A travel bubble between Australia and New Zealand has taken the first step forward with the announcement Kiwis will be allowed to fly in and out quarantine-free.

From October 16, New Zealanders will be able to enter NSW and the Northern Territory without quarantining for 14 days.

Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack said “South Australia stands ready to participate as well … they will probably … be the next cab off the ranks.”

Australians are not yet permitted to travel to New Zealand.

Australian Tourism Industry Council Executive Director Simon Westaway told Deborah Knight it’s good news, despite the announcement’s “prescriptive” nature.

“I think what’s really important is now there’s a genuine belief that we can start to create safe travel bubbles and get things moving.

“The only question we have around this is we’ve got to have an open domestic Australian market.”

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Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham told Jim Wilson the decision to reciprocate lies with NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

“The Australian definition we’re applying is a three-day rolling average of there being fewer than three locally acquired cases in New Zealand.”

Meanwhile, the Queensland border will remain closed to NSW until November 1, an approach Mr Birmingham said “does feel excessive.”

“At least we’ve seen some positive moment from Queensland today, and there’s a bit of a case of better late than never.”

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