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After 704 days of isolation: the first tourists are traveling to Australia again
Australia is now allowing tourists from all over the world back into the country. Emotional scenes were already playing out at the country’s airports.
© Joel Carrett/AAP via AP/DPA
Australia is welcoming tourists again for the first time two years after the corona-related closure of the borders. Since Monday, twice vaccinated visitors from all over the world have been allowed to enter Down Under.
For almost two years, Australia was an unreachable destination for foreigners because of the corona pandemic – now the country has reopened its borders to vaccinated people. There were scenes of jubilation and tears of joy at the two main international airports of Sydney and Melbourne on Monday when the first planes landed. Even Tourism Minister Dan Tehan had rushed to Sydney Airport wearing a T-shirt that read, “Welcome back.”
Australia had largely closed its borders in March 2020 due to the corona pandemic and turned into a kind of corona “fortress”. Even citizens were initially hardly allowed to return to their own country. They were later allowed to do so, but there were strict upper limits. Many families were therefore separated for almost two years. Foreigners were not allowed to enter the country at all. Everyone has been allowed to do it again since Monday – but only if a vaccination can be proven.
Bernie Edmonds was distraught as he hugged his eight-year-old granddaughter Charlotte as she landed in Sydney on one of the first planes. “It’s so great to have her back with us,” he said. “She will leave again, but then we will always be able to have her with us again.” For her part, Sydney’s Jody Tuchin was delighted to pick up her best friend at the airport, who she hadn’t seen since 2018. “He made it back just in time for my wedding in four days,” she told AFP.
Visitor numbers collapsed by 98 percent
A plane operated by Australian airline Qantas from Los Angeles in the United States was the first to land in Sydney early Monday morning. Qantas expects more than 14,000 passengers to arrive in Australia this week – the start of a slow recovery in the tourism sector, which has been badly hit by the pandemic. “I think we will experience a very, very strong upswing,” said the responsible minister, Tehan.
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In the first 24 hours after travel restrictions ended, 56 international flights were expected to land in Australia – far fewer than before the pandemic. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he had “no doubt” the number of travelers would pick up again over time. The Australian government has launched a A$40 million (EUR 25.4 million) advertising campaign to attract tourists to the country.
Australia’s billion-dollar tourism industry had suffered particularly badly from the border closures. The number of visitors collapsed by 98 percent. According to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, each month under the tight travel restrictions has cost businesses an estimated A$3.6 billion.
One of the first tourists to come was Robert Landis from the USA. “I’ve been looking for some way to get here the whole time,” he said.
However, Landis and all other tourists will not be able to move freely throughout the country for the time being: the state of Western Australia will remain closed to most non-residents, and the government there will only allow entry from March 3rd. Until then, it is currently easier to travel from Sydney to Paris than from Sydney to Perth.
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