Travel advisory pleases Australian travel agents

Does a subtle change to a government advisory make you more, or less, likely to travel?

The Australian Government this week lowered its travel advice for Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from Level 4 "Do Not Travel" to Level 3 "Reconsider your need to travel."

The Australian Travel Industry Association, the umbrella body for licensed travel agents, is calling the subtle switch a win for Australian travellers.

The change matters most for Australians travelling through Middle Eastern hubs to reach Europe, the United Kingdom, India, and Africa.

More than 150,000 Australians have transited through the region in the past six weeks alone.

Throughout this period, ATIA says it has worked with the Australian Government, DFAT, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, to ensure travel advice reflects both the risks on the ground and the practical realities facing Australian travellers.

ATIA says the Level 4 advisory "created real complications and confusion for travellers with brief airside transits, especially around insurance cover". The downgrade removes that.

Level 3 remains a high threshold and the Government’s advice is that non-essential travel should be avoided. Prudent when Israel continues to attack and provoke other nations in the Middle East.

DFAT continues to advise "Do Not Travel" to Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Yemen. Some areas within Israel also remain "Do Not Travel."

ATIA recommends speaking with an ATIA-accredited travel agent or tour operator before booking.

"This is a sensible and welcome adjustment, and one ATIA has been seeking for some time," says ATIA CEO Dean Long/

"For many Australians, these hubs are the connecting points that get them to the UK, Europe, India and Africa. In seeking a travel advisory level commensurate with the reality of travel as a transiting passenger, ATIA was looking to ensure transiting passengers had all the benefits of travel insurance while on the ground.

“Additionally, with 150,000 Australians having safely travelled through those hubs, we wanted to ensure consumer confidence in Smartraveller’s advice remains optimum - travellers were telling our members that the “do not travel” advice for passing through just didn’t seem to hit the right balance.”

Mixed messages for would-be flyers

All flight restrictions in UAE airspace have now been lifted, with operations returning to normal, the General Civil Aviation Authority of UAE announced over the weekend.

“Our decision came following a comprehensive assessment of operational and security conditions, in coordination with the relevant authorities”, the aviation authority said in a post on X.

 

So are you ready to book a flight via the UAE with Emirates, Etihad, Qatar or other Middle Eastern airlines?

Not so fast if you are an Australian.

The Australian Government's https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/ website is, as of today, still advising "Do Not Travel" to the volatile region.

Which means your travel insurance will almost certainly be invalid.

Here's what the official advice is:

"The situation in the Middle East remains volatile. There remains a risk of attacks and escalation. If you're in the UAE and want to leave, can secure a flight and it’s safe to travel to the airport, we continue to advise you to leave while commercial flights are available. UAE airspace may open or close at short notice, impacting flights at Abu Dhabi and Dubai international airports.

"Prioritise your safety, monitor developments closely and follow local authorities’ advice. Stay aware of your environment and avoid government, military or energy infrastructure, including oil production facilities. Avoid Israeli and US diplomatic missions and other locations associated with Israeli, Jewish and US interests. Follow local warning systems and, if warned of an imminent attack, move to an enclosed hardened shelter, ideally underground or close to ground level if available. If these are not available, seek an inner room without windows.

"Civilian infrastructure including hotels, roads, bridges, universities, energy infrastructure, including oil production facilities, water infrastructure and airports may continue to be targeted. There are widespread movement restrictions and other travel disruptions in the region. The UAE airspace may open or close at short notice, impacting flights at Dubai and Abu Dhabi airports.

"We raised our level of advice for the UAE to do not travel on 28 February due to the volatile security situation in the region and military strikes. ‘Do not travel’ advice applies to transit and layovers in the UAE. Even if you don’t plan to leave the airport. If you travel to or transit through the UAE, you may be unable to leave. Your safety will be at risk. Your travel insurance may become invalid.

"Due to heightened security concerns, the Australian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Australian Consulate-General in Dubai are closed. Online passport applications are open for Australians in the UAE."

Official: Australian wine industry is in crisis

 

The Australian wine industry is officially in crisis and appealing for more government assistance. 

Australian Grape & Wine’s 2026–27 Pre-Budget Submission calls on the Federal Government to act decisively to stabilise Australia’s wine sector and protect regional communities from escalating economic and mental health impacts.

The submission, Securing the Future of Australia’s Wine Regions: A Targeted Crisis Intervention and Structural Adjustment Plan, outlines a $139.25 million, three-year package to address structural oversupply, rebuild demand, and support growers and winemakers facing prolonged financial distress.

