Hong Kong Scraps Most COVID Arrival Requirements

Last week, I made a transit through Hong Kong on my way to Manila. At the time, I concluded that it was best to avoid this place until the authorities came to their senses and caught up with the rest of the world.

Thankfully, this is precisely what is happening! Starting tomorrow, December 29, 2022, travellers wanting to enter Hong Kong will no longer need to do a mandatory PCR test upon arrival. However, a RAT test 24h pre-departure is still required or a PCR 48h before departure.

The PCR test on arrival was a major hurdle for tourists looking to visit Hong Kong.
Picture this: you arrive at Hong Kong airport (which looks like a hospital emergency ward), you get a swab for COVID, and then you are instructed to isolate yourself in your hotel room until the results come back.
Then, you get the result… surprise, you are positive! After which, you are picked up by the authorities and moved to their “quarantine facilities,” aka the gulag.
As you can imagine, this didn’t appeal to anyone.

Luckily, Hong Kong will now drop this requirement, and with that, the vaccine pass will also be removed, which means you can go out and about with much greater freedom.
Masks, however, remain in place, even outside, so this might still be a big “no” for most tourists.

In any case, it’s a step in the right direction, and we can only hope all measures will be scrapped sooner rather than later.
Keep in mind that, for now, you still need to be “fully vaccinated,” which means two doses of most vaccine brands.
Hong Kong is an amazing hub for frequent flyers, and currently, award flights to and from Hong Kong are easy to come by!