The new crown pneumonia epidemic in Hong Kong continues. The Hong Kong government announced on Monday (21st) that from April 1, the ban on flights to Hong Kong from nine countries including the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada will be withdrawn.
Before the announcement of the measures, some British students had purchased air tickets to stay in Singapore for 14 days to "wash their bottoms". Due to the inability to cancel the hotel reservation in Singapore and the difficulty of changing the hotel time for quarantine in Hong Kong, they had to continue to change their itinerary and go to Singapore and then return to Hong Kong for quarantine. "It's going to be a trip for a few days."
She estimated that the itinerary would cost about 15,000 yuan more than returning directly to Hong Kong. She criticized the government for changing orders and making very poor decisions. "I have been challenging everyone's bottom line for the past few months, and I have been very nervous. I don't think so. In the next step, it will be a point to disrupt all the planned things.”
▼On March 21, the government announced the roadmap for returning to normal at the anti-epidemic press conference▼
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The no-fly order does not include Singapore to stay for 14 days and return to Hong Kong
Last year, in response to the severe Omicron epidemic in Australia, Canada, France, India, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, the United Kingdom and the United States, the Hong Kong government implemented a flight circuit breaker mechanism to prohibit civil aviation aircraft from relevant regions from landing in Hong Kong.
With the fifth wave of the epidemic in Hong Kong, with more than one million people diagnosed, Chief Executive Carrie Lam admitted on Monday that the flight ban was out of date, and decided to lift the ban on April 1, and the quarantine period for Hong Kong people returning to Hong Kong was also Reduced to a minimum of 7 days.
Miss Yang, a Hong Kong student studying in the UK, plans to return to Hong Kong in early May because her course is about to end.
She pointed out that in January, she had booked a flight back to Hong Kong in mid-April and a quarantine hotel, but in February the government announced an extension of the flight ban, which made the trip fall through, and the airline even said that it was not expected to return to Hong Kong until the end of April.
Therefore, she decided to go to Singapore, where there is no flight ban, for 14 days, and then return to Hong Kong for 14 days of quarantine.
Ms. Yang estimated that the cost of going to Singapore and then returning to Hong Kong would be about 15,000 yuan more than returning to Hong Kong directly.
(provided by respondents)
Only 60% of the ticket price can be refunded for non-refundable air tickets booked for hotels in Singapore
Ms. Yang estimated that the cost of going to Singapore and then returning to Hong Kong was about 15,000 yuan more than the direct return to Hong Kong, which involved about 5,000 yuan for air tickets from the UK to Singapore, nearly 7,000 yuan for 14-night hotel, and insurance and other expenses.
Although the Hong Kong government cancelled the ban on returning to Hong Kong from the United Kingdom, she decided to continue the trip, and explained that because the hotel reservation in Singapore is non-refundable, and the air ticket can only be refunded at most 60%, "The passes are buried, it's a bad time to go, hey. If the money doesn't go away, there's nothing left, just go and play for a few days."
She also said that she is very worried that the return flight to Hong Kong will be "fused", but considering that if the British return flight is "fused", it will cost more to buy another airline ticket, "In addition to the lack of direct flights, the time Even if the return flight from Singapore is "fuse", there are still many airlines to choose from, and the price is cheaper, so they still decided to continue their itinerary to Singapore.
Impatience with government decisions: Sudden disruption
Miss Yang criticized the Hong Kong government for its poor decision-making, and bluntly said that she felt very helpless about the sudden change in measures. "Even if it seems like I planned to post everything, I can suddenly disrupt the posting. Is the government trying to oppose the public?" She also said that even if But when returning to Hong Kong, many people in the UK and Hong Kong are currently unable to book a quarantine hotel. "It's useless to have a flight ticket. Everyone is nervous and constantly scrambling for a hotel. If you have a room, you have to go to an expensive hotel, not everyone can afford it."
▼ Residents leaving Hong Kong at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge port on March 22 wait for the test results▼
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Cancellation of no-fly order | Cathay Pacific flies to 9 countries every two weeks in April, direct flights from London to Hong Kong are cleared, no-fly order causes brain drain Stuck in the Philippines and India, it is still difficult for the industry to book and cancel the no-fly order | Quarantine hotels are full, one room is difficult to find in April, and the hotel may be vacated. 4.21 The ban on dine-in meals in the evening market will be cancelled from April 1. The quarantine period for Hong Kong people to return to Hong Kong will be shortened to a minimum of 7 days. Hong Kong and Macao people are affected