27 Apr. 2020 Laurent GRANIER, co-founder and director of the local agency Laos Travel Mood, member of the Nomadays network, experienced the evolution of Covid-19 between Laos and Europe. From Vientiane, he retraces the intimate and chronological quest for patient zero.

Concerns and Hope at the Arrival of Covid-19

« 2020 was shaping up to be a great year for our team of 15 Laotian and English-speaking colleagues.

We were projecting forward with enthusiasm to October 10th, which will mark our 10 years in business.

In Laos, we live more according to tourist seasons than calendar years. For us, the busiest season of the year runs from October through April. So when we first heard about Coronavirus in early January, we were in full swing. As usual, we were busy operating the trips we had organized a few months earlier.

Typically, as part of our ongoing efforts to promote the agency and Laos, we conduct commercial tours in Europe. This was also the case last February with prospecting in Belgium, Marseille, and Paris.

And as the days passed, we could sense that the Coronavirus situation was evolving and that concerns were growing. Among travel professionals, airlines, hospitality, and all tourism sectors. Many of us thought that China, thanks to its strong governance, isolation measures, and lockdowns, would be able to control the spread of this virus within its borders. But in reality, it couldn't.

By mid-February (I was in Belgium), the profession was certainly worried, but let's say a certain optimism still prevailed despite everything. We communicated regularly and told ourselves that by being careful and cautious, we could still continue as if nothing was happening, or almost. « Laos is not yet officially affected. There are suspicions, but tests are negative. No one is panicking ».

Then I arrive in France and that's when everything shifts.

Growing Awareness of Covid-19

What had been « only a Chinese and Asian problem » becomes a global phenomenon. Europe is affected. Italy first. The rolling news channels revel in it and I hear for the first time about 'patient zero'. That first man or woman to have been infected.

Then it's France's turn to be affected : the « cluster » identified in Creil, in the Hauts de France, the first cases in Compiègne, Amiens, and everything unfolds. The connection to Alsace and the religious gathering in Mulhouse follows. And word is that the first infected cases would be vacationers returning from Italian ski resorts.

When there are still very few declared cases, the search for patient zero becomes an obsession (media-driven). Being able to identify them means being able to trace the chain of people in contact, warn them, and isolate them. In the hope of preventing a pandemic and a global population lockdown.

But nothing works. Panic grips the world. Governments take disparate measures, airlines reduce international flights. It's a state of emergency. Everything accelerates.

I'm back in Laos at the end of February and like everyone else, I can only witness the damage.

Beyond the time-consuming management of rescheduled and cancelled bookings, there are also operational emergencies to handle. Our last travelers departed on March 21st and since then the country has been closed.

The Reality of the Situation in Laos

And until that date, no positive cases had been officially reported in Laos, despite numerous tests, all supervised by the WHO. But for many in Laos, this situation seems suspect, even troubling. Are the authorities being transparent?

And then reality caught up with us. The first two cases of people infected with Covid-19 were announced on March 24th: a freelance tour guide and an employee of a luxury hotel. The third case followed quickly—a tourist van driver in Luang Prabang, the country's cultural, spiritual, and tourism capital in northern Laos. It was the driver who had accompanied the guide and her clients.

'Patient Zero' in Laos is a woman.

Of course, their schedules were thoroughly reviewed to alert their contacts and have them declare themselves if they showed signs of illness. Following this prevention effort, and after the guide and her visitors passed through a village in northern Laos, the village decided to self-quarantine. All people from outside the village were expelled.

Fear gripped people's minds so much that hotels closed, initially as a precautionary measure, then later by government decree.

It happens that our local travel agency knows the guide and driver well, as they accompanied our last clients: 3 French citizens on a trip from March 12th to 21st. Our famous last travelers to leave Laos before the borders closed. The guide was likely infected by her previous group of travelers—senior citizens from Alsace whom she accompanied from March 7th to 10th on behalf of another local agency. We know this because some of these participants tested positive for Covid-19 in Cambodia after their trip to Laos.

From there comes a media frenzy in Laos. Especially on social networks, as Laos is a young country with strong Internet connectivity. Everyone weighed in with comments trying to figure out « who it is ».

Laos has officially entered the world of contaminated countries. For us, it's a kind of relief because suspicion had become too strong. Why would Laos have escaped the killer virus?

Meanwhile, we learned that our 3 French clients were also contaminated. The circle was closed. They're at home and safe with mild symptoms.

The Laotian government then reacted quickly and imposed a lockdown that has now lasted since March 30th. Laos is now isolated from the rest of the world.

Today, 19 official cases have been recorded in Laos. Only one foreigner—a citizen of Papua New Guinea who works in the mining sector. Two Laotians have been discharged from the hospital cured, but this isn't yet the case for our guide and driver, even though they're doing fairly well. After more than 3 weeks of care and observation, they both had an initial test that came back negative for Covid-19, but they're eagerly awaiting their second negative test so they can leave the hospital.

No new cases have been announced so far; we remain vigilant. »

Charlène Nomadays Early SEO writer at Nomadays, now content manager and head of the communications department, Charlène has accompanied the adventure since its inception with passion and dedication. After spending seven years in Asia—from China to Thailand, passing through Mongolia and South Korea—she has made travel a way of being in the world. A lover of words, nature, and human connection, she commits to conveying in her writing a sensitive, engaged, and responsible vision of tourism. For her, every article is a bridge between curiosity, respect, and wonder.