Australian Grape & Wine CEO Lee McLean said the evidence was clear that the sector had moved beyond a normal market cycle and into a structural crisis that required government partnership. 

“This is not a short-term downturn, and it is not a problem the industry can solve alone,” McLean said in a media release.

“Australia’s wine sector is facing a structural crisis driven by collapsing global demand and the lasting impacts of the China trade disruption. Left unmanaged, the adjustment will be disorderly, prolonged and deeply damaging for regional communities.”

The submission highlights national wine inventories of 2.06 billion litres, with 262 million litres more wine in storage than is commercially sustainable, alongside rising financial distress and mounting pressure on rural mental health services.

“Behind these numbers are people - growers, winemakers and families - under levels of stress we have not seen in generations,” McLean said. 

“If government delays, the costs don’t disappear. They re-emerge as business failures, abandoned vineyards, mental health crises and long-term regional decline.”

The package proposes targeted, time-limited measures to support orderly transition, remove barriers to recovery and rebuild demand - including business transition support, concessional loans, export re-engagement, domestic tourism stimulus and expanded mental health services in affected regions.

McLean said the submission was designed as a preventative investment, not a subsidy. 

“This is about managing a necessary transition in a way that is economically responsible and socially humane,” he said.

“The cost of acting now is modest. The cost of inaction will be far greater and borne by regional Australians least able to absorb it.”

Australian Grape & Wine said the measures align directly with the government’s priorities on regional development, mental health, trade diversification, productivity and the Future Made in Australia agenda, and reflect long-standing precedents for government intervention following major external shocks.

“We are asking the government to heed the evidence, heed the warning signs, and work with us now,” McLean said.

“This is a fiscally responsible, preventative investment that supports regional economies and protects long-term industry capability.”

The full 2026–27 Pre-Budget Submission is available at: 
https://www.agw.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/FINAL-AGW-2026-27-Pre-Budget-Submission-.pdf

Travel warning levels upped for Cambodia

Australians have been warned to avoid visiting Battambang (above), Cambodia's second city, and tourism hub Siem Reap, amid ongoing tensions between Cambodia and Thailand.

The Smart Traveller website published by the Australian Government this week upped its warnings for the south-east Asian nation.

"We’ve reviewed our advice for Cambodia and have raised the overall travel advice level," the website says. "We now advise exercise a high degree of caution overall due to ongoing conflict and its security risks.

"The security situation remains unpredictable. We continue to advise do not travel to areas within 50 kilometres of the Cambodia-Thailand border and reconsider your need to travel within an additional 30 kilometres of that border (and all of Battambang city) due to ongoing armed clashes including military strikes and violence, and the presence of landmines and unexploded ordinance."

Land border crossings between Cambodia and Thailand remain closed.

Tourists are advised to check local and international media for updates, follow the instructions of local authorities and pay close attention to their personal security.

It is advised avoiding the provinces of Banteay Meanchey, Oddar Meanchey, Preah Vihear, Siem Reap, Battambang, Pursat, and Koh Kong, "due to ongoing armed clashes including military strikes and violence, and the presence of landmines and unexploded ordinance".

See https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/

Rex gets a government lifeline

Struggling airline Rex will continue to provide flight services to regional Australian destinations after government intervention.

Rex went into voluntary administration in July and its management was handed to administrators EY Australia (formerly Ernst and Young).

Transport minister Catherine King and workplace minister Murray Watt today announced the government would provide up to $80 million in support and grant early access to entitlements for Rex’s former employees.

Rex’s administrators plan to apply to the federal court to extend the voluntary administration to June 30, 2025. If the application is granted the government will continue to guarantee ticket sales made throughout the administration period to that date.

The ministers said the guarantee has been effective so far, “and has yet to be used with flight bookings holding up well”.

More than 600 workers were made redundant when it was revealed Rex was struggling under the weight of $500 million of debt. In August, the government stepped in to guarantee bookings on regional flights, but resisted calls for a bailout.

The administration process for Rex was progressing, the government said as it noted the recent sale of its Pel Air Aviation business to Helicorp Pty Ltd, which is part of Toll Aviation. The sale proceeds will be used to repay secured creditors.

"This Federal Government financing facility will enable us to continue to support regional communities through an extension of the voluntary administration," EY spokesman Samuel Freeman said.