International tourist destinations are beginning to reopen. But what about Oz? Well, Australia’s borders have been mostly closed for both inbound and outbound travel since March 2020. But all that looks set to change in the coming months. Australian prime minister Scott Morrison said recently that he wanted to welcome back foreign visitors “well before Easter”.
Easter this year falls on April 17 – just ten weeks away. The move aims to revive country’s struggling tourism industry, which has relied almost entirely on domestic visitors for the past two years. Since the start of the pandemic, the only international holidaymakers legally allowed into Australia have been those from nations with which the country established quarantine-free ‘travel bubbles’ – namely New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and Singapore.
Omicron has delayed the opening of Down Under to international visitors, but while the country is still tackling the variant, over the past month it has made significant steps to increase numbers of foreign visitors. In December, Australians living abroad were reunited with their families, and earlier this month the country announced it would welcome back fully vaccinated international students and skilled workers by offering to pay for their visas.
When it does open, it looks likely that Australia will only welcome fully-jabbed travellers. So far, it’s unclear whether its current regulations concerning COVID testing will still be in force. Currently all travellers to Australia have to present a negative test taken within 72 hours of arrival, with the unvaccinated still having to quarantine in hotels.
Some travel behemoths like Qantas have restarted major routes to the country again, meaning you can at least pencil in a trip. Given Australia’s cautious handling of the pandemic, however, we’d recommend that you keep an eye out for any restriction changes.
