A dream family Holiday to the Pacific island getaway of Fiji has been just that … a very lengthy dream, since the Covid 19 Pandemic closed borders around the world in early 2020.

The dream though ...might just become reality very soon which has everyone in my family shouting BULA!

Fiji announced their borders will reopen to tourists by November 1st and Qantas promptly advertising flights to Fiji this December and Fiji Airways selling very attractive full all inclusive packages.

The plan is based around the Fijian Governments projections that over 80% of its adult population will be vaccinated by the time tourists start heading back. This is in line with Australia’s goal rate and what the Government has suggested as the yardstick for countries we will be able to safely travel to.

Key points to consider are that they are only letting fully vaccinated travellers that are 14 days past their second jab that test negative for Covid-19 into the country. Children under 18 that are non vaccinated will be allowed in if with a vaccinated adult.

Tourism Fiji has also said only tourists from countries that allow quarantine-free travel will be allowed to visit, but are also strongly suggesting that you have travel insurance in the case that quarantine might be necessary.

This is most likely due to the fact that Fiji has not quite won its battle with Covid yet and there are currently more than 13,000 active cases including around 100 hospitalised.

Another point to consider is that despite Fiji’s vaccination push, it has not yet been made available to those under 18, which make up over a third of the population.

So while everyone (like me) is hanging  out to get travelling again, there is still a great deal more to consider than just packing your bags and going, despite families in nations like Fiji struggling to earn income with no tourists.

Tourism was by far Fiji’s largest industry prior to Covid-19, accounting for around 40% of the country's GDP in 2019. Estimates suggest as many as 100k people were left unemployed when tourism stopped in early 2020.

After two long years, they are very much waiting for Aussies to head back again and are practising Covid safe techniques to provide as much safety as possible. Visitors will need to follow guidelines laid out by the country's CareFiji plan and need to download the CareFiji app to their phones ahead of arriving in the country.