Overflowing crematoriums in Chinese cities due to numerous deaths 3:18
Hong Kong (CNN) --
China's partial reopening has been greeted with great joy and relief by citizens, both the hundreds of millions isolated within the country for the past three years and those abroad separated from your loved ones.
Authorities announced Monday that starting January 8, China will remove quarantine requirements for all international arrivals, its most important move yet to move away from its strict zero-COVID policy.
The border remains largely closed to foreigners, apart from a limited number of business or family visits, though the government signaled on Monday that this too could be relaxed.
For many overseas Chinese, unable to return or unwilling to endure the long quarantine, the news meant they could finally return home, a bittersweet victory after much sacrifice.
"Finally, everyone can (live) their normal life," said a Chinese citizen living in New York who has not been home for four years.
He said the separation has been "very painful," adding that several members of his family and the beloved dog he grew up with had died during that time.
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China to remove quarantine for incoming travelers and take important step toward reopening its borders after years of closure due to covid-19
Passengers in the departure lounge of the Beijing International Airport on December 27.
(Credit: Kydpl Kyodo/AP)
His family "missed (my graduation). They missed a lot of things," he said.
"And I also missed so many things for my family. All my friends got married during the pandemic. Some of them even had babies. I feel like I missed everything, I missed the most important points in their lives."
May Ma, 28, has been unable to return home for nearly three years while living in South Korea.
The worst part of the quarantine requirements had been worrying about the health of her grandparents and not knowing if she would be able to return in time to say goodbye to her if something happened, she said.
Throughout the pandemic, "the scariest thing was... not knowing where the end is, not knowing when I can come back," Ma told CNN.
"I definitely feel very happy, I can finally see the end."
Those inside China are also celebrating and anticipating travel abroad.
Most have not left the country for several years and are now flooding booking sites to plan their long-awaited vacations.
Online searches for overseas departure flights and hotels hit their highest in three years on Trip.com, a Chinese travel-booking website, according to company data.
Searches for popular destinations increased tenfold half an hour after the announcement, with many people searching for group tours during the Lunar New Year holiday season in late January, data shows.
Macau, Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, the United States and the United Kingdom were among the top 10 destinations for the website with the fastest growth in search volume since the announcement.
China's zero covid policy and the challenge of curbing infections
But the border easing has raised concerns among some as China battles its most severe wave of Covid-19 infections since the pandemic began.
Cases have skyrocketed since China abandoned its zero covid policy, leaving streets empty and hospital wards overcrowded.
When CNN visited a Beijing crematorium last week, cars lined up to get in, full of grieving relatives who had been waiting more than a day to cremate their loved ones who died of covid.
Last Friday, Bloomberg News and the Financial Times reported that almost 250 million people in China could have been infected with Covid in the first 20 days of December, a figure presented during an internal meeting of China's National Health Commission, according to both outlets.
They cited sources familiar with the matter or involved in the discussions.
If correct, the estimate, which CNN cannot independently confirm, would account for about 18% of China's 1.4 billion people and represent the largest Covid-19 outbreak to date worldwide.
"I feel like right now it's a total disaster," the Chinese national said in New York.
"Everyone is sick. So, at least I think right now, it's not the best time to visit my family. Maybe it will be two or three months from now."
Some overseas destinations are also on guard.
Officials in the Lombardy region of northern Italy have asked Milan's Malpensa airport, one of the country's largest international airports, to carry out PCR tests for all arrivals from China between now and the end of January.
China's main health agency stops publishing daily figures for covid cases
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India, which borders China, has ordered travelers from China and several other countries to show a negative Covid test upon arrival.
And Japan announced Friday that travelers from mainland China, or who have been in China within a week, will be tested for Covid upon entry.
In both India and Japan, those who test positive upon arrival will be required to self-quarantine.
But for many Chinese citizens, hungry for travel and gatherings, the overwhelming excitement is still relief.
"It doesn't matter if I can make it back in time for the Spring Festival," Ma said in South Korea, referring to the Lunar New Year.
"There is hope after all, I can bear to wait a little longer."
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