Pattaya beaches, Koh Lan reopen from Monday

Pattaya beaches, Koh Lan reopen from Monday

Lounge chairs and umbrellas will return but with strict distancing

A man sleeps on an almost empty beach in Pattaya, which is usually crowded with tourists, on April 26. (Reuters photo)
A man sleeps on an almost empty beach in Pattaya, which is usually crowded with tourists, on April 26. (Reuters photo)

PATTAYA: Pattaya will reopen its beaches and the popular offshore destination of Koh Lan from Monday as it eases its lockdown in line with the decline in local coronavirus infections nationwide.

Beachgoers in the resort city in Chon Buri will be able to rent lounge chairs and umbrellas but operators must enforce distancing measures by keeping them at least one metre apart, Mayor Sonthaya Khunplome said on Friday.

The beaches will be closed from Tuesday to Thursday in the second or third weeks of the month, instead of every Wednesday before the lockdown, for clean-up, he added.

The reopening includes beaches in neighbouring Jomtien.

The city also posted a Facebook message announcing the reopening on Monday of Koh Lan, an island popular with day-trippers. However, accommodation providers on the island will not be allowed to open yet.

A man walks on a beach in Pattaya on March 27. (Reuters photo)

The city sealed off all beaches from visitors and local residents on May 9 as part of its effort to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Koh Lan had been off-limits since March 25.

Chon Buri has reported no new Covid-19 cases since May 23, and only 15 since the start of the month. Since the first case was reported on Feb 24, the province has had 87 patients, 41 of them in Bang Lamung district where Pattaya is located.

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