Fortress New Zealand is finally open and it’s not cheap – The Times

Visiting New Zealand can feel like stepping through a time portal at the best of times. But that impression has taken on an entirely different meaning in the age of Covid. It has been shut off for the best part of two years, as part of the strict Covid elimination strategy of Fortress New Zealand.

Kiwi expats such as myself watched with a mix of horror and envy as friends and family back home packed rugby stadiums and sweated all over each other at concerts. Meanwhile we were locked down in our adoptive countries in my case Dubai and Canada recoiling at the thought of a strangers touch.

That Covid-free utopia, however, ceased to exist in late 2021, when the Delta variant crept into the community and paved the way for Omicron to run rampant. But because this was the first time NZ had faced a large-scale outbreak of any strain, this was the first time much of the country experienced lockdowns and the long-term working-from-home life the rest of the world had become accustomed to in 2020.

Two years behind the rest of the world, New Zealands Covid era has only just begun. Luckily a fast-tracked vaccination drive means more than 95 per cent of the total population is now inoculated. As a result the fortress walls have come down, and this week marks the return of international tourists.

Fiordland National Park, South Island

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The costly and prohibitive managed isolation system was scrapped in mid-March for Kiwis, and I, like many fellow expats, could finally buy extortionately priced flights home. I spent about 1,200 on a return flight with stops in Vancouver and Sydney, so last month I flew over New Zealand to get to New Zealand.

Sitting at the boarding gate at Vancouver International Airport, conversations were about how long since wed all been home. An elderly woman spoke excitedly about meeting a grandchild for the first time. A young man was looking forward to seeing his parents for the first time in three years. Someone, naturally, mentioned our unofficial national dish, fish and chips. (In my view best enjoyed by the seaside in the French-inspired town of Akaroa, at Akaroa Fish & Chips, or at Coopers Catch in Kaikoura).

In Sydney, during a layover in a deserted international terminal, people began chanting a real meat pie! (our other national dish involving meat not fruit) on the air bridge. That flight was the most emotional Id ever been on.

The harbour at Akaroa

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The only things that were markedly different at Auckland International Airport were the cries of kia ora muffled by masks, a flash new e-gate system (greetings, 21st century!) and packs of rapid antigen tests handed out at security. Those tests, admittedly, seemed mostly for show. While my husband received intermittent emails from the Ministry of Health asking for his results which are self-declared and dont require photographic evidence I received none.

Back home in Christchurch, the contrast between New Zealand and the rest of the world became more apparent. People were more paranoid than I thought it possible for laid-back Kiwis to be.

It gave me a sense of dj vu this was exactly how I felt back in May 2020, when Dubai was coming out of one of the worlds strictest lockdowns and people were learning how to interact with one another again.

Cathedral Square, Christchurch

ALAMY

Mandatory facemask wearing is still a relatively new phenomenon, introduced in August last year to coincide with the initial Delta outbreak. As the rest of the world largely has given up pretending to wear theirs properly, my dad still grumbles about having to tell strangers to cover their damn nose.

While vaccine mandates have been thrown out of the window, indoor and outdoor capacity limits were still in place. The daily Covid case counts and death toll still made the news and a friend made sure we met for coffee outside just in case. Covid still dominated conversations in a way it doesnt back in Canada. All of this was a jarring reminder that New Zealands fight against Covid-19 is still in its infancy.

A week into my stay, on April 13, the country moved to its orange traffic light setting, which scrapped mandatory facemasks in certain locations and capacity restrictions, but it was rare to see people without them in a supermarket.

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This abundance of caution is a hangover from the rallying cry team of five million, coined by Jacinda Ardern, the prime minister, to get everyone behind the elimination of Covid. That shared sense of duty lives on.

I wondered on my visit if there would be any antipathy towards me an outsider but thankfully I didnt experience that at all. Instead, in the absence of international tourism, I got to explore my own country with renewed vigour.

There was no queue for Fergburger in Queenstown, the wildly popular burger chain that is almost more famous than the ski resort itself, and small roadside lookouts werent heaving with tour buses.

One thing, though, that took the shine off was the vastly increased cost of everything. Petrol is NZ$2.89 (about 1.50) per litre. Paying for groceries made me wince. Housing prices are absurd with ramshackle 100-year-old villas fetching 500,000 or, depending on where you live, even more. The price of a flat white a favourite Kiwi measure of inflation is regularly over 2.60, compared with 2 in 2019. Word of warning: if youre planning on visiting, start saving.

I came away feeling more aware than ever of the advantages of being from an island at the bottom of the Pacific, able to seal itself off completely if the situation demands it. But Im also acutely aware of its pitfalls, depending on which side of the fortress walls you find yourself on.

@Ash_Stewart_

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Fortress New Zealand is finally open and it's not cheap - The Times