Say goodbye to free entry to our honorary neighbours. Aussies will soon have to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) to enter the United Kingdom. The British entry permit document is needed for people who do not need a visa to travel to the UK but are travelling throughout the country for up to six months for business, study, visiting family and friends, or tourism. Crucially, visitors will also need an ETA if they’re just transiting through the UK – including people who are not going through the UK border control. It’s not yet known when the requirement will start for Aussie travellers. The UK government says its “borders will be fully digitalised by 2025” — so a date sometime in 2024 is likely. It should only take a few minutes to apply for an ETA online and will cost around 20AUD. The new ETA is not to be confused with the EU’s ETIAS, which you can read more about below.

As Australians, we’ve been fortunate and not had to worry about sorting out visas for most European countries. But come November 2023, that’s all about to change. Australians, along with visitors from 50+ nations, will require a European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) to enter any country that is part of the Schengen zone. The electronic travel waiver program (similar to the ESTA visa waiver program in the US) is for non-EU nationals travelling to any of the 27 European countries that make up the Schengen area. For those unfamiliar with the Schengen zone, popular holiday destinations, like Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain are included. You can obtain an ETIAS online and it should only take a few minutes to process once the forms are completed. The visa waiver is valid for short stays (up to 90 days) and for business or leisure. Once you have an ETIAS, it can be used for up to three years or until your passport expires (whichever comes first). To apply you need a valid passport, email address and debit/credit card to pay the processing fee of €7.

In a move that has the environment saying merci beaucoup, France has banned short haul flights between cities that can be reached by train in less than 2.5 hours. The routes affected include flights between Paris Orly and Bordeaux, Paris Orly and Lyon and Paris Orly and Nantes. There may be no country more beautiful to travel by train through than France, so we have zero complaints here.

Your pretty Instagram pics are going to cost you. Visiting nature spots and water holes in the NT just got a little pricier. The introduction of the Park Pass will set interstate and overseas (Territorians are exempt from the fee) tourists $25 if if they want to visit popular natural tourist attractions like Edith Falls, Litchfield National Park and Mataranka hot springs. Here’s a full list of places that will require you to purchase a Park Pass.

Airplane mode no more. The EU has announced that come June 30, 2023, 5G frequency bands must be made available to all devices on planes, which means you can make calls, texts, stream movies or music, all while in the air. But beware of the cost. It still remains unclear how much airlines will charge passengers for access to the 5G network. You may also incur international roaming charges if you fly through multiple international air space zones.

In an effort to preserve historical sites, cities and countries have introduced visitation caps on the number of tourists able to enter per day. One of the most notable to introduce this in 2023 is Venice. Tourists must make a reservation through a digital system and a daily fee will be implemented — from three to 10 euros depending on how crowded Venice is at the time. Bhutan has also raised its tourism tax. Visitors will need to fork out US$200 per day while holidaying. The tax will be used to offset the carbon footprint left by the tourism industry and improve carbon neutral infrastructure.

A decent sleep on a long haul flight will no longer break the bank for some. Germany’s national carrier, Lufthansa, has announced that lie-flat beds will be available in economy in 2023 thanks to its newly designed aircraft, Allegris. Passengers will be able to reserve an entire row of three seats on the new aircraft, which, come time for shut eye, will convert into a bed with a mattress, pillow and bedding. Air New Zealand will follow suit in 2024, also offering economy guests a lie-flat option.

Tipping is usually welcomed in Indonesia, but it’s not expected. Some restaurants will add a service charge automatically to the bill and many locals will also leave loose change.

A little unknown Covid clause in some travel insurance policies will not let you claim prepaid costs for a trip if you booked your insurance policy less than 21 days before you travel. For example, if you booked a Christmas holiday in October and waited till the first week of December to secure travel insurance, any cost incurred before you booked your insurance policy is not covered. If you booked your policy before the 21-day period you would be eligible to claim on all your prepaid and non-refundable travel expenses, regardless of when they were made. So once flights and accommodation have been finalised book your insurance quick smart.

We may have bid adieu to PCR tests, but you still need proof of vaccination to enter some countries. The United States requires holidaymakers to be fully vaccinated with a single-dose or two-dose vaccine. Japan requires travellers entering the country to be vaccinated with three or more doses. Meanwhile, the UK does not require you to be vaccinated at all. Airlines also have their own standards for passengers to meet before flying so we recommend diligently researching what is required before departing on an overseas trip.

Here’s to faster security lines! Thanks to the technological evolution from 2D to 3D CT scanners, passengers travelling through UK airport security will be able to carry drinks, make-up, perfumes and liquids of any size in their hand luggage for the first time in 16 years. Travellers can keep all of their personal items in their bag while going through security instead of having to remove them, making going through security more efficient. Trials are already underway at Heathrow and it is expected that the rule will be fully eliminated by the end of 2024.