(TAN): Hong Kong and Singapore have agreed to open their borders to each other, for the first time in over seven months.
Asia’s two big financial hubs have got into a travel pact with each other — to relax some travel restrictions for people of both the nations, and some visiting travellers — so as to create what both governments claim is the “world’s first reciprocal travel bubble”, reports Independent.
Hong Kong’s Commerce Secretary Edward Yau and Singapore’s Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung reportedly issued a joint statement saying, “Travellers under the scheme would only need to present a negative COVID-19 test result to be allowed to travel freely on dedicated flights.” The details of the arrangement, including the start date, are yet to be announced.
“It is a safe, careful but significant step forward to revive air travel, and provide a model for future collaboration with other parts of the world,” Singapore’s Kung was quoted as saying.
While Yau said that it was a milestone in the efforts to resume normalcy while “fighting against the long-drawn battle of Covid-19.”
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While Hong Kong had banned the entry of all non-residents in March, at the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak, this pact with Singapore is its first attempt at creating a safe travel bubble as cases begin to fall. Singapore has already relaxed restrictions for essential business and official travel for countries like China, Japan and South Korea.
Meanwhile, Internet searches by Hongkongers for flights to Singapore jumped 400% as the news of the quarantine-free travel bubble broke out, reported South China Morning Post. Whereas a review of fares by the outlet for dates in December showed prices had shot up by at least 57% in the last 24 hours, to HKD 3,297 (USD 425) for a round-trip ticket.
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In conjunction with this announcement, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has launched 360 Hong Kong Moments — opening up the city virtually by way of wholesome and immersive content.
Y.K. Pang, Chairman of the HKTB, welcomed the HK Government’s announcement to establish a bilateral Air Travel Bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore. “The announcement is a timely match with the HKTB’s launch of a standardised hygiene protocol for tourism-related sectors with the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency, which was announced last week,” said Pang.
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