News

A new report from the UN’s air transportation agency confirms there was a “dramatic” fall in international air travel due to COVID-19, of around 60 per cent over the course of last year, to levels last seen in 2003. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) said on Friday, that as seating capacity […]

Tonga has extended a State of Emergency for another month, until 15 February, due to ongoing concerns around the global spread of Covid-19. The State of Emergency was first declared 12 March and has been renewed regularly since. The extension, announced on Monday evening, means that a curfew will remain […]

Quarantine free travel into New Zealand will encourage more Cook Islanders to return home, says Prime Minister Mark Brown. The announcement of quarantine free travel into New Zealand has freed up about 300 vouchers back into the Managed Isolation Allocation System. According to a spokesperson, these were vouchers booked from […]

SYDNEY, January 18, 2021 – While the Pacific and Papua New Guinea (PNG) have avoided some of the worst health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the closure of international travel and lockdowns to curb the spread of COVID-19 have had serious impacts on employment, international labour mobility, and livelihoods across the […]

Fiji is high on the list of New Zealanders’ travel aspirations lists right now and many would pack their bags and go if the borders opened now, according to research released late last week. Tourism Fiji partnered with Mediaworks at the end of 2020 to survey Kiwis around their mindset […]

Nauru Airlines (ON, Nauru) has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to start the process of replacing its B737-300 passenger fleet over the next few years, nominating pre-owned B737-700s or B737-800s as its preferred choice. This is the word from Chief Executive Officer Geoff Bowmaker, who told ch-aviation by email […]

The days of strolling into an airport, flashing a passport, then hopping on a flight to wherever one likes are, for now, a distant memory. The Covid-19 pandemic has transformed the travel landscape, potentially for decades to come. Countries all over the world are entering fresh lockdowns, but even when […]

“Following confirmation of the Cook Islands’ Covid free status, and the implementation of strict health and border protocols, we are now in the position to resume quarantine-free travel for passengers from the Cook Islands into New Zealand,” Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.  “These arrangements do not apply to New Zealanders […]

Fiji Link, Fiji Airways’ wholly owned subsidiary, has introduced mobile (digital) boarding pass options for customers checking in online for domestic flights from Nadi, Suva and Labasa. Customers flying domestically from the three airports are able to use mobile boarding passes generated on their device after they check-in online, without […]

At Royal Caribbean International, our guests and crew’s safety and well-being are always our top priorities. After further consulting with our partners at Cruise Lines International Association and in conjunction with the CDC, we have decided to extend the suspension of sailings for our global fleet for all sailings through April […]

New Zealand has secured a major global conference on coral reefs, highlighting the plight of the South Pacific to the rest of the world. The International Coral Reef Society’s Symposium will be held in Auckland in the New Zealand International Convention Centre in mid-2025. Around 2,500 experts are expected to […]

In 2019, global travel and tourism contributed an impressive $8.9 trillion to the world’s GDP – a number so vast it’s hard to truly grasp but as a helping point, it looks like this written in full: $8,900,000,000,000.  Then Covid-19 reared its head and soon we were engulfed in a […]

The tiny COVID-free Pacific nation of Palau is poised to become one of the world’s first countries to be mostly vaccinated against the coronavirus.With a population of around 18,000, the country is about the same size of some suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne.It’s this size that has put the country […]

A CNN journalist broke down sobbing while reporting live from the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic in the US, having visited ten hospitals.  Sara Sidner choked back tears as she explained the devastating impact COVID-19 was having on the city of Los Angeles, where cases have spiked once again.  “I […]

The Samoan government has extended its Covid-19 State of Emergency Orders for another month due to the rapid spread of the new strain spreading through South Africa and the United Kingdom. The coronavirus mutation first found in England in December, has now spread to fifty countries and territories, according to […]

A grim warning has been delivered by the World Health Organization, as the world heads into the second year of COVID-19 impact. WHO says the pandemic may be tougher than last year, given how the new coronavirus is spreading, especially in the northern hemisphere as more infectious variants circulate. This […]

Tourism Fiji is pleased to announce a few exciting new roles in our team for 2021. Last year was a year of change and while this means new responsibilities for some staff, we can assure you that our team is ready to support you. Some of these exciting staff changes […]

The British High Commission in Port Vila is pleased this week to sign an agreement to provide logistical support to the Vanuatu Government efforts in the 3rd phase of the repatriation process. The grant support, valued at VT6 million, is for two projects: one is to support the vital security and […]

When the results of his latest research into carbon emissions came in, Louis Schipper sat back in his chair and just stared.  “Oh,” the professor of biogeochemistry at the University of Waikato said to himself, expletives running through his head. “We have a problem.’”  While that might not be news […]

The government will allow 1000 foreign students to enter the country from April as part of the recovery plan for international education, it has been announced. Education Minister Chris Hipkins said the students must be part-way through a degree or postgraduate course and would have to pay for the cost […]