Early Easter Travel Surge: Air New Zealand Prepares for Busy Long Weekend

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Air New Zealand is preparing for a busy period of travel, anticipating over a million customers flying during the Easter weekend and the April school holidays.

The Easter rush will kick off early this year with 54,000 customers flying on Thursday, March 28, marking it as the busiest day for travel. Throughout the weekend, a total of 227,000 customers are expected to fly with Air New Zealand.

The majority of these travelers (147,000) will be embarking on domestic trips, with top destinations including Queenstown, Wānaka & Central Otago, Nelson-Tasman, and Hawke’s Bay for those seeking a long weekend getaway.

As the school term concludes on Friday, April 12, another surge in travel is anticipated. Air New Zealand will welcome approximately 52,000 customers on board that day and a similar number on the following Friday.

Across the two-week period, Air New Zealand projects a total of 790,000 customers, marking a 13 percent increase from the 2023 April school holidays. Among these, 519,000 will travel within New Zealand, while 271,000 will head to international destinations. Popular overseas spots for the school holidays include Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Singapore, and Los Angeles.

Leanne Geraghty, Chief Customer and Sales Officer at Air New Zealand, notes that despite Easter and the school holidays falling separately this year, customers are maximizing both opportunities to travel.

“Easter is early this year, but we’re seeing plenty of appetite for travel, with many of our customers setting off on Thursday to maximise the long weekend. We’ll be sweetening things up by serving hot cross buns and Easter eggs in our lounges.

“With 227,000 customers travelling over the weekend, it will be busy, so we recommend allowing a little extra time at the airport to get through security. If your carry-on is filled to the brim with extra egg-shaped cargo, remember, you can always add a checked bag before you depart.

“Looking forward to the school holidays, our team will be working hard to ensure our customers receive the best flying experience – including the more than 4000 unaccompanied minors and 250 pets travelling with us during this time.”

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