Covid-19: Cook Islands travel bubble opens on January 13, but not to under-12s
Friday, 5 November 2021
Cook Islands will reopen its borders to fully vaccinated Kiwi travellers aged 12 and older from January 13 next year, and possibly to Australia later on, its cabinet announced on Friday.
Prime Minister Mark Brown said travellers would need to provide a negative pre-departure test, and only those 12 and up would be allowed to enter Rarotonga, until New Zealand began vaccinating children.
He said the new date provided certainty and hope about the next step for the island nation, and keeping their borders closed indefinitely wasn’t a viable option any more.
While the health and safety of Cook Islanders remained their priority, the country needed to move forward in its management of Covid-19, he said.
**READ MORE:
* Covid-19: Cook Islands travel bubble may resume when all of NZ is at level 1
* Covid-19: No Cook Islands travel without vaccine, zero Covid cases in NZ for 14 days
* Covid-19: Cook Islands travel bubble suspended after NZ community case
**
Cook Islands was one of only a few countries around the world that remained Covid-free.
“Looking back, we have made the right call every time we needed to make a decision,” Brown said.
“Every step we have taken has led us to the point today where we remain Covid-19 free, can live without restrictions, and have protected ourselves with a very high vaccination rate of 96 per cent of our eligible population.”
Cook Islands shut its borders and suspended the travel bubble on August 17, when New Zealand went into lockdown in August after a Delta case emerged in the community.
Initially, Cook Islands government's initial response was not to reopen to New Zealand until there were no community cases for 14 days.
In October, Brown said they would consider reopening to Kiwis when New Zealand moves into alert level 1, even with cases in the community.
“Our border closure has hit many people very hard, and it has taken a toll, mentally and financially. That is why Cabinet has today very carefully weighed the balance between living in a Covid-19-free bubble – to living outside that bubble with safety.”
Travel to Aitutaki would be permitted, with the only requirement being that travellers undergo a rapid antigen test before boarding their flight from Rarotonga to Aitutaki. A further test may be required on Aitutaki.
Brown said January 13 allowed its Ministry of Health, Te Marae Ora, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration to finalise requirements and procedures around the new border settings and their approach.
“I am confident that mid-January is the right time for our country to welcome vaccinated visitors from New Zealand back to our beautiful shores, with the possibility of opening to Australia later in the year.”
Brown said further details on the NZ travel bubble about vaccination and travel protocols would be released next week in its Economic Recovery Roadmap.
Brown said they took the utmost care on their decision for open travel.
He said their vaccination rate of 96 per cent of the eligible population was impressive, with the vaccination of children above the age of 12 nearly complete.
Planning for booster shots for the 40+ age group was already under way, and when children’s vaccinations become available early next year, the entire population would be in a very safe place indeed, he said.
“That will make me an even happier man than I am today,” he said.
Cook Islands’ economy, reliant heavily on tourism, has been hit hard by the border closures.
Brown said every day their borders closed, they lost $1 million.
“And every week we are closed, it costs the Government $1m in support packages.
“That money is money that cannot be spent on important priorities like our health and education sectors and, frankly, that is no longer sustainable beyond January.
“The sooner we can safely open our borders to visitors, the sooner we can generate much-needed economic activity.”
Meanwhile, two repatriation flights are scheduled for this month and December, from Auckland.