Tourism Increases In South Island

Tourism Increases In South Island

Passenger movements at Christchurch International Airport increased in March, with a noticeable increase in both domestic and international passengers numbers. Domestic passengers passing through Christchurch Airport reached a record high, and international passengers were up 2.7% on the previous month.

Gareth Owen, Christchurch International Airport Ltd's General Manager, Marketing and Business Development, commented that this growth was fantastic for South Island tourism operators. "This increase in passenger numbers is a reflection of South Island partners and airlines working together to stimulate tourism growth. It is great to see both domestic and international markets responding to the marketing that the airport and others have undertaken in New Zealand and overseas," he said.

Of particular interest, passenger movements to and from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane were up 5.7%, 9.4% and 3.5% respectively, on March 2006. Alan Joyce, Chief Executive Officer, Jetstar, said there had been a noticeable increase in passengers inbound and outbound of Christchurch. "Christchurch continues to be a growth market for Jetstar providing existing and future opportunities for our value based operations. Existing overall passenger growth levels at Christchurch are being reflected in Jetstar's operating performance for our 28 weekly return services."

Christchurch International Airport Ltd continues to support South Island tourism by undertaking regular market visits to international destinations and is regularly involved in domestic and international marketing campaigns to promote the South Island.

ENDS

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