Hong Kong is eyeing the end of its mandatory three-day hotel quarantine for international visitors before November events such as a global banking summit and the international Rugby Sevens tournament, according to the South China Morning Post.
The news came as Hong Kong International Airport conducted a trial test of 1,000 passenger arrivals in early September, signalling the Asian hub could soon further relax border controls.
Hong Kong also recently lifted the requirement for passenger crew to isolate in a hotel for three days in Hong Kong, which Cathay Pacific said would increase flying capacity in the upcoming months.
Chief Executive John Lee is leaning toward scrapping hotel quarantine before the November events to signal Hong Kong is back in business.
Arrivals to Hong Kong currently need to self-monitor for a further four days after the three-day quarantine period and are not allowed to enter venues such as restaurants and bars.
Meanwhile, Financial Secretary Paul Chan has warned that Hong Kong can only reopen its borders if its vaccination rate improves with the hope of reopening the mainland China border if COVID cases can be suppressed.
Hong Kong has steadily eased pandemic restrictions since March 2022, however the administration has been unable to fully open even as rival Asian finance and leisure travel hubs such as Singapore remove all pandemic restrictions.
Find out more at discoverhongkong.com
Via Reuters
