Business Travel News: October 2021

Airlines/Airports.

Australia to open borders in November

Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, announced that international borders will reopen from November 2021 to fully vaccinated Australians. Australians who wish to travel overseas will require a vaccination passport, while flight caps and managed quarantine will remain in place for those who are not vaccinated. The official announcement is found here.

NSW restarts international travel

From 1 November, NSW will welcome international travellers that are fully vaccinated and can show proof of a negative PCR test. Returning Australians will no longer be required to quarantine from this date, provided they have the vaccination and negative PCR test proof required. The relaunch of international travel coincides with the population reaching its 80% vaccination target, signally the move to reopen the State.

NSW-VIC open for business and travel

As of 11:59 pm on Tuesday 19^th October, Victoria will open its borders to red zones, including the whole of NSW. Travellers who are fully vaccinated and show a negative PCR test will not need to quarantine on arrival, allowing for free movement between the two States for the first time in months. Victoria will begin lifting further restrictions from 11:59 pm on Thursday 21st October, the full roadmap can be found here.

QLD announces plan for open borders

Further border opening announcements have been made, with the Queensland Government releasing their 'COVID-19 Vaccine Plan To Unite Families'. According to the plan, Queensland will open its borders to hotspots when vaccination levels reach 70% across the State, meaning fully vaccinated travellers from NSW and VIC can enter and quarantine at home for 14 days. Once the State reaches 80% fully vaccinated travellers from domestic hotspots will not be required to quarantine at all. More info can be found here.

Australian's can now access their vaccination passport

From Tuesday 19 October, proof of COVID-19 vaccination certificates will be available through MyGov to allow for international travel. Australians can store their vaccination 'passport' in COVID-19 travel apps such as the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Travel Pass. The certificate abides by a new global standard which was specified by the International Civil Aviation Organisation and conforms with World Health Organisation guidance.

VA Status Extensions

Velocity Platinum and Gold members who booked an eligible Virgin Australia flight by 28 March 2021 under Velocity's 2020 Status Rewards Program, will automatically receive a further extension of their membership until 28 February 2023. Velocity Platinum, Gold and Silver members with a review date between 30 September 2021 and 30 April 2022 will automatically receive an additional eight-month Status extension upon their review date, until at least 1 June 2022.

Qantas announces start date for SYD-LAX and SYD-LHR

Following the Federal Government's announcement that Australia's international borders will open in November, Qantas will bring forward the restart of some international flights. From 1 November 2021, Qantas will operate three return flights per week between Sydney and Los Angeles and three return flights per week between Sydney and London (Heathrow).

Air New Zealand announces vaccine mandate

From 1 February 2022, Air New Zealand is requiring customers aged 18 and over travelling anywhere on their international network to be fully vaccinated. The airline commented, "Being vaccinated against COVID-19 is the new reality of international travel. The quicker we get it done, the sooner we can fly Kiwis to places like New York, Vancouver and Narita."

Emirates implements IATA Travel Pass

Emirates has become the first airline to implement IATA's digital health passport, the IATA Travel Pass, across its global network. The full roll-out of the pass is expected to be completed this October, with 50 cities around the world already utilising the technology.

Qantas to relaunch NSW-VIC flights earlier than expected

With vaccination rates rapidly increasing across NSW and Victoria, Qantas has brought forward its relaunch date for travel between the two states. Travel is expected to resume from 5 November 2021, rather than the originally planned 1 December. The airline also announced plans to increase regional flights within NSW from 25 October.

Travel to resume from NZ South Island to Australia

From 11:59 pm (AEST) on Tuesday 19 October 2021, green zone travel will recommence from the South Island of New Zealand to Australia. At this time, green zone travel to Australia is not extended for persons that have been on the North Island of New Zealand.

Singapore to open vaccinated travel lane with AU / NZ

Australia and New Zealand could soon join the US and the UK as part of Singapore's vaccinated travel lane (VTL) program. Fully vaccinated travellers from countries on the VTL list will not be required to quarantine on arrival, with a number of countries including the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Brunei and Italy up and running since 19 October.

The United States to open from 8 November

The US has announced that all vaccinated foreign travellers may enter the United States from 8 November. This applies to both international air travel and land borders with Mexico and Canada. Fully vaccinated travellers will be required to show a negative PCR test taken within three days of travel. All FDA-approved and authorised vaccines, as well as all vaccines that have an Emergency Use Listing (EUL) from the WHO will be accepted for air travel.

[Link]

Hotels.

IHG announces new Holiday Inn Perth

Doubling its Perth portfolio, IHG Hotels and Resorts has announced the opening of its second hotel under the Holiday Inn brand. The 101-room property is located just outside the city CBD intersecting Hay Street and Collins Street. The Holiday Inn brand will take over the former Sage Hotel West Perth from 1 November 2021.

Information on this page is sourced from third party sources. While effort is taken to verify the accuracy of this information, CTM recommends that travellers seek independent advice and/or information from their CTM travel consultant, CTM travel tools, or direct from their chosen travel suppliers relating to the status of supplier services, schedules and booking conditions as information may change regularly.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.