The race to the sun has resumed

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [View in browser]( [The Independent]( February 18, 2022 [The Independent]( France, Spain, India, Canada, Norway and even the South Terminal at Gatwick airport: over the past week, the pace of “competitive reopening” has picked up. Who’s next – and who will be left behind? Open house: Sydney, and most of the rest of Australia, reopens on 21 February to tourists Australia opens up on Monday: [the first day in almost two years since the vast country took itself off the tourism map](. How wonderful it would be to touch down in the fine city of Perth in the southern summer. But Western Australia retains its North Korean approach to outsiders. Australia’s largest state is allied with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as well as China and New Zealand, in the dwindling group of nations that have decided that the outside world and its significant numbers of Covid-19 infections presents an existential threat. Their governments have, until now, achieved marvels in keeping coronavirus at bay. But in Western Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong, local transmission of Covid-19 is now soaring. (I have no reliable statistical sources for Pyongyang, but I note that all flights and trains in and out of North Korea were suspended on 31 January.) In the week since I last wrote to you, [India](, [France](, [Spain](, [Canada](and even the [South Terminal at Gatwick]( have made access easier. As has Norway – whose health minister, Ingvild Kjerkol, [announced the removal of restrictions]( with remarkable honesty. “Many people will become infected in the weeks ahead, and we need to prepare for this,” she said. “However, we are able to handle the increase in the infection rate.” For much of the coronavirus pandemic, travel has endured a pattern of one step forward, two steps back. Since the start of February, almost all the indicators are positive. Yet many places remain off limits. Ideally I would return from Australia via Qatar, to stop over for a couple of days to explore the [World Cup preparations](. At present the UK is on Qatar's red list; green nations include such bastions of reliable data as Belarus and Russia. I am not optimistic, because Friday is a day of worship in the Gulf. But if Qatar doesn’t want me, then the US will get my cash: one of the great certainties of travel is that United Airlines will always sells last-minute trips to Australia via San Francisco for well under £1,000 return, and the timings mean I can enjoy dinner by the Bay on Saturday evening. The race to the sun is back on, with travellers voting enthusiastically with their wallets: destinations that choose to remain offline risk being left behind. Top Travel Headlines [Nelson Mandela’s Johannesburg home is now a luxury hotel]( ‘Sanctuary Mandela’ occupies the property where South Africa’s first black president hosted the Obamas and Clintons. But with rates of up to £800 for a night, not everyone feels a high-priced hotel is the best way to celebrate the great man. [I'm an image]( [Game of Thrones Studio Tour opens in Northern Ireland]( The journey to the Seven Kingdoms begins in the Six Counties: specifically in a car park in a vast out-of-town shopping east of Banbridge, County Down. But after a short bus ride, fans of the HBO series can explore an interactive studio set. [I'm an image]( [Destination Space: tickets on sale for a trip one step beyond]( Tickets for the 90-minute journey to the edge of heaven are now on sale, price £331,000. The first commercial tourist flights with Virgin Galactic are set to start later this year. Travel tip of the week One lesson I hope travellers have learnt during the last two bleak years: never book a travel test more than a day in advance. Last weekend France abruptly abolished the requirement for a pre-departure test from fully vaccinated Brits, leaving thousands with tests that are no longer necessary. Securing a refund can prove difficult. With the travel landscape still volatile, don't commit until shortly before departure. Deal of the week One-third off railcards A straight one-third off digital Great Britain railcards: that’s the offer if you [buy through Trainline by 28 February](. The range of cards are for younger (up to 30) or older travellers (60-plus), Family & Friends, Two Together and the Network Card (for south-east England only), giving 34 per cent off most rail fares. One-year cards normally cost £30, so you save £10. The discount also applies to three-year, £70 cards where they are available. There are several hurdles: you must have, or create a Trainline account; use the code 33YESPLEASE at checkout; and store the digital card within the Trainline app on a smartphone. But if you prefer not to pay the fees that Trainline charges, you can use the card through any vendor. Travel voucher of the week [Claim an extra £100 off when you spend £750 on First Choice holidays in February]( Travel question of the week Could fuel surcharges be on the way back? Q I’ve booked a holiday with BA. If the price of fuel increases before I travel, can the airline pass on the rise to me? A Your question takes me back to 2007-08, when the price of oil surged and many travel firms imposed surcharges. Under the Package Travel Regulations 2018, companies that see their costs increase sharply are allowed to ask you to pay the difference in certain circumstances. Increases of below two per cent must be absorbed by the travel provider (in any event, serious firms would not annoy their customers for a relatively small trifle). Firms can ask for surcharges for larger percentages, but for anything above eight per cent they must offer you the chance to cancel for a full refund. Inevitably, perhaps, most surcharges turn out to be eight per cent. But not with British Airways Holidays. Commendably, the price you pay will not increase. Stat of the week 20% Proportion of tax collected from UK motorists going towards road upgrades, according to the Transport Select Committee's [report on road pricing]( What you might have missed - Will I need a Covid test just to change planes? [Check our comprehensive survey of the world's leading aviation hubs](. - London Underground and bus passengers face the highest fare rise in a decade. [From 1 March, journey prices rise by 3.8 per cent](. - Virgin Group plans to use fuel made from plastic waste. [Less than one-10th of plastics are currently recycled, with the vast majority destined for landfill](. - Australia faces an uphill struggle to win back UK tourists. [A survey places the nation at the foot of British travellers' wish lists](. Simon’s diary Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. My DMs are open. Though regrettably I can’t respond to every message, I do read them all. Let me know your thoughts [@SimonCalder]( Each Saturday and Sunday I take questions live at 3.30pm British time on Instagram Live – from wherever I happen to be in the world - so please do come and say hello. Follow me on [@Simon_Calder]( Or you can find me on TikTok. 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