor temples, is to be added to the quarantine-free province list in January.

Other destinations will then be added if the program is judged successful, with the entire country opening up when the coronavirus is considered under control.

Cambodia in 2019, before the pandemic, received 6.6 million foreigners who accounted for nearly $5 billion in revenue, and most of them visited Angkor and seaside destinations, according to the Tourism Ministry.

In 2020, the number of visitors dropped sharply to 1.3 million, and earnings from them plunged to about $1 billion.

Cambodia recorded 112 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday, its lowest number since April, bringing its total since the pandemic began last year to 118,000.