AFP
Traditional dancers in grass skirts welcome international holidaymakers in Nadi, Fiji, yesterday.
Grass-skirted traditional dancers welcomed holidaymakers back to Fiji yesterday, as the South Pacific nation opened its borders to international travelers for the first time since the pandemic began.
Fiji Airways flight FJ914 from Sydney touched down at Nadi airport at 11:40am, ending 615 days of international isolation for the tourism-dependent economy.
As the plane taxied down the runway, two fire engines lined up and aimed their hoses in the air to honor it with a water salute.
Face coverings obscured the beaming smiles as travelers, some carrying surfboards, made their way through the terminal but cries of "bula" (hello) and Indigenous songs of celebration reverberated around the building.
Australian couple Matthew Brickwood and Danielle Connelly were the first of the 200-plus passengers to clear customs. "Ever since we heard Fiji was opening for its first flight, we decided to just head here," Brickwood said.
Fiji Airways chief executive Andre Viljoen said it was a "momentous" occasion after a tough 20 months for the tropical bucket-list destination, where tourism accounts for about 40 percent of the economy.
"The international border reopening will reignite Fiji's economy," he told reporters.
Viljoen said strict health measures were in place to contain COVID-19 and the recent emergence of the Omicron variant had not deterred passengers. "Flights are coming in at full capacity," he said.
Fiji has tightened restrictions on arrivals from southern Africa but made no changes to rules surrounding "travel partner" countries, whose citizens can now experience a tropical getaway in the Pacific idyll.
They include New Zealand, the United States and France, as well as countries where Omicron has been detected like Japan, Australia, Canada and Britain.
Tourism Fiji chief executive Brent Hill said resorts on the two main islands of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu were gearing up for an influx of foreign travelers.
"We've noted around 75,000 bookings for the next couple of months, which is outstanding," he said.
Foreign visitors need to be fully vaccinated and test negative for COVID-19 prior to departure, as well as providing a 14-day travel history to ensure they have not visited virus hotspots.