Australia and New Zealand launch quarantine-free travel bubble between the two countries

Travellers from NZ have been able to enter selected Australian states without mandatory quarantine since October but the arrangements did not apply in the other direction until now. Australians will have open access to cross-border travel without mandatory COVID-19 testing and quarantine. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that “the Trans-Tasman travel bubble represents a start of a new chapter in our COVID response and recovery, one that people have worked so hard at.”

However she also warned the citizens:

“The Trans-Tasman travel bubble represents a start of a new chapter in our COVID response and recovery, one that people have worked so hard at […] Quarantine-free travel will not be what it was pre-Covid-19. Travellers would not be able to travel if they had cold or flu symptoms or were awaiting a Covid-19 test result.They would have to wear a mask on flights, and provide contact details for their time in New Zealand.”

New Zealand officials declared that those choosing to make the trip should be cautious about sanitary rules and social distancing, because another outbreak in either country could cause the border to close again. Shortly after Ardern’s statement, Qantas announced it would deploy 122 return flights a week to New Zealand, including new routes. They expect the company to return to 83% of pre-Covid operating capacity due to the two-way bubble. Air New Zealand also stated it would fly to nine Australian cities, including a new route to Hobart.

Life began to return to normalcy for music lovers in NZ already in January, when festival-goers were able to attend music festivals  without social distancing. For Australians, there’s a beacon of hope as well, since from March 29, dancing and singing restrictions had been lifted in Sydney clubs. It is only a matter of time and the rest of the world will follow their example!