Lord Howe Island is an ideal destination to escape the worries of COVID-19. Our World Heritage listing caps the number of island-wide guests to 400 at any one time, and they scatter through two cafes, eight volcanic peaks, 10 square kilometres of lagoon, 18 surf spots, 20 beaches, 24 kilometres of coastline, and 45 kilometres of hiking track. In reality, you’ll feel like you have the place to yourself. The downside of this seclusion is that we’re 800km from Sydney via a Qantas flight, and you can’t fly home if you need to self-isolate.
Our COVID-19 arrangements are based on a careful balance of health and holiday considerations. Clearly, we want you to come if you’re well, and stay home if you’re unwell. During your travel to Lord Howe, we want you to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission by wearing a mask in confined public spaces, such as planes and buses. Once you’re on the island, we want you to keep your distance from our staff, guests and residents, practice good hygiene and appreciate that our collective health is only as good as the weakest link. Lord Howe has a large number of elderly guests and residents, and it’s critical that we do everything possible to protect them.
Our primary goal is to keep you from becoming a ‘close contact’ of the people around you (except the people sharing your room). You’ll be a ‘close contact’ of someone else if you have 15 minutes of cumulative face-to-face time over five days, or at least two hours with them in a confined space. If we can prevent you from becoming a ‘close contact’ then we reduce the risk of NSW Health requiring you to self-isolate on Lord Howe for 14 days should you briefly cross paths with someone who is COVID-19 positive – as unlikely as this is. So, ideally, you’ll practice some sensible COVID-19 precautions during your stay and depart on time. Hopefully, you’ll feel relaxed, well-hosted, and blissfully unaware of all the extra things we’ll be doing to keep you healthy.
Please note that if community transmission of COVID-19 in NSW remains low, and NSW Health adjusts the Public Health Order that directly relates to how we operate, then we’ll also adjust our practices back towards a more communal lodge.