Ep 57: Reopening. Reopening. Reopening.

How will governments use COVID-19 vaccine programmes to revitalise travel and tourism? This week, Gary and Hannah debate the latest tourism reopening proposals in South East Asia and beyond.

These include moves to welcome vaccinated travellers in Thailand, Bali’s ‘COVID-free Corridor’, and the likely reboot of the Singapore-Hong Kong Air Travel Bubble.

We also discuss a proposed ‘Calibrated’ reopening in India, the ‘Bio Bubble’ tourism initiative in Sri Lanka and ‘Vaccine-to-Go’ travel in Cuba – and their relevance to South East Asian markets. Plus, Costa Rica revives ‘Visa-Free Access’ for Chinese travellers, ‘Vaccinated students’ from China and ‘One-Way Travel Bubbles’ in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands.

Can vaccines be successfully used to unblock pathways to a travel recovery? And what will travel look like – is it going to be both ‘Safe & Secure’ and ‘Controlled & Restricted’?