On November 21, the day before the first travel bubble flight was supposed to begin, the travel bubble between Hong Kong and Singapore was delayed by two weeks. This was caused by a sudden uptick of COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong city, leading the two countries to take precautions and give one another time to limit the spread of the virus.
While the bubble is still currently on track to begin, this incident does raise a few questions: what’s so important about this bubble? Why is it so important for Singapore and Hong Kong to get this right? When can we safely resume travel for tourism and leisure?
Setting a World Wide Precedent
Long answer short: the bubble is important as it is the first of its kind - in the region at least. While many networks and ‘travel corridors’ are currently active in the EU and across the world, most of them either require visitors to comply with a 14 day self-quarantine (which is already the length of a holiday) or are mainly for business and work related matters.
The travel bubble will set a precedent for the rest of the world, easing opportunities for tourism back into the mainstream after more than half a year of COVID related restrictions. Not only that, but Hong Kong could potentially use the bubble as blueprints for setting up similar arrangements in 10 other countries, and it is likely that Singapore could plan to do the same.
Which is why it’s so important to get this right the first time. Hong Kong’s spike in cases could be aggravated by Singaporean visitors, and reflect poorly on the travel bubble’s potential as a way to secure movement for leisure between countries.
Fragile Travel Bubbles
However, this incident does reveal how truly fragile travel bubbles are at the moment. Small upticks in any of the participating nations’ population can cause further delays, and both countries cannot report more than five unlinked cases over a seven day period, or the bubble will be suspended.
The desire to execute this bubble correctly the first time round leads both governments to play things safe, and choose to disappoint travellers rather than rush things forward.
This is to say nothing of the increased price of tickets and additional costs for testing, all making for a very difficult and expensive travel experience even in an active bubble.
Not the First, nor the Last
It is important to note that we aren’t the only countries to attempt something similar. Australia is still attempting a more one-sided approach with New Zealand, where visitors from the latter are not required to self-quarantine. However, the same cannot be said on the return flight, and New Zealand still has not opened its borders to tourism of any sort. Obviously, this is far from perfect, and won’t get any better so long as each nation is still being careful.
In Europe, a Baltic travel bubble existed between Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia from May to September. This bubble was burst when Latvia experienced a surge in cases and reinstituted self-quarantining rules.
Stay Optimistic!
These examples demonstrate the complicated reality of travel and global tourism at the moment. With the difficulty Singapore already faces in this bubble with Hong Kong, it seems unlikely that many others will be established for the next four months or so - at least, until a vaccine is widely available.
That isn’t to say you should give up hope on travelling completely. It’s important to remain optimistic and keep track of the situation, as everyone does want things to return to normal.
However, the days of pre-pandemic lifestyle travelling are a long way off. With how fragile travel arrangements between countries still are at the moment, planning too far ahead might be impossible. Even if you’re able to secure a seat on a flight, you have to keep your fingers crossed that it doesn’t get delayed or cancelled.
For now, it might not be ideal to place your trust in travel bubbles, because you never know when they might pop.
