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International passengers arrive at Melbourne Airport in Melbourne, Australia. Australia’s international borders have reopened without restrictions for fully vaccinated tourists and travelers. Photo by Joel Carrett/EPA-EFE
Feb. 20 (UPI) — Australia reopened its borders to fully vaccinated tourists on Monday, nearly two years after they were closed to stymie the spread of the coronavirus.
“The wait is over,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters a day before some 56 international flights with the first international tourists were to touch down in the island nation.
Qantas Flight 12 from Los Angeles landed at Sydney International Airport as the first plane to arrive with its passengers greeted with gifts of Vegemite, toy koalas and kangaroos and a DJ playing Australian music.
The Australia flag carrier said flights from eight overseas destinations were to touch down in Australia on Monday and 14,000 passengers are scheduled to arrive on its planes this week.
“It’s fair to say we’ve all been waiting a long time to welcome visitors back to Australia,” Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement. “The thousands of international tourists arriving this week and many more over the coming months will help kickstart the tourism industry, which has done it tough for the past couple of years.”
The borders were closed to international tourists in March 2020, dealing a heavy blow to the aviation and tourism industries.
According to the central government, Australia’s tourism sector supports 660,000 jobs and contributed more than $43.5 billion to the economy the year prior to the shuttering of its borders.
The lifting of the border restrictions will allow the more than 1.23 million student, visitor and working holiday visa holders to enter the country from Monday if fully vaccinated, the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Investment said.
“We are successfully managing the pandemic and learning to live with the virus,” Dan Tehan, the minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, said in a statement. “Australians are traveling overseas, and we are welcoming international visitors to our country.”
Australia has been gradually reopening its borders since November when it allowed citizens to travel within the nation as well as venture to other nations.
It then followed by allowing the return of international students.
Since late November, more than 56,000 international students have arrived in Australia, the ministry of Immigration, Citizen, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs said in a statement early this month.
To coincide with the reopening of the borders on Monday, Australia has launched a $28.8 million international marketing campaign to entice foreign travelers to its shores.
“Australia is the best country in the world and we’re excited to be sharing it with the rest of the world again,” Tehan said.
The Oceania nation has recorded nearly 2.7 million COVID-19 cases, resulting in nearly 5,000 deaths amid the pandemic. On Sunday, there were 17,708 infections recorded, which is way down from a record 155,000 daily cases recorded during spiking cases in the middle of last month.
1/2 International passengers arrive at Melbourne Airport in Melbourne, Australia. Australia’s international borders have reopened without restrictions for fully vaccinated tourists and travelers. Photo by Joel Carrett/EPA-EFE Feb. 20 (UPI) — Australia reopened its borders to fully vaccinated tourists on Monday, nearly two years after they were closed to stymie the spread of the coronavirus. “The wait is over,” Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters a day before some 56 international flights with the first international tourists were to touch down in the island nation. Qantas Flight 12 from Los Angeles landed at Sydney International Airport as the first plane to arrive with its passengers greeted with gifts of Vegemite, toy koalas and kangaroos and a DJ playing Australian music. The Australia flag carrier said flights from eight overseas destinations were to touch down in Australia on Monday and 14,000 passengers are scheduled to arrive on its planes this week. “It’s fair to say we’ve all been waiting a long time to welcome visitors back to Australia,” Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said in a statement. “The thousands of international tourists arriving this week and many more over the coming months will help kickstart the tourism industry, which has done it tough for the past couple of years.” The borders were closed to international tourists in March 2020, dealing a heavy blow to the aviation and tourism industries. According to the central government, Australia’s tourism sector supports 660,000 jobs and contributed more than $43.5 billion to the economy the year prior to the shuttering of its borders. The lifting of the border restrictions will allow the more than 1.23 million student, visitor and working holiday visa holders to enter the country from Monday if fully vaccinated, the Ministry of Trade, Tourism and Investment said. “We are successfully managing the pandemic and learning to live with the virus,” Dan Tehan, the minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, said in a statement. “Australians are traveling overseas, and we are welcoming international visitors to our country.” Australia has been gradually reopening its borders since November when it allowed citizens to travel within the nation as well as venture to other nations. It then followed by allowing the return of international students. Since late November, more than 56,000 international students have arrived in Australia, the ministry of Immigration, Citizen, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs said in a statement early this month. To coincide with the reopening of the borders on Monday, Australia has launched a $28.8 million international marketing campaign to entice foreign travelers to its shores. “Australia is the best country in the world and we’re excited to be sharing it with the rest of the world again,” Tehan said. The Oceania nation has recorded nearly 2.7 million COVID-19 cases, resulting in nearly 5,000 deaths amid the pandemic. On Sunday, there were 17,708 infections recorded, which is way down from a record 155,000 daily cases recorded during spiking cases in the middle of last month.