World’s toughest travel curbs including in Philippines finally fall to reopening urge

People trooping to the Manila baywalk dolomite beach along Roxas boulevard in Manila city on Sunday, October 17, 2021, a day after authorities eased its quarantine restrictions in the nation's capital. - AFP

MANILA, Oct 17 (Bloomberg): Some of the world’s longest and toughest Covid-19-induced border curbs are finally being eased, with Asia-Pacific countries taking their firmest steps yet toward reopening to international travel in recent days.

From Singapore to Sydney, Bali to Bangkok and even the Philippines, authorities have announced a flurry of plans to welcome vaccinated travelers by drastically reducing or completely removing quarantine requirements in place for most of the pandemic.

For these places, the easing is a significant shift toward opening up just as the traditional year-end holiday season approaches.