Hong Kong and Singapore have resurrected plans to launch a travel bubble with quarantine free travel between the two jurisdictions now scheduled to start on 26 May 2021.
The travel bubble had originally been planned to begin last November but an outbreak of COVID-19 in Hong Kong in October saw the agreement suspended. With Hong Kong’s COVID-19 situation finally stable again, authorities have been quick to rekindle discussions.
For two weeks starting on 26 May, two airlines – Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines – will provide one flight a day in each direction with a maximum of 200 passengers per flight. Travellers from other countries who have arrived in either Hong Kong or Singapore and hope to utilize the travel bubble must have been in either Hong Kong or Singapore for at least 14 days after completing their initial quarantine period before flying to the other jurisdiction. For Hong Kong citizens, only those who have received both doses of their COVID-19 vaccine will be permitted to fly.
Much like initial plans last year, if COVID-19 cases increase to an average of more than five community cases per day over a seven-day period in either location, the travel bubble arrangement will be suspended for at least two weeks. Local cases must then fall to less than three per day for three days and less than five over seven days before a resumption would be considered.
While Hong Kong and Singapore are moving forward, Macau remains cautious – emphasizing Monday that it would not start any travel bubble agreements with other regions at this stage.
“Situations in several popular international travel destinations are unpredictable,” officials form the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) said.
“Macau has already resumed normal interactions with mainland China so we do not see any urgency to start travel bubbles.”
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