Auckland Airport was jam packed this past Easter weekend, when two long weekends and school holidays on both sides of the Tasman saw the holiday season off to a bumper weekend.
Around 33,000 passengers were expected to go through the international terminal over the Easter Weekend with Good Friday being the busiest day since the start of the pandemic.
“With around 10,000 travellers arriving and departing Auckland Airport on Good Friday on 25 arriving and 25 departing flights, the international terminal will be buzzing,” says general manager aeronautical commercial Scott Tasker.
“Although it’s still only around a third of the number of travellers we would have had pre-pandemic, it’s a 931 per cent increase in international travel from Easter last year, which fell just a couple of weeks ahead of the trans-Tasman bubble opening.”
At the domestic terminal around 60,000 passengers were expected to be flying in and out across the weekend – a 22 per cent dip compared to Easter weekend last year – with Good Friday the busiest day of the weekend.
“With all this action there’s been a lot of behind the scenes planning and collaboration between the various organisations – from the airlines to the government border agencies – so everyone in the airport system knows what to expect on any given day, pretty much down to the minute, and has got the right plans in place to meet demand.”
Although Kiwis have maintained the travel habit exploring New Zealand, it has been a couple of years since most of us have travelled internationally, says Scott.
“While overall the international travel experience will be just as people remember it, there’s a few more health protections in place now, and we’re asking everyone to carefully check they have met all the requirements for travel before leaving for the airport.
“One thing I would strongly recommend is making sure that if you need a pre-departure COVID test for any of your destinations to get it done at your local pharmacy or health provider – it’s going to make things a lot less stressful for you. There is no need to panic though, we know life can get a bit hectic or the rules for your destination might be unclear so if you do get to the airport there are emergency options available.
“We’ve got pharmacies on-precinct and a PCR testing option in the terminal. So, while we ask you make sure this is all done before you leave for the airport, if you discover something isn’t right with your test – there is an emergency option available.
“And my big piece of advice if you’re travelling internationally in the next wee while is to just make sure you carefully read the emails you get from your airline or travel agent – they’re going to be providing you with all the current travel information. It will all help get your wonderful trip off to good start.”
