US warns of 'increased caution' travelling to NZ, citing 23 active Covid-19 cases

August 7, 2020
Man sitting on an airplane using his phone while wearing a mask.

The United States has warned travellers to New Zealand to "exercise increased caution", citing the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the updated travel advisory published today, the US government said New Zealand currently has 23 active Covid-19 cases.

"Exercise increased caution in New Zealand due to Covid-19," the Level 2 travel advisory says.

It neglected to mention that all of those cases are in managed isolation or quarantine.

National wants all returnees to contribute to their hotel stay while the Government's plan means a small number will have to pay.

It's not known how many active cases the US currently has, however the Johns Hopkins tracker reports the US has had 4.8 million confirmed Covid-19 cases since the outbreak began.

In comparison, New Zealand has had 1219 confirmed cases in total.

The US State Department previously had a global Level 4 health warning for travel, urging people not to travel overseas at all.

People who do decide to travel to New Zealand are asked to register in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program for emergency alerts, have a contingency plan and review the crime and safety report for New Zealand.

Aside from the US advisory, travellers may have some other trouble as New Zealand's borders are still closed to anyone who isn't a New Zealand citizen or permanent resident, unless they're able to get a specific exemption.

The Government is also working to bring in requirements that mean people coming for short-term trips of less than three months would need to partially pay for their stay in a managed isolation facility themselves.

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