The Seychelles hopes to open up to international visitors from March 25, 2021.

The Indian Ocean destination requires visitors to present a negative PCR test taken 72 hours prior to departure, but will have no quarantine requirements in place or restrictions on movement.

Minimum stay in establishments upon arrival will no longer be applicable, but visitors will still be required to adhere to public health measures such as wearing of face masks, social distancing and regular sanitisation or washing of hands.

The new measures also give visitors access to all communal areas within the hotel premises inclusive of bars, swimming pools, spas and kids’ clubs – which were previously off limits.

Visitors from South Africa, where there is a Covid-19 variant, will still not be permitted to enter Seychelles until further review.

The UK government has not yet confirmed a date for international travel to resume, but has indicated it could be from May 17.

The opening date was confirmed by the minister for foreign affairs and tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde, on Thursday March 4 at a meeting hosted by the Seychelles Tourism Board.

He said the relaxation of entry measures has been made possible by the Seychelles’ ‘aggressive’ vaccination campaign.

“The vaccination campaign has been quite successful,” said Radegonde. “The government has done everything in its power to make sure that the population is protected.

“We have now arrived at the point where opening our borders further is the next step to allow for our economic recovery. The measures being announced reflect broadly the recommendation of our tourism partners and have been done in full consultation with and the endorsement of our health authorities.”

The economy of the small island nation off the east coast of Africa is based primarily on tourism. It will continuously review the new entry measures.