HK's sudden rush to book flights jams airlines' websites; airfares forecast to soar

In addition to ending hotel quarantine, Hong Kong will do away with the requirement for a pre-flight PCR test. - Reuters

HONG KONG (Bloomberg): Cathay Pacific Airways' website and that of its low-cost unit buckled under a rush of flight searches Friday, as the Hong Kong government announced that mandatory quarantine and other pandemic travel restrictions will be scrapped next week.

But those looking to finally fly out of the city after more than two years of Covid-19 isolation may see themselves paying an arm and a leg, as airfares are forecast to soar, at least in the near term.