Thai Covid Center announces New Year’s Eve alcohol allowances and new province rezoning, Chonburi now joins the Blue Zones

National –

The Thai Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has approved serving and drinking alcoholic beverages in all provinces nationwide on the New Year’s Eve until 1:00 AM. of the following day, CCSA spokesperson Thaweesilp Visanuyothin announced today, December 13th.

The CCSA also reported that no provinces are categorized any longer in the dark-red and red zones provinces. Therefore, 39 provinces are in the orange zone, 30 in the yellow zone, and eight in the blue zone. TPN media notes that these color-coding scales, for those who are not familiar, dictate the rules and restrictions in each province that are in place to limit the spread of Covid-19.

All areas of Chonburi will also join another 7 pilot provinces, like Phuket or Krabi, in the BLUE Zone (Business, Leisure, Ultimate Experience) which are essentially tourism zones. This means that the province is ready to welcome vaccinated tourists/arrivals from eligible countries under governmental reopening schemes. Restaurants under SHA+ standards will be allowed to serve alcohol during their business hours under the requirements and restrictions of the Chonburi Communicable Disease Committee. This does not mean, however, that bars, entertainment venues, nightclubs, pubs, etc. can legally open as they are still technically closed nationwide by order of the CCSA until at least mid-January when they are planned to be re-evaluated. TPN media notes, however, that in many areas bars have become “restaurants” with varying degrees of certification or licensing to attempt to open in the interim, which has also led to varying degrees of enforcement.

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From December 16th onwards, alcohol drinking at qualified restaurants will continue to be prohibited in 39 provinces in the orange zones under the new announcement. The other provinces in the yellow and blue zones are allowed to do so but must follow the guidelines of their provincial orders.

However, during holiday seasons, restaurants with proper ventilation nationwide, despite their color zoning, are allowed to serve alcohol to customers between December 31st, 2021, to 1:00 AM. of January 1st, 2022. All eateries stated must strictly abide by the Covid Free Settings requirements during their operations.

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All of the changes announced above will be put into effect this Thursday, December 16th.

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Nop Meechukhun
National News Writer at The Pattaya News from September 2020 to October, 2022. Born and raised in Bangkok, Nop enjoys telling stories of her hometown through her words and pictures. Her educational experience in the United States and her passion for journalism have shaped her genuine interests in society, politics, education, culture, and art.