Covid-19 in Laos: 19/11/2021 last update
Dernière mise à jour : 7 juil. 2023
November 19, 2021: Laos prepares to reopen on January 1, 2022
We're still waiting for the official announcement, but on November 18 the government issued a press release concerning preparations to open up Laos to travelers as part of its "Lao Travel Green Zone" plan from January 1, 2022.
To date, the country plans to reopen 3 provinces considered as "green zones", such as Vientiane Capital, Vang Vieng and Luang Prabang, which have reached a vaccination rate of 70% of the population. If you are planning to travel outside these green zones, you will be required to book government-approved hotels and transport certified under the "LaoSafe program".
Entry requirements include :
- a valid vaccination certificate with QR code
- a negative PCR test less than 72 hours old
As soon as you arrive at the airport or the Laotian border, you will undergo a PCR test, then be taken to your hotel, selected by us and approved by the health authorities, to await the result of the PCR test within 24 hours.
If the result is negative, you'll be able to enjoy your tailor-made program, designed with passion by our ORLA Tours team. If the result is positive, you will have to stay in your hotel room for 3 days, after which you will be tested again.
Laos will be launching an application called "LaoStaySafe", which will keep track of your movements in the country. Your guide will take care of these day-to-day formalities in just a few clicks throughout your stay.
As a travel agency member of the Luang Prabang provincial tourism association, we are already at the top of the list to receive the "LaoSafe program" training, which will take place in December 2021 in our city. This certification will enable the whole team, and all our partners, to be trained, and so be able to welcome you to Laos in the near future in compliance with the new health, hygiene and safety standards.
COVID-19 figures to date in Laos
Total since the start of the pandemic :
- Number of cases detected: 58,798
- Number of deaths: 116
- Number of cases currently under care: 11,159
- Number of new cases per day over the last few days of last week: +-1,000 to 1,400
- Percentage of unvaccinated deaths: +-85%.
- Number of first-dose vaccine recipients: 49
- Number of double-dose vaccinated: 41
For more information, visit the official Laotian Times website: https://laotiantimes.com/
Since November 12, 2021, health authorities have been asking newly vaccinated Covid-19 cases with no or few symptoms to self-confine by staying at home for a period of 14 days.
Dreaming of a trip to Laos?
Start planning your trip to Laos for 2022 by contacting Vasanath, Phasouk or Charly to create your private tour with a group of friends or family. We'll provide you with all the travel options available and compliant with the latest regulations for travel to Laos from the start of 2022.
Discover our tours in semi-liberté à Luang Prabang
Our previous publications on the evolution of Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic
>> June 15, 2020 : Covid-19 situation in Laos
2020 was a year full of twists and turns, and one that will leave indelible marks for having been the year of Covid-19... Who was able to get past it, probably no one, following the several months of global containment between February and June (for the moment, as we are in June 2020 at the time of writing...).
Concerning the coronavirus epidemic in Asia, what damage has it done to Laos? The number of contaminated cases and deaths? And what is the risk of traveling to Laos in the coming months?
Update on the epidemic in Laos to date: 19 contaminated cases and 0 deaths. 2 months with no new cases
>> When did Covid-19 start in Laos?
The first case was detected in Vientiane, Laos, in the last week of March. The patient, a tourist guide, was contaminated by a group of European travellers. She was immediately admitted to hospital 103, where a specialized unit was set up to deal with future cases.
Faced with this unprecedented situation, the Laotian government immediately closed its borders. At the beginning of April, we went into confinement mode for an initially unspecified period, which was tightened on April 10 with a ban on travel throughout the country without an official document issued by the village chiefs. All private and public events, including the Laotian New Year, scheduled for April 12 to 16, were cancelled. The sale of alcohol was banned from April 10, and there was a nationwide curfew and numerous police checks on the roads.
It's true that these very strict instructions (as you can see from the article) seem inordinately strict, but to date, they've enabled us to get through the epidemic in exemplary fashion!
>> How did our team of travel experts manage this crisis situation?
At home, working all over the country, our ORLA TOURS team stayed in daily contact by Skype. Between updating our website, writing new blog articles to be published soon and Webinars (remote meetings via internet connection) with our travel partners, we've stayed active.
On the personal side of things, as an active, hands-on team, our non-work activities have consisted of : weight goals such as losing 5 kilos during confinement by alternating periods of fasting and home gym, others maintained their sporting activity by running half-marathons in their garden (Charly) or pedaling their exercise bike up to 150 kilometers a week, while others created real nurseries of exotic trees of all kinds, or perfect vegetable gardens by planting lettuces and other staple produce. Others preferred to go to the temple on a regular basis, in short... we knew how to keep busy too, to keep us going psychologically.
>> May 4, 2020: Epidemic situation 1 month after the first case in Laos
As of May 04, 2020, in Laos we have had a total of 19 cases of Covid-19 which have been managed in various hospitals around the country (Vientiane, Luang Prabang ...) and count no deaths. Most patients have already returned home in good health. The country has managed this pandemic very well, and has set up free emergency telephone lines to provide rapid assistance to infected people throughout the country. Thanks to the Laotian population's respect for containment and barrier measures, this number has remained constant over the last 21 days, with no new cases. This is why the Laotian authorities have decided to authorize de-containment as of today, while maintaining barrier measures to avoid a second wave. Only schools will remain closed for the rest of the month. The period of secure, phased de-containment will therefore extend until the end of May.
Among other things, travel agencies, hotels, guesthouses, restaurants, cafés, hairdressers, etc. can reopen, but other businesses such as spas, massages, bars and gyms have yet to reopen. For those unfamiliar with Laos, one of the reasons why the country has been little affected is, in part, because Laotians have "distancing" as part of their daily routine. They don't shake hands, hugs and kisses don't exist here, hands clasped to the face are used to greet each other, and physical contact is virtually absent in the community. Also, when the virus began to spread widely in several countries, in Laos we had daily temperatures of between 35 and 40 degrees. Since the virus is thought to be weakened or even destroyed at 25 to 26 degrees Celsius, this helped to limit the risk of spread. Shops, public places, supermarkets and markets are all open-air in Laos. There are very few enclosed, air-conditioned public spaces compared with other countries. As a result, our offices reopened this morning. Our Luang Prabang-based team members are delighted to be back at work, while those who were confined to their families in the provinces will be returning to the office during the week, depending on how far they have to travel. We're back to our office-work reflexes that working from home has somewhat derogated from, and we're already working on the bookings we've already made for the end of 2020. Our travel partners, as well as several groups of individual travelers, are already counting on our 4 qualified and dedicated travel experts and their creativity to prepare their upcoming adventures.
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