Fiji Just Opened To Travellers After 2 Years & They Had A Big Party For The First Visitors
We all deserve to enjoy a cocktail on a Fiji beach. 🍹
Imagine a waterfront villa with crystal-blue ocean views and a walkway onto a white sandy beach — and no visitors to enjoy any of it.
That's been the reality in Fiji for almost two years, but those beaches are finally opening up again, and locals seem pretty excited to welcome international travellers back to the country.
The first tourists to arrive on the island in 20 months were welcomed by groups of ecstatic Fijians, who performed dances and serenaded their long-awaited guests.
Fiji closed its borders to tourists back in March of 2020 to prevent a surge of COVID-19 cases that might have overloaded its medical facilities, reports CNN.
The country reopened to foreign nationals on Wednesday, December 1 after reaching 85% of adults fully vaccinated in October, according to Fiji's official travel website.
Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama took to Facebook on Wednesday to welcome tourists back to Fiji.
"Today, we are proud and — most importantly — prepared to welcome the first tourists to fly to Fiji in almost two years," the post reads. "Our message to every fully vaccinated, COVID-tested traveller who arrives to our shores is simple: Welcome Home."
Visitors from their list of approved partner countries, which includes Canada, the U.S. and 39 others, who meet the entry requirements can now enter the country to holiday without quarantine.
Travellers 18 years of age and older must be fully vaccinated, and all travellers 12 and older will need to present a negative PCR test taken within three days before travelling to Fiji.
Visitors must also prove that they have a booking at a government-certified accommodation for at least their first three nights, along with certified transportation from the airport to the hotel. This is to ensure tourists only come in contact with fully vaccinated people during their first 48 hours in the country.
Although travellers have to spend three nights at a specific spot, they can still move around and enjoy other certified facilities, restaurants and tourism experiences.
Travellers will then have to take a rapid COVID-19 test 48 hours after arrival, before enjoying the rest of their stay in the country.
Before you get going, check out our Responsible Travel Guide so you can be informed, be safe, be smart, and most of all, be respectful on your adventure.