Pandemic over? These countries are easing restrictions and opening up international travel

Representative image of Bali, Indonesia 

On Tuesday, Thailand resumed allowing fully vaccinated travelers into the country without quarantine, after a five-week suspension.

The Philippines said it would reopen to tourists from most countries on February 10, and no longer require fully vaccinated travellers to quarantine in a government facility.

Sweden said it would lift most of its coronavirus restrictions on February 9 as the pandemic enters a "whole new phase" with the highly contagious but milder Omicron variant.

Among the domestic restrictions that will be lifted are the 11:00 pm closing for bars and restaurants, and limits on crowd numbers.

Vaccine passes for indoor events will no longer be required, and face masks will no longer be recommended on public transport at peak times.

Norway’s easing of restrictions may be the most drastic. There is no longer a limit there on how many people can gather at events, either indoors or outdoors. At movie theaters, churches and elementary schools, social distancing rules are gone.

Restaurants can once again serve drinks past 11 p.m. Colleges and universities are being urged to strive for full in-person instruction. And working from home is no longer required.

France eased outdoor mask rules and capacity limits for concert halls, stadiums and other events.

Denmark became the first country in Europe to lift all Covid restrictions on Tuesday, despite rising cases and threats posed by a sub-variant of Omicron.

Limits on indoor gatherings have been lifted, while the use of facemasks and Covid passes have not been made mandatory.

Only a few restrictions remain in place at the country's borders, for unvaccinated travellers arriving from non-Schengen countries.

New Zealand will start easing some of the world's toughest pandemic border restrictions this month but will not fully reopen until October, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday.

Ardern announced a five-step plan to reconnect New Zealand to the rest of the world, beginning with waiving hotel quarantine requirements for its nationals stranded overseas by the pandemic.

The UK government that restrictions reimposed in England last month to fight the surge in Omicron coronavirus cases would be lifted, citing data that showed infections had peaked.

Guidance advising people to work from home was lifted immediately, while from the middle of next week they will no longer have to wear masks in any setting or use a so-called Covid pass to enter venues such as nightclubs.