Travel: Fiji’s December 1 reopening triggers booking frenzy from Australians

Excitement not experienced in two years has Fiji aflutter thanks to thousands of Aussie bookings.

The Shangri-La Fijian Resort & Spa is ready for the rush. Picture: Allan Stephen

A sense of excitement not experienced in close to two years has Fiji aflutter, thanks to thousands of bookings pouring in from the ­Pacific Island nation’s lifeblood – Australian tourists.

The announcement Fiji would reopen to fully vaccinated international guests from December 1 triggered the tsunami of demand from travel-hungry Aussies, with some resorts now close to being sold out for key dates in 2022.

Of all the travel inquiries ­received in the last week, Flight Centre reported almost 87 per cent were about Fiji, with the US a very distant second on 2.8 per cent. In contrast, Indonesia, the UK and New Zealand accounted for just a handful of queries.

Tourism Fiji chief executive Brent Hill said the response had lifted the spirits of local operators who were now in a frenzy of painting, construction and training to prepare for the onslaught.

“It’s incredibly exciting. You can’t really imagine just how ­excited and how keen everyone is because even though we’ve had some domestic tourism in the last month or so, and little bit in 2020, it is international tourists we need and we’ve really just been scratching along, desperately waiting for this,” Mr Hill said.

“Some of the luxury products like Vomo and Kokomo, they’re doing incredibly well and booking out for 2022 and I know the Radisson Blue is already 50 per cent sold for December 1, so that’s a good sign that people are coming right off the bat.”

A staff member at the Shangri-La Fijian Resort & Spa in Fiji. Picture: Allan Stephen

While large resorts like the Shangri-La had maintained its workforce throughout the pandemic others were in a rush to ­rehire to deliver the sort of service for which Fiji was renowned.

From Tuesday, Australian citizens and visa-holders with a valid passport who have received at least one Covid-19 vaccine dose will be able to obtain an internationally recognised certificate. The certificates will be able to be downloaded on travel apps, such as the International Air Transport Association Travel Pass.

Mr Hill conceded there would be some differences for holiday-makers due to the changed environment brought about by Covid.

In addition to a PCR test 72 hours before departing Australia, fully vaccinated visitors would be required to have another test 48 hours after arrival, and one more before heading home.

Mr Hill said Fiji had also adopted a “care for you” commitment that was a combination of QR codes and accredited venues and products. “We’re asking all tourists to only use care for you commitment products to make sure everybody is safe and we know where people are,” he said.

Cocktails by the beach at the Shangri-La Fijian Resort & Spa in Fiji. Picture: Allan Stephen

“I don’t think that will detract from the fun at all. People can travel around Fiji freely, they can enjoy their resort, head out to the islands and do what they want to do. We don’t want people thinking about Covid every day. We just want them to know they’re protected and safe.”

Another welcome difference might be the cost, with the Fijian government providing tax ­exemptions for hotels undergoing refurbishment, and slashing taxes on food and drink. “The government has recognised that Fiji had a bit of a reputation as being a bit of a more expensive destination so they’ve put a rebate scheme in place that will allow some amazing deals,” Mr Hill said.

Just over 61 per cent of Fiji’s eligible population is fully vaccinated, a figure expected to hit 70 per cent in November. There were 47 new Covid-19 infections reported on Friday.

Not content to see Fiji get all the tourist traffic, Singapore Airlines put flights to Sydney on sale over the weekend in anticipation of strong demand.

The move followed the NSW government announcement fully vaccinated Australian citizens and permanent residents could fly into the state without the need to quarantine from November 1.

Singapore Airlines regional vice-president Louis Arul said all of its 17 weekly flights to Sydney would be available for those that met the eligibility criteria. Due to international ­arrival caps, only one flight a day is currently carrying travellers, with the remaining services operating as cargo-only.

International travel to and from Australia is expected to become more widely available from mid-December although other states are yet to confirm quarantine arrangements. Singapore is also yet to add Australia to its list of “vaccinated travel lane” countries, which allows arrivals to visit without the need to quarantine.