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Tourist operators and towns are facing a long dry summer with international visitors still at least five months away.
The government has announced a gradual reopening of the border starting mid January for double-dosed New Zealanders.
But fully vaccinated foreign travellers will not be allowed in until at least April 30, more than two years after the border slammed shut.
Even then it will be a staggered return; full details to come. And all visitors will still have to self isolate at "home" for seven days.
That means another summer without overseas visitors for our major tourist hotspots.
Ruth Stokes from the Queenstown Chamber of Commerce talks to Lisa Owen.