After four arduous months in lockdown Aucklanders are expected to flee the city like water through floodgates.
On 15 December, the borders will be opened for vaccinated, and those who have tested negative for Covid-19 to leave and travel to the regions.
Tourism experts anticipate a rush towards the regions.
Chris Roberts, Tourism Industry Association chief executive believes Auckland will become quiet leaving New Zealand’s largest city empty.
“People will be travelling into Auckland but as we know traditionally Auckland empties out over the Christmas period so for Auckland itself it’s not going to be anything like a tourism boom,” he said.
“It’s going to be far more important for the rest of the country that the huge Auckland market is available and they’re getting out to their favourite holiday spots.”
Would be travellers expressed interest in booking tickets from Auckland to Queenstown, Christchurch and Wellington as popular destinations on Air New Zealand’s website, with online traffic doubled compared to the previous four months.
AA general manager of travel and tourism, Grieg Leighton expected a surge in bookings as well.
“We’d absolutely expect a surge. That’s probably twofold, one, there’s a whole lot of people who’ve been a bit nervous to commit and so the first one would be visiting friends and relatives and then the second one is people that have been holding off taking a holiday and going a little bit stir crazy not being able to get out of Auckland.”
“People are very much looking to providers that have some evidence or some form of information around the Covid policy as it relates to cleanliness and sanitisation,” said Leighton.
Consumer New Zealand chief executive John Duffy, advised those who were making bookings should understand the terms and conditions prior to purchasing. He said that the traffic light system could change which may mean travellers could be sent home unexpectedly.
“We know that there is a risk that there could be a lockdown and there are some accommodation providers who are saying, there will be no refunds if you can’t travel due to restrictions put in place by the government. It’s really important that you check your [terms and conditions] to make sure, if you’re booking with a company that’s got those more draconian refund terms, that you’re comfortable taking that risk.”
Travellers are also advised to check with the conditions of the accommodation provider for vaccinated or non-vaccinated people.
“If people are saying they won’t provide accommodation to unvaccinated travellers you need to know that before you make your bookings,” advised Mr Duffy.
