Hong Kong and Singapore announced plans to launch an air travel bubble starting May 26. Visitors do not need to meet quarantine requirements as long as they fulfill all the conditions of traveling within the air travel bubble. Plans for this bubble were previously announced for November 2020, but were postponed due to a surge in COVID-19 infections.

Some of the conditions of the ATB include travelers should have no travel history to any place other than Singapore or Hong Kong in the 14 days prior to departure, and travelers are required to download, register and use Singapore’s TraceTogether mobile application. Hong Kong residents can only take designated flights to fly to Singapore at least 14 days after receiving both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Travelers must test negative before departure and upon arrival. Additionally, the ATB will be suspended for two weeks if the seven-day moving average of the daily number of unlinked local COVID-19 cases is more than five for either Singapore or Hong Kong.

“Relaunching the Air Travel Bubble with Singapore is the first step in Hong Kong’s resumption of international travel, and a milestone for preparing the city for gradually welcoming more visitors back,” said Dr. YK Pang, chairman, Hong Kong Tourism Board. “We expect that travelers at the early stage of the launch of the ATB are those who travel for family visits or other essential reasons, and leisure travelers will return successively.”

Cathay Pacific is ready to fly passengers on its two-way, all-purpose, quarantine-free Air Travel Bubble Flights, operated by pilots and cabin crew who have been fully vaccinated. The flights will operate as CX759 and CX734 on Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The inaugural flight departs from Hong Kong on May 26, and returns from Singapore May 27. On June 10, the flights become daily.

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