TRAVEL GUIDANCE FOR SONGKRAN AND BEYOND – COVID – 19

Wednesday 26th February 2020

Dear Parents, Guardians, Teachers and Staff

RE: TRAVEL GUIDANCE FOR SONGKRAN AND BEYOND – COVID – 19

I would like to sincerely thank everybody in the Bangkok Prep Community for your ongoing understanding, honesty and integrity with regards to the self quarantine process. This must continue in the coming months as we face the Covid-19 crisis together and unified!

For the Songkran holiday and the long weekend in May, I would like to recommend that you avoid travelling to areas considered high-risk for Covid-19 infection. At the moment the list is mainland China, Hong Kong, Macua, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, Japan, Malaysia and Vietnam.

If you do visit one of these places, or transit through them with a connecting flight, you or your  child(ren) will need to complete a 14-day self-quarantine period before you can come onto the school site. The 14 day period would begin on the day you return to Thailand and parents, household members, staff and students will not be able to come to school for this time period.

Please be aware that the list of high risk areas could expand further by the date you plan to begin your travels or even while you are away.

I want our community to do all it can to reduce the risk of spreading the Covid-19 virus. I also want to ensure that our students can come to school. My advice would be to take Songkran holidays in Thailand if at all possible.

This is particularly applicable for those families who have (a) child(ren) about to undertake public examinations as these dates are set externally.

I remain hopeful that the situation will improve over the next few months and uncomplicated travel will be possible again. At this moment, it is not possible to confidently predict what will happen so again, I offer some guidance with a view to reducing the learning impact of the situation.

If you are planning to travel outside of Thailand for the June to August holidays, consider delaying bookings and booking ‘flexitickets’. You may need to adjust your return date to ensure your family can clear any quarantine requirements before we return to school on Thursday 20th August 2020.  Avoid visiting any of the high-risk countries listed by Thai Government. Be sure to check the details of any travel restrictions at your planned destination too. Some extra research and flexibility over the next few months will help us all to stay together and stay healthy.

Yours faithfully,

Duncan Stonehouse

Head of School