The Most Sought-After Winter Travel Destinations For New Zealand’s Airline Passengers

For those in the Southern Hemisphere, winter is well and truly settling in, and Kiwis are quickly looking to the skies for travel plans during the colder months. Data released by Booking.com identified the most popular destinations for New Zealand travelers this (Southern) winter. Top of the list was Queenstown, domestically and in Australia, for short-haul travelers, while China was the most popular long-haul destination.

Photo: Paer Svensson | Shutterstock

For those who are unaware, Queenstown is a ski lovers’ dream, with multiple world-class ski slopes within a short distance of Central Otago. Its international airport attracts direct flights from most major Australian East Coast centers, including Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, and the Gold Coast. Domestically, the airport is connected to Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch with direct flights.

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Queenstown International Airport (ZQN) is frequently rated as one of the world’s top ten most stunning airport approaches. Those who may have experienced it will note the beautiful landscape and towering mountain ranges surrounding the aircraft as it descends toward the runway alongside the remarkable range. Simple Flying looked into the top destination picks and which airlines serve these popular destinations this winter.

Domestic hot-spots

Queenstown (ZQN)

Located in Frankton, the airport is a short drive from downtown Queenstown, with plenty of boutique shopping and lakefront restaurants for tourists to enjoy. Direct flights from Queenstown on offer include:

Photo: Soos Jozsef | Shutterstock

Kaikoura (KKE)

This airport is currently not served by any scheduled carriers, but it remains popular for tourist scenic flights. The area is well known for whale watching and fishing, which lure many tourists. Its closest commercial airport is Blenheim (BHE), which is one hour and 40 minutes north, or Christchurch, which is two and a half hours south and caters to a number of international services.

Hamilton (HLZ)

Not to be confused with Hamilton, Ontario (YHM). New Zealand’s Hamilton lies just an hour south on the motorway from Auckland Airport (AKL), lies the city of Hamilton. Competing fiercely with Christchurch to the nation’s ‘Garden City,’ Hamilton lies on the Waikato River, the longest in New Zealand. Its airport once served several international destinations with Freedom Air and Virgin Australia; however, these have long since disappeared.

Domestically, the airport now sees multiple daily flights from Wellington and Christchurch on Air New Zealand, with Originair serving Nelson and Palmerston North. At the same time, Sunair flies to Gisborne, Napier, and Whangarei. In bad weather, Hamilton occasionally serves as an alternate airport for diverted flights. For example, this week, Air New Zealand sent an Airbus A320 en route from Adelaide to Auckland to the airport while the weather calmed further north.

Hops across the Ditch – Australia

Australia is always a popular choice in New Zealand, and Australia is a fan favorite for many Kiwis. Air New Zealand operates to more Australian airports than any other carrier trans-Tasman, and from New Zealand, you can fly directly to these Australian ports:

Adelaide (ADL)

• Served solely by Air New Zealand

Brisbane (BNE)

• Direct services are operated by Air New Zealand, China Airlines, Jetstar, Qantas, and Virgin Australia.

Cairns (CNS)

• Seasonal services are operated by Air New Zealand over the winter southern hemisphere winter months.

Gold Coast (OOL)

• A popular choice for many with famous theme parks, shopping, and beaches, Air New Zealand and Jetstar compete fiercely on the route.

Melbourne (MEL)

• On track to become the most populated city in Australia by 2031, tourists flock to Melbourne for the hip street scene, easy access to the Great Ocean Road, and Melbourne Cricket Ground, among many other attractions; airlines serving the trans-Tasman market include Air New Zealand, Jetstar, Virgin Australia, and Qantas.

Photo: Ryan Fletcher | Shutterstock

Perth (PER)

• The major airport serving the state of Western Australia, Air New Zealand, operates direct services to Auckland in direct competition with Batik Air Malaysia, which operates a fifth freedom flight between the two cities.

Sunshine Coast (MCY)

• Another seasonal service from Air New Zealand connects the Sunshine Coast to Auckland over winter. This is the only international service from the Queensland airport.

Sydney (SYD)

• Sydney is the most connected airport between Australia and New Zealand, and it sees more carriers than any other trans-Tasman destination. Current airlines include Air New Zealand, China Eastern Airlines, Emirates, Jetstar, LATAM, Qantas, and Virgin Australia.

Long-haul to China

The most popular long-haul destination on the list is China, where many passengers travel between the two countries. While over the Southern Hemisphere summer, Christchurch was connected to Guangzhou seasonally with direct flights on China Southern; now, the only direct services to China are from Auckland and include:

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