Airports up and down the country have been buzzing with activity today, as thousands arrive and depart on one of the busiest days of air travel this holiday season.
More than 50,000 passengers travelled on Air New Zealand's flight network today, according to an airline spokesperson.
In Auckland and Christchurch, two of the country’s largest airports experienced what they had forecast would be their busiest days over the holiday break.
Meanwhile, in the capital, low cloud threatened to disrupt flights but has since cleared.
The airport was quieter than Auckland and Christchurch, but would see more traffic in the New Year as Wellingtonians returned to work.
Regional destinations such as Nelson and Queenstown were also experiencing significant demand for air travel as Kiwis and Australians set out to explore.
At the country's busiest airport, workers have put months of planning into action.
Auckland Airport chief customer officer Scott Tasker said travel has returned to 93% of pre-pandemic levels, with 72 new employees brought on for the summer.
Friday had been forecast as the busiest day in the year for overseas arrivals, and domestic and international departures at Auckland Airport.
Tasker said: "As we go through a period of major upgrade of our terminal infrastructure, including a new domestic terminal integrated into the international terminal, their role will be even more important in making sure people arrive and depart smoothly.
"Airports are complex systems and things aren’t 100% perfect 100% of the time, but we know the vast majority of travellers are going to have a smooth experience travelling through the airport over the holidays."
The median time travellers can expect to clear Customs and immigration, baggage reclaim, and biosecurity screening is 27 minutes – about 24% faster than earlier in the year, according to Auckland Airport.
"During busy periods across the day, we are also prioritising travellers who are arriving into New Zealand with nothing to declare through an express lane for faster biosecurity processing."
For arriving passengers, Tasker said the new NZ Travel Declaration would be "the most noticeable change for people who haven’t travelled in a while.
"The electronic declaration replaces the paper forms filled out on arriving aircraft. My advice is to download the app and fill it in before you fly into New Zealand."
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