Covid: One-way ‘travel bubble’ opens between Australia and NZ

The first passengers from New Zealand have arrived in Australia under new “travel bubble” arrangements between the two countries.

None of the passengers on the flight from Auckland to Sydney will be required to quarantine in Australia.

However they will have to pay for their own quarantine in a hotel when they return to New Zealand.

At the moment, the bubble is one-sided, with Australians not allowed to enter New Zealand.

Australia and New Zealand are among the first countries in the Asia-Pacific region to loosen restrictions on international travel since Covid-19 travel bans came into effect earlier this year.

Singapore and Hong Kong announced on Thursday that they had agreed to quarantine-free travel between the two cities. They did not say when travel would begin.

Limited travel and expensive holidays

The bubble currently applies only to the state of New South Wales and the Northern Territory, but Australian officials said they hoped to expand to other states soon.

Under the deal, New Zealanders can travel quarantine-free to Australia if they have not been to a Covid-19 hotspot for 14 days.

But a holiday in Australia could be expensive. Upon their return, New Zealand passengers will have to quarantine at a cost of NZ$3,100 ($2,045; £1,586) for the first person and more for additional family members.

About 90% of those travelling with Air New Zealand on Friday were booked one-way, the airline said.

Air New Zealand, Qantas and Jetstar all had flights scheduled to arrive in Sydney on Friday.

Upon arrival, passengers from New Zealand are kept separate from other passengers, who will be required to spend two weeks in quarantine.

Since March, Australia’s borders have been closed to everyone except returning Australian citizens and residents and those with special permission.

All arrivals are now required to quarantine at their own expense.

There is a backlog of around 29,000 Australians trying to get into the country.