Hong Kong travellers rush to book overseas trips after city announces it will end Covid-19 hotel quarantine; Cathay Pacific ramps up flights
- Residents report facing technical glitches on Cathay Pacific’s website after city announces end of hotel quarantine starting Monday
- Travel sites report surge in searches and bookings to popular destinations such as Japan and Taiwan
Eager Hong Kong travellers are scrambling to book overseas trips, while the city’s flagship carrier Cathay Pacific has planned more flights after the government announced that it would end mandatory hotel quarantine for arrivals.
Some residents on Friday told the Post that they had already reserved visits to Japan and Singapore ahead of the long-awaited move amid rumours of the policy change last week, despite a recent surge in flight ticket prices, while others said they had faced technical issues on Cathay’s website after news of the measure broke.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced the lifting of hotel quarantine on Friday afternoon, scrapping some of the world’s toughest travel restrictions. The new measure is set to begin on Monday.
Under the “0+3” plan, overseas arrivals will only need to undergo three days of self-monitoring at their choice of premises, including their homes or any hotel they book for their stay. They are allowed to go out during this period, but they cannot visit high-risk places such as bars and restaurants.
Inbound travellers will also no longer be required to obtain a negative result on a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test 48 hours before boarding. Instead, they will be allowed to take a self-administered rapid antigen test (RAT) within 24 hours of their departure.
Currently, travellers follow a “3+4” arrangement, under which they spend three days in hotel isolation and four at home under medical surveillance.
Travel sites reported an increase in searches and bookings before and after authorities announced the lifting of curbs, which came as popular destinations like Japan and Taiwan also unveiled plans to remove most of their border control measures from mid-October.
