Today, 1 August, saw New Zealand fully reopen their borders to visitors from around the world, for the first time in over two years.
New Zealand welcomes back tourists
New Zealand’s borders have officially reopened and tourists are rejoicing. The country fully reopened to visitors from around the world today, Monday, 1 August 2022, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic closed borders in March 2020.
According to Reuters, the process of reopening the borders effectively ended Sunday night (31 July), with visitors who needed visas and those on student visas now also allowed to return to New Zealand. New Zealand will also be allowing cruise ships and foreign recreational yachts to dock at its ports.
New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, said that it has been a staged and cautious process on their part since February as they, alongside the rest of the world, continue to manage a very live global pandemic, while still keeping people safe.
New Zealand Tourism, Minister Stuart Nash, added that the return of cruise ships will also be a boost for local industries.
“Most cruise visits are during the warmer months of October to April, and summer is our bumper tourism season overall. This means it will be full steam ahead for the industry,” Nash said.
Visitors arriving in the country will still need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and must take two COVID-19 tests after arrival. However, there are no quarantine requirements.
Eased border controls
Since February, the country had had plans to ease some of the border controls. Prime Minister Ardern had revealed a five-step plan for the phased reopening of the country’s borders, signalling an end to nearly two years of the strict border rules that had separated families and shut out the rest of the world.
In October last year, Prime Minister Ardern had said that New Zealand would begin to move away from a zero-COVID strategy toward living with the virus. Ardern said the anguish of quarantine had been challenging for locals and visitors alike.
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