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Tourism industry thrilled as border reopening announced

From 11.59pm Tuesday 12 April, Australians will be able to travel to New Zealand isolation-free, and then two and a half weeks later from 11.59 Sunday 1 May, vaccinated travellers from visa-waiver countries such as the large tourist markets of the UK, US, Japan, Germany, Korea and Singapore, and those with valid visitor visas, will be able to arrive.

 “While we know it will take some time to see tourism scale up again, today’s announcement will be a welcome boost for our tourism operators who have done it harder than many over the last two years.” Ardern said.

Tourism Minister Stuart Nash said, “We are rolling out the green and gold carpet to our vaccinated trans-Tasman cousins.”

He also revealed a new marketing campaign for Tourism New Zealand, ‘Within Your Wildest Dreams’. The campaign encourages Australians to dream of a journey to NZ, and experience the unique landscapes and hospitality that the country offers.

Nash said, “Apart from three months of quarantine-free travel in 2021 when around 160,000 Australians came here, we have missed our Aussie visitors. We cannot wait to have our mates back. Bringing forward the date will accelerate our economic recovery.

According to past data, Australians form 71% of all international ski tourists who spend $211 million during their stay. The timing announced coincides with the Australian school holidays, Easter and ski season which might spell great news for NZ’s tourism with inbound international tourists.

“Our investment and partnership with the sector will continue. Tourism NZ has also spent the past two years targeting trade shows, and has trained 80,000 international travel agents who connect foreign travellers with NZ destinations and operators.” Nash said.

Tourism Industry Aotearoa Communications Manager Ann-Marie Johnson says, “After around 730 days of pain in the two years since our international borders closed, tourism operators finally have confirmation they can get back to business, tourism was the first industry to be affected by the pandemic and will be the last to recover.” 

Auckland Business Chamber CEO Michael Barnett says that all New Zealanders need to encourage fully vaccinated family, friends and visitors from Australia to come and experience NZ hospitality. 

“Tourism operators, airlines and the hospitality sector now have certainty over the timings and will be working feverishly to create appealing, affordable and unique packages to put New Zealand back on the map and at the top of the list of must go to countries,” Barnett said.

Flight Centre welcomed the news but said the government should consider moving this date two weeks earlier to 1 April, to capture all of Australia's school holiday dates, which vary per state.

Auckland Airport Chief Executive Carrie Hurihanganui said she was delighted the international terminal at Auckland Airport would soon be filled with travellers from around the world eager to visit NZ and emotional scenes of friends and family reuniting after years apart, without the need to isolate on arrival.

Australia was New Zealand’s largest source of travellers before the pandemic, with 4.6 million passengers each year or 12,500 per day pre-pandemic. 

Air New Zealand Chief Executive Officer Greg Foran says it’s the day NZ has been waiting for.

“It’s been incredibly hard for our tourism operators around the country. Today’s announcement will help them get back to what they do best – welcoming international visitors to Aotearoa."

Foran also noted NZ is still at the top of the bucket list as is evident from the booking interest shown by North American travellers.

Air NZ has been building both capacity and capabilities leading up to the border reopening. Currently, it has more than 50 flights per week on its 15 international routes with the flexibility to adjust capacity as per the demand. It has also rehired around 700 flight attendants and pilots.

International flying checklist for travellers entering NZ:

  1. Travellers will need to show their International Vaccine Certificate to board an Air New Zealand international flight.
  2. The NZ Government requires proof of a negative RAT, LAMP or PCR test before departure. Check the Covid-19 website for timeframes.
  3. All passengers will be required to fill out the NZ Travel Declaration before departure
  4. Visitors from visa-waiver countries will need to hold a NZeTA before they travel
  5. Allow plenty of time (we recommend around three hours) to check in and verify all travel documents.

International flying checklist for customers departing NZ:

  1. Customers will need to show their International Vaccine Certificate to board an Air New Zealand international flight.
  2. Different countries have varying entry requirements (pre-departure testing and travel declarations) so check these before getting to the airport
  3. Allow plenty of time (we recommend around three hours) to check in and verify all travel documents at the airport.

 

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