After more than two and-a-half years of strict COVID-19 controls, the government of Hong Kong says it’s putting an end to mandatory quarantine rules for international travellers.
CNN reports that under rules that come into play on Monday, September 26, incoming travellers will be required to undergo three days of self-monitoring on arrival. Travellers will not be allowed to visit certain places during that period, including restaurants and bars. They’ll also have to take PCR tests on days, two, four and six after arriving, followed by another rapid antigen test.
It’s still a fair bit of control, but it’s a far more open system than Hong Kong has seen since the pandemic hit in 2020.
“We hope to give the maximum room to reconnect Hong Kong, and to revitalize our economy,” said Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, John Lee.
Japan this week said it will open its borders to foreign visitors on October 11. Euronews.com reports that restrictions also are easing in Taiwan, with compulsory quarantine requirements set to end from the middle of next month.
WestJet
SKYTRAX AIRLINE AWARDS: WESTJET, AIR CANADA, AIR CANADA ROUGE, AIR TRANSAT AND STAR ALLIANCE WINNERS
Skytrax has given out its annual 2022 airline awards, and Canadian companies picked up a few honours.
WestJet took home two awards; Best Regional Airline in North America and Best Airline Staff Service in Canada. Air Canada Rouge was named Best Low-Cost Airline in North America, while, Air Transat won for Best Leisure Airline in North America.
Star Alliance, which includes Air Canada, United, Lufthansa and other airlines, won for World’s Best Airline Alliance and Best Airline Alliance Lounge.
WestJet came third in the Best Airline in North America category, with Air Canada fifth. The top two were Delta and Southwest, while JetBlue Airways was fourth and Air Transat tenth.
The top ten for the world were Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Emirates, ANA All Nippon Airways, Qantas Airways, Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Air France, Korean Air and Swiss International Air Lines.
