travel challenges
After three years of isolation from the outside world, China on Sunday lifted the quarantine mandate for incoming visitors, which is expected to finally encourage outbound travel as well.
But concerns about the outbreak in China have prompted more than a dozen countries to demand negative COVID test results from people arriving from China.
Among them, South Korea and Japan also limited flights and required tests on arrival, with passengers testing positive being sent into quarantine.
In a deepening dispute between the regional rivals, China has in turn stopped issuing short-term visas and suspended transit visa exemptions for South Korean and Japanese citizens.
Travel data firm ForwardKeys said on Thursday that outbound flight bookings from China were only 15% of pre-pandemic levels in the week after the country announced the reopening of its borders, despite Beijing lifting travel restrictions.
Low airline capacity, high airfares, new pre-flight COVID-19 testing requirements by many countries and a backlog of passport and visa applications present challenges, ForwardKeys Vice President Insights Olivier Ponti said in a statement.
