Pack Your Bags 'Cos Aussies Can Travel to New Zealand From 19 April

Time to dust off your passport.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has made our day by announcing that Aussies will be allowed to fly to New Zealand without having to enter mandatory hotel quarantine from 19 April.

Speaking with the media in Wellington, Ms. Ardern addressed how major airlines will be allowed to take bookings from 19 April after the trans-Tasman bubble was given the greenlight by parliament.

"Cabinet was presented with advice today that conditions for opening up quarantine-free travel with Australia had been met," Ms. Ardern said.

"The Director-General of Health considers the risk of transmission of COVID-19 from Australia to New Zealand to now be low, and that quarantine-free travel would be safe to commence."

Ever the trendsetter for the rest of the world, the Prime Minister’s announcement makes the trans-Tasman travel bubble a one-of-a-kind step forward in a post-COVID world.

"This is an important step forward in our COVID response and represents an arrangement I do not believe we have seen in any other part of the world," she explained.

"That is, safely opening up international travel to another country while continuing to pursue a strategy of elimination and a commitment to keeping the virus out."

The good news does come with a warning from the New Zealand leader, stating the travel bubble can and will be subject to change at a moment’s notice in the interest of public health.

"Those undertaking travel on either side of the ditch will do so under the guidance of flyer beware," she said.

"People will need to plan for the possibility of travel being disrupted if there is an outbreak."

This could very well mean if an outbreak does occur in either country, flights could be required to divert or land immediately, as well as passengers being required to enter hotel quarantine.

Harsh but fair.

Thankfully, Ms. Ardern said if a flight from Australia does need to go into quarantine, passengers on board won’t be charged.

To further ensure public safety remains a high priority, random temperature checks will be introduced for new arrivals as an extra precaution.

For Kiwis, nothing dramatic has changed as they have been allowed to travel freely into Australia since October last year. Lucky New Zelanders.

Overall, this is fantastic news for Australians who are itching to get back on a plane and see the world…well, part of it at least.

Header Image: Hagen Hopkins / Stringer via Getty Images