Where will your holiday be in 2020?
Since the start of Covid-19 pandemic, we have had no choice but to postpone our trips and stay at home. Luckily, as the pandemic is now under control, states and territories are releasing restrictions ease and airlines are returning their planes to the skies. News about travel bubbles are the indication that the prospect of a holiday is coming back in no time.
Which places have the green-light for travellers and which are still off-limits? While overseas travel is still not feasible due to closed borders, domestic travel is a perfect option for Aussie. This is your opportunity to discover the hidden beauty of your home country that you may have heard but never experienced.
NEW SOUTH WALES
Visitors to New South Wales can travel without having quarantine as the state has lifted its border restrictions. Residents in New South Wales now not only can travel anywhere through the state, including overnight stays but also can visit the Australian Capital Territory as well.
Regarding accommodation, New South Wales travellers can easily book their favourite stays since almost all hotels and motels in the state have announced their reopenings since the beginning of June. With the “Time to Drive” deals of Accor, the world-leading hotel group, travellers can stay at 340 of its hotels and resorts in Australia and New Zealand with discounted prices applied to bookings made before 30 June for the stays up until 13 months from the purchase date.
Major attractions such as Sydney Tower Eye, the ski resort Thredbo and Perisher have announced to welcome back guests on June 4, June 22 and June 24 respectively.
VICTORIA
Since Victoria also has no border restrictions, travellers from other parts of Australia coming to Victoria are not required to be self-isolate. All regional travel to holiday homes, private residences and tourist accommodation with no communal facilities are permitted across the state with hotels and motels operating normally like before the pandemic.
The ski resorts in Victoria have had their opening scheduled for the season. Skiers can plan their visits to Mount Buller from June 22 or Mt Hotham and Falls Creek from June 24.
AUSTRALIA CAPITAL TERRITORY
As being one of the regions without border restrictions, interstate travellers are free to enter any places throughout ACT, at any time for a tour holiday including overnight stays.
Are you eager to enjoy the taste of Sangiovese, riesling, chardonnay, pinot noir, merlot, shiraz, or tempranillo produced in this famous region, the home to 140 vineyards and more than 30 boutique cellar doors, to spend a beautiful afternoon with the wineries and experience the philosophy of dining from paddock to plate at Pialligo Estate where you can indulge in seasonal food and sensational wines in a relaxed environment?
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Good news is South Australia’s borders will be reopened to travellers from Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania from midnight tonight!
As the State Government accelerates the easing of coronavirus restrictions, travellers to South Australia will no longer have to self-isolate for 14 days. Accommodation businesses, caravan parks and campsites with shared facilities are allowed if cleaned properly. People can hang out at pubs, restaurants and gyms as long as there are less than 300 people in venues and 75 per room.
The world-class food and wine along with the amazing culture and wildlife in South Australia are waiting for you to explore. Don’t you realize our home country is more amazing than any destinations in the world? Taste your way through world-famous wine regions only minutes away from Adelaide, soak up the sun at pristine, picture-perfect beaches, swim with sea lions and dolphins, cage dive with great white sharks and get up close with wild koalas and kangaroos in every region of South Australia and more.
TASMANIA
Starting from June 5, there is no travel limit in place in Tasmania so residents are free to visit anywhere in the state. In addition, from yesterday, June 15, most hotels, Airbnb properties and holiday homes in Tasmania are available for bookings.
However, when Tasmania’s borders will reopen has not been determined yet, which means visitors from other states and territories still have to practice self-quarantine for 14 days when arriving in Tasmania. Stage three of easing restrictions in Tasmania had been re-scheduled to begin on 26 June instead of mid-July, which means markets, food courts, casinos and nightclubs, and camping trips for school groups and we can look forward to further easing of restriction very soon.
NORTHERN TERRITORY
Though 14-day quarantine is still required for all arrivals in Northern Territory, travelling within the state is allowed, including overnight stays. Some biosecurity areas such as Uluru and Kakadu will be opened after 18 June. Regarding Queensland, hopefully there will be no new cases of Covid-19 so the state border can be opened as planned by mid-July.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Residents in Western Australia are encouraged to start planning and enjoying holidays in the state as hotels and restaurants are back to their operations. However, your holiday may still exclude the biosecurity zones within the Kimberley, Pilbara and Ngaanyatjarraku and remote Aboriginal communities.
As a restriction against Covid-19 pandemic, WA’s border positions will remain closed though other states have opened to WA residents. Accordingly, no one can enter the state without being granted an exemption, including returning West Australian residents.
QUEENSLAND
The restrictions easing for Queensland allows citizens to not only travel across the state but also stay in places overnight with up to 20 people gathering outside. Queensland seems to be the most desirable destination regarding domestic travel but its border rule is the most strict one during coronavirus outbreak. Only residents and essential service workers can enter the state, and they need an entry pass. Let’s pray for Queensland’s border restrictions to be lifted next month!