Expand / Collapse search
Watch TV
Menu

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

TRAVEL

Travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand begins uniting families, loved ones

Families and loved ones reunited as the quarantine-free travel between the two countries launched Monday

By Jeanette Settembre Fox News
Published
close
CDC to meet to discuss J&J vaccine safety Video

CDC to meet to discuss J&J vaccine safety

Harvard Global Health Institute director Dr. Ashish Jha provides insight on ‘Fox News Live.’

Quarantine-free travel is taking off between Australia and New Zealand.

Residents will be able to travel between both countries Monday without a mandatory quarantine, officials announced, after more than a year of closing down borders.

BLOCKING MIDDLE SEATS ON PLANES REDUCES RISK OF COVID-19 SPREAD: CDC

A "Welcome" sign ushered in hundreds of travelers at the Wellington Airport offering free glasses of sparkling wine to adults to celebrate the occasion, the Associated Press reported. Heartfelt photos showed families and loved ones reunited at international terminals, many for the first time since the pandemic began in March 2020.

Quarantine-free travel launched between Australia and New Zealand on Monday. (iStock). 

Quarantine-free travel launched between Australia and New Zealand on Monday. (iStock). 

The number of flights on Air New Zealand surged from up to three per day to 30 flights on Monday with 5,200 passengers, the airlines Chief Operating Officer said, according to the Associated Press. Qantas Airways will reportedly conduct 25 roundtrip flights to New Zealand on Monday. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"Today’s milestone is a win-win for Australians and New Zealanders, boosting our economies while keeping our people safe," Australian Prime Scott Morrison said.

Australia shut down its borders last March to anyone who was not an Australian citizen or resident, with minimal exceptions for its citizens returning from international travel. 

The border closure and strict quarantine measures helped position Australia to limit the spread of COVID-19 with less than 29,500 infections and 910 deaths, according to Reuters.