Tears of joy at the airport: Western Australia is the last Australian state to allow visitors to enter the country again. There are, however, a few rules to be observed.
SYDNEY – As the last state Down Under, Western Australia has reopened its borders to local and international visitors after two years of being closed due to the coronavirus.
For the first time in almost 700 days, fully vaccinated people have been allowed to enter the region with the metropolis of Perth again without quarantine. International flights were expected by Friday from Dubai, Singapore and Auckland, among others.
Australian media reported emotional scenes and tears of joy after the first plane arriving from Sydney landed at Perth Airport shortly after midnight (local time). However, travelers would have to register for a so-called G2G passport (Good to Go) before entering the country and take an antigen test within twelve hours of arrival, the regional government said.
The other states and territories had already reopened their borders to double-vaccinated tourists ten days ago. Specialists, international students and other authorized visa holders have been allowed to enter Germany since December. Australia had introduced extremely strict rules after the start of the pandemic, especially with regard to travel. dpa
