When can we visit Australia again?

Lucca

Spice101

It's not only those who don't live in Australia that cannot see their families who live here.

Many of us living here have not been able to see family, even those living locally to us due to restrictions. One of our sons lives only 10 minutes away but we have not been able to see him or his family regularly since the pandemic started. Melbourne has the longest cumulative lockdown in the world. It is now over 260 days we have had lockdown restrictions.

I believe there is now a National plan regarding overseas arrivals but initially it is only for Australian citizens or residents.

The point is….when lockdown does end you will be able to see them SO easily! And so often. No 27 hour flight and huge expense and horrible goodbyes. Sorry but not that much sympathy from me ( I expect to be in trouble for that)

Works both ways, however I was not looking for your sympathy just pointing out that overseas people are not the only ones that are affected by border restrictions.

A 27 hour flight is a choice one makes and is a means to an end so no point in complaining about it.

I have family a 27 hour flight away, and family 20 minutes away. At times, they have felt as inaccessible as each other with restrictions.

Waiting, with no expectations soon, for NZ to open up. My DS and his lovely Kiwi partner have now re-arranged their wedding date for the third time to Jan 2023. They refuse to get married without friends and family from around the world being there.
They have had two babies in the meantime, who, at this rate, will be making speeches at the wedding!

I hope that works out for them GrandmaKT. A tough time to plan weddings, for sure.

We didn’t see our son and his family for three months last year and they only live a 40 minute drive from us. We weren’t allowed to drive any distance so they couldn’t even drive down and see us from over the garden wall. We saw our other son or DiL for ten minutes or less a week as they delivered our click and collect shopping to us, but we only saw them over the garden wall. Our daughter and her children used to visit weekly via an over the wall visit for about 15 minutes, but now they’re gone to New Zealand so we only see them via WhatsApp and the portal. At least we saw them up to May when they left, and they actually lived with us for two months after their house was sold. Everyone has been deprived of family and also friends. I haven’t seen one of my two dearest friends for two years as she lives 250 miles away. We haven’t seen my husband’s 94 year old parents for two years for the same reason. Everyone is missing their friends and families because of the pandemic, it’s horrible for everyone.

Spice. A 27 hour flight is a choice one makes and is a means to an end so no point in complaining about it

How is it a choice ? It’s either that or never see my son again.

I would love to say I have only seen my daughter intermittently during the pandemic. The truth is I haven’t seen her at all for almost 3 years and I have no idea when I will see her again.

Kalu

I would love to say I have only seen my daughter intermittently during the pandemic. The truth is I haven’t seen her at all for almost 3 years and I have no idea when I will see her again.

Exactly.

Each state has their own rules so that has been causing problems for months even without the federal government rules.
Then you have each state closing down different areas (a bit like here) . Aussies are used to being able to travel from one side of a state and inter state at their own will.
I have relatives and friends that have had great problems with being able to work as they live and work in different parts of Victoria when one area is in lockdown, the other isn't and one of them even had to take time off because he wasn't allowed to travel to his workplace, and a friend has even struggled to get from rural Victoria to Melbourne to see her oncologist.
I reckon it will be some time before visitors to Australia as a whole will be allowed in.

It is all very sad worldwide.
I know a lovely NZ/UK couple who called off their relationship just as it was blossoming because they were having to wait too long to reunite. The girl is distraught.

As we only saw our family every 3 years when we came to the U.K. on leave whilst I was growing up I think that I may have accepted the lack of visits better than most.
It is so much easier these days to keep in touch than it used to be.
However I meant this thread to simply inform not to be a contentious issue on who has suffered most. We have all suffered I think.
Josianne will you be able to go to HK? My niece has just gone to work there and the hoops she and her fiancé have had to jump through were unbelievable. It has taken their employers months to sort out their permission. At the moment they are locked up for 21days on Lan Tau. I hope you are lucky.

Ginster is your friend an Australian citizen?

Thank you Pamela, I'm not holding my breath.

Correct me if I am wrong,but I would have thought most
U.K./Oz/U.K. traffic would be
U.K./to Oz
I think its easier for a parents/grand parents to travel to Oz when their might only be one of you heading down under.
As opposed to having to take a Mum and Dad and possible one, two or three children on the long journey from Oz to the U.K.
When travel starts up again I can see the planes being very full going to Australia but half empty coming to the U.K.
Who would wants to travel to our damp cold climate in dec/jan/Feb.

I will correct you because I think you are wrong, infoman.
I already know someone who has booked her flight over to the UK ? (not one of my DC).
Some parents are elderly and/or and unable to travel so their DC will come here. Some will pay the fares for their families to come here.
Some love a cold winter instead of the unbearably hot, humid summers. The long school holidays are December - January.

Lucca

Kalu

I would love to say I have only seen my daughter intermittently during the pandemic. The truth is I haven’t seen her at all for almost 3 years and I have no idea when I will see her again.

Exactly.

We all think we're lucky because we saw them all just before Covid arrived (although I think it was already around before December 2019.)

It could be another year at least, I think, before borders are opened.

We have all suffered I think.

PamelaJ is right I think. As well as loss of liberty and social life, nearly everyone has friends or family in different countries, or different parts of the same country, who they have been unable to see. Covid has been cruel in so many ways. The greatest loss is the loss of life, so I think we must think ourselves lucky to be here ready for when we are able to see our beloveds again.

Good post maddyone.

Good posts PamelaJ and Maddyone.
We saw our family from Perth in August 2019 and hope we can see them in 2022.
We’ll go there if we can in April Last time we paid to bring them here because that way our son gets to see his three brothers and the cousins all get to be together.
Fingers crossed it’ll happen for us all.

I can think of worse ways of spending 27hrs than resting, eating and drinking. Well worth it anyway, would hate to think I’ll never be able or fit enough to do that again.

BlueSky

I can think of worse ways of spending 27hrs than resting, eating and drinking. Well worth it anyway, would hate to think I’ll never be able or fit enough to do that again.

?

And then, if there are health problems, the insurance costs as much as another flight.....

With the rising number of cases here in the UK, I’m beginning to think Australia and New Zealand will never let us in. Yesterday Morocco announced they’ll be no further direct flights between Morocco and the UK.

Glad I visited regularly when I could for all sorts of reasons. I knew one day it would stop. It’ll be left to the younger generation to visit the older one, but I have a sneaking feeling they might just come back for funerals.

This may be of interest to some of you:

Victoria will scrap quarantine requirements for international arrivals.

(Double dosed and test neg here of course)

Arrivals will not have to quarantine at home or in a hotel

Likely to happen same day it happens in NSW - Nov 1

Also,
Queensland I believe is opening their borders to overseas travellers from December 19th

Thanks Spice101 we’ve got to keep positive! (Or negative in this case)!

DD2 in Brisbane phoned last night with the same news Spice?