Air New Zealand is preparing for some of the busiest days it has had in years, with 100,000 passengers set to fly around the country over the holiday period.
Thursday, December 23 is expected to be the busiest day for the airline this holiday season, with more than 31,000 customers booked to travel domestically.
More than 30,000 passengers are booked to fly on Christmas Eve, with around 15,000 travelling on Christmas Day itself.
"It's such a special time of year to spend with your loved ones, so we're thrilled to be helping people connect all around the country, from Invercargill to Hokitika to Kerikeri, '' Air New Zealand chief customer and sales officer Leanne Geraghty said.
The busiest route this Christmas is Auckland to Christchurch, with Nelson taking out the top spot for the most popular regional destination.
From now until the end of January, about 600,000 passengers are expected to fly throughout the country with Air NZ. Around half of those customers are flying in or out of Auckland.
More than 90,000 customers are expected to travel over the New Year period between December 31 and January 4.
The check-in process will look a little different than usual for those travelling this summer, with all customers aged 12 or older required to show proof of either full vaccination or of a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 72 hours of travel.
"The process is running pretty smoothly already, and we have had more than 200,000 customers upload their My Vaccine Pass to their Airpoints profile," Geraghty said.
