border reopening – आवारा मुसाफिर

China reopens borders in final farewell to zero-COVID

January 8, 2023774 Views

Travellers streamed into China by air, land and sea on Sunday, many eager for long-awaited reunions, as Beijing opened borders that have been all but shut since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. After three years, mainland China opened sea and land crossings with Hong Kong and ended a requirement for incoming travellers to quarantine, dismantling a final pillar of a zero-COVID policy that had shielded China's 1.4 billion people from the virus but also cut them off from the rest of the world. People walk in the departures hall at Beijing Capital International Airport after China lifted the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) quarantine requirement for inbound travellers in Beijing, China January 8, 2023. REUTERS/Thomas Peter China's easing over the past month of one of the world's ti...

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Hong Kong will re-open China border as COVID surges

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

December 25, 2022637 Views

China, grappling with a new wave of COVID-19 infections, took another step towards loosening its pandemic-related restrictions on Saturday when Hong Kong's leader announced it would aim to re-open its borders with the mainland by mid-January. Speaking at a news conference upon returning from Beijing, Hong Kong Chief executive John Lee said authorities would aim to "gradually, orderly, and fully" re-open all entry points between the two sides, and coordinate with the government of nearby Shenzhen to manage the flow of people. FILE PHOTO: Travellers wearing face shield walk through Hong Kong International Airport Departure Hall, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Hong Kong, China, August 1, 2022. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu Hong Kong is a semi-autonomous Chinese territory ...

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Japan to reopen to mass tourism in October

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

September 23, 2022690 Views

Japan’s strict border restrictions will be loosened next month, the prime minister announced Thursday, allowing tourists to easily enter for the first time since the start of the pandemic. In a news conference at the foot of Central Park in New York, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said independent tourists would again be welcomed as of Oct. 11, not just those traveling with authorized groups. A cap on the number of tourists—currently set at 50,000—who are granted entry — which has been gradually increased this year — will be nixed altogether. And visa requirements that were imposed in response to the pandemic will also be rescinded. It may revise regulations on hotels, allowing them to refuse guests who don't abide by infection controls, such as mask wearing, during an outbreak, domes...

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Malaysia to reopen borders from April with quarantine waiver

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

March 8, 20221003 Views

Malaysia will reopen its borders fully from April 1 and allow entry without quarantine for visitors vaccinated against COVID-19, Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob said on Tuesday. Malaysia has since March 2020 maintained some of the tightest entry curbs in Asia to try to contain coronavirus outbreaks, with most foreign nationals barred from entry and returning Malaysians required to undergo quarantine. The Southeast Asian country will begin a transition to the endemic phase of COVID-19 from next month, Ismail Sabri said in a televised address. FILE PHOTO: People dine-in at a restaurant following social distancing measures, as Langkawi gets ready to open to domestic tourists, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, Malaysia. REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng The reopening follow...

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Asia-Pacific travel faces bumpy recovery

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

March 7, 2022611 Views

Travel in Asia-Pacific is trailing the rest of the world and should expect a bumpy recovery, a Booking.com executive said on Monday, as countries in the region have been slower to open borders than other destinations. With North Asian countries still largely restricting entry and Southeast Asian countries reopening cautiously, the region’s tourism recovery will not be quick, Laura Houldsworth, the online travel agency’s managing director for Asia-Pacific said in an interview. The region should also expect a hit from fewer arrivals from Russia after its invasion of Ukraine triggered a spike in flight cancellations last month. Beach destinations in Thailand, Indonesia, India and the Maldives are usually popular among Russian tourists. “Any of these situations will have people r...

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Australia welcomes back tourists with toy koalas, Tim Tams

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

February 21, 2022306 Views

Australia on Monday fully reopened its international borders to travellers vaccinated against the coronavirus after nearly two years of pandemic-related closings as tourists returned and hundreds of people were reunited with family and friends. Vaccinated travellers were greeted at Sydney's airport by jubilant well-wishers waving toy koalas and favourite Australian foods including Tim Tams chocolate cookies and jars of Vegemite spread. Federal Tourism Minister Dan Tehan was on hand to welcome the first arrivals on a Qantas flight from Los Angeles which landed at 6.20 a.m. local time. More than 50 international flights will reach the country through the day, including 27 touching down in Sydney, its largest city, as the tourism and hospitality sectors look to rebuild after get...

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‘Fortress Australia’ to welcome tourists for first time under COVID

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

February 20, 2022480 Views

Australia will welcome international tourists on Monday after nearly two years of sealing its borders, relying on high COVID-19 vaccination rates to live with the pandemic as infections decline. "The wait is over," Prime Minister Scott Morrison told a Sunday briefing at the Melbourne International Airport. Australia's opening to tourists is the clearest example yet of the government's shift from a strict zero-COVID approach to living with the virus and vaccinating the public to minimise deaths and severe illness. FILE PHOTO: A woman wearing a protective face mask and gloves walks through the international terminal of Kingsford Smith International Airport the morning after Australia implemented an entry ban on non-citizens and non-residents intended to curb the spread of the coron...

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Singapore resumes border reopening

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

February 16, 2022896 Views

Singapore will expand quarantine-free travel to Hong Kong, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates this month, its health ministry said on Wednesday, resuming border reopening after a pause due to an outbreak of the coronavirus. The city-state will also restore and increase quotas under its vaccinated travel programme, which had been reduced in December to deal with the Omicron variant. Singapore will streamline border measures for all travellers, and remove an entry approval requirement for eligible residents who are long-term pass holders, the ministry said, making it easier for expatriates to travel. FILE PHOTO: A Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) bus plies the causeway between Singapore and Malaysia, as it reopens after nearly two years amidst the coronavirus disease (COV...

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Malaysia might open its borders for tourists from March 1

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

February 8, 20221275 Views

Malaysia's coronavirus recovery council on Tuesday said it has recommended a full reopening of borders as early as March 1 without mandatory quarantine for travellers, as part of plans to accelerate economic recovery. The Southeast Asian nation has shut its borders since March 2020 and froze the entry of foreign workers to try to contain novel coronavirus outbreaks. The recommendation comes as neighbours waive quarantine requirements to attract vaccinated tourists, including Thailand, the Philippines and Singapore. FFILE PHOTO: Esther Lee, Hidden Langkawi restaurant owner, cleans a table at her restaurant, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, Malaysia September 13, 2021. REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng Thailand on Monday said it was eyeing travel bubbles with Malaysia and C...

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After two years of closed borders, Australia welcomes the world back

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

February 7, 2022843 Views

Vaccinated travellers from every country allowed from February 21 Australia said on Monday it will reopen its borders to vaccinated travellers this month, ending two years of misery for the tourism sector, reviving migration and injecting billions of dollars into the world No. 13 economy. The move effectively calls time on the last main component of Australia's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which it has attributed to relatively low death and infection rates. The other core strategy, stop-start lockdowns, was shelved for good in December. FILE PHOTO: Travelers sit in the international terminal of Kingsford Smith International Airport the morning after Australia implemented an entry ban on non-citizens and non-residents intended to curb the spread of the coronavirus disease (C...