Any travellers to the Cook Islands should prepare to isolate in their accommodation if they test positive for Covid-19.
Muri Beach in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
The Pacific nation has decided to keep its travel bubble with New Zealand open despite spread of the Omicron variant here.
There has not been a case in the Cooks yet and it has a double-dose vaccination rate of 99.6 percent, with 70 percent having had a booster.
To get into the country a traveller must be at least double-dosed and have tested negative before departing for the islands.
Cook Islands Tourism Industry Council president Liana Scott told First Up: "As far as I'm aware all the talk behind the scenes and on social media and everywhere else that I've looked as saying that we will remain open."
There were concerns the bubble would close after Omicron was found to be transmitting in the community in Aotearoa, Scott said.
"With a GDP for our economy that requires 75 percent of operation from tourists it's a balance between the economy and surviving and getting through hardships that we're experiencing now versus the potential medical hardship."
If a case is found among tourists, the industry has been asked to have the person self isolate in their accommodation until the end of their stay if they did not need medical attention.
"If they need to move them to an isolation hotel, there has been one that's been put aside where it will be manned by health professionals, but we haven't had to activate that yet so that's on standby.
"We're doing everything we can as sensible as we can. There are high risk premises - so this is premises that have one door in and out - it might be an air conditioned premise like a bank for example, then that requires masks inside … signing in, sanitisation … and then you've got all your low-risk premises.
"This is like the lagoon cruise or a lot of hotels are quite open and they have fresh air all around it, so those are considered low risk and so no mask wearing is required in those instances. There are some restrictions on numbers in the more confined spaces.
"Masks are required on buses, so we're following similar preventative measures where we can, and this is without us having it yet, so we're already taken precaution because you never know and it is just a matter of time, so we're not oblivious to that.
"It's just a matter of, I guess, as much as the world has done, you know, learning to live with it."
