Many countries have been extremely careful about the process of opening up their borders, especially since Coronavirus is not quite over yet. Many countries continue to have mandatory quarantine for individuals who come from abroad, and some countries are even imposing quarantine on those simply traveling between states or counties.
Some countries, however, are erring on the side of an overabundance of caution, and are not opening up until a vaccine to the Coronavirus is available. One of those countries is Australia, which has recently announced that it will not be opening its borders for travel at least until the end of 2021.
[post_page_title]A state of isolation[/post_page_title]
Australia has done reasonably well at controlling the number of Coronavirus cases in the country, keeping the cases below 30,000 and keeping deaths to under 1,000. However, the government doesn’t want all of that preparation and planning to be negated by careless travel and possible infection by visitors and travelers from abroad.
Josh Fydenberg, Treasurer of Australia, made mention that it will remain closed — in both directions — until 2021. That means that any travelers who want to come to the majestic country will have to wait until at least that late. In addition, it effectively confines the populace to their immediate towns and areas, as Australia is also limiting the amount of travel between its districts and areas.
With people already going stir crazy after just a few months of a lock in, it is uncertain what another year of extended isolation will do to the people of Australia. Already, Australians are lining up for “trips to nowhere,” flights which take off from Australia and land there, providing nothing more than a scenic view of the country before landing.
[post_page_title]Guidance and safety[/post_page_title]
There is no doubt that Australia is being safe in their practices, but what does that mean for the average traveler? For those in Australia, it means they should focus on patronizing their local shops and businesses, as long term and long distance vacations will be off the table for some time. This intentional help will also allow the country to assuage the deficit that will surely arise from the lack of tourists visiting the country.
For those outside of Australia, it means that other locations for vacations or travel might be deemed preferable. Unless there is some clever way of sneaking in or out in a kangaroo’s pouch, Australia seems to be locked down for at least another year.
