Politicians from Australia and New Zealand are discussing the possibility of opening up borders to each other, creating a travel corridor -- or 'travel bubble' -- between the two nations.
In both countries, tourism industries have taken a massive hit from the coronavirus outbreak -- so it's no surprise that industry representatives are welcoming the prospect of a travel bubble.
"The message from the industry side is that the bubble is a goer," said Simon Westaway, the executive director of the Australian Tourism Industry Council, adding that it was the only way of getting international tourism into Australia in the near future.
But Roberts isn't expecting the levels of Australian tourists that New Zealand had pre-Covid -- he thinks many would opt to just travel domestically.of travelers to Australia but 27% of total tourist spend. Westaway said those businesses would need to adapt and work out how to appeal to more Kiwi travelers.One thing to keep in mind: Australia is made up of states and territories, and some of those currently have additional quarantine rules in place.
Once the trans-Tasman bubble is tried and tested, New Zealand could look to include other territories in its bubble -- perhaps Taiwan and Hong Kong, Roberts said. "I think it will be on a country by country basis," he said."A general opening of borders could be a very long time away."For the first time, drones have been allowed to fly inside Kakadu National Park in Australia. The resulting video is stunning.From a health perspective, the Pacific Island nations appear to have escaped the coronavirus outbreak largely unscathed. Fiji -- the worst affected Pacific Island nation -- has reported only 18 coronavirus cases and no deaths.
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