As Thailand reopens its doors to fully vaccinated international tourists with its ‘Phuket Sandbox’ initiative, Agoda launches its dedicated landing page, www.agoda.com/PhuketSandbox to help travelers search for and book their long anticipated international holiday at Phuket hotels, resorts, bungalows or other properties that have been SHA Plus certified by the Thai Government’s Safety & Health Administration.

According to Agoda’s search data, searches for Phuket saw a 67% increase in June, compared to May before the Phuket Sandbox was officially announced on 1 June, with strongest interest coming from travelers from the United States, China, South Korea, France, Germany and Israel. More than one in four searches in June was for a stay period of 14 days or more. Thailand is the second most searched international destination for Americans in June, and the top five Thai cities for Americans are: Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya, Hua Hin / Cha-am, Chiang Mai.

At Agoda.com/PhuketSandbox, travelers can easily browse availability and pricing for the approved SHA Plus properties in real time, and can access Agoda’s dedicated Phuket and Thailand travel guides for further information on the Phuket Sandbox initiative, while drawing inspiration for local activities and attractions.

John Brown, CEO of Agoda said: “Thailand has taken its first steps to reopen its doors to long and short haul travelers with the launch of the Phuket Sandbox.  Phuket is a beautiful, tropical island that has great beaches and offers a wide range of exciting activities, sightseeing opportunities and amazing cuisine, all of which can be enjoyed under the Phuket Sandbox scheme. With Agoda’s combination of our global reach and extensive local knowledge, we want to inspire travelers ready and eligible to travel, to easily find approved accommodation to suit their Phuket Sandbox travel needs.”

Note to editors:

Agoda search data was collected on 1^st July for the search dates: 1- 31^st May 2021, and 1 – 30^th June 2021.