Tourism operators worry trans-Tasman flight cuts to impact last-minute bookings

Cuts to trans-Tasman flights due to higher fuel costs have tourism operators worried on the impact it will have on last-minute bookings.

Last month, Qantas said it would cut domestic flights as it flagged as much as NZ$966m in extra fuel costs.

It said it had reduced domestic capacity by about 5 percentage points in the fourth quarter.

In March, Jetstar said it would axe a number of flights - including some international between Auckland and Sydney and Auckland and Brisbane.

Regional Tourism New Zealand chair Andrew Wilson told Nine to Noon the impact hadn't been felt yet, but feared it would implications on customers after late bookings.

"The frequency of service and the ability for people to be able to book probably last minute or to try and find something that meets a really specific kind of time frame," he said.

"If people have got a narrow window to travel, that's really the biggest worry around it."

Wilson said there was still plenty of uncertainty in the industry over how long the impacts would be felt.

He said airlines would be cognizant in terms of wanting to make sure that it maintained services across the Tasman and into the long-haul markets.

"We're pretty optimistic that the work we've done over the last couple of years to really kind of boost international arrivals, and in particular Australian arrivals, puts us in a good position," Wilson said.

"I think demand for travelling to New Zealand is still really strong, but we certainly can't afford to take our foot off the gas in terms of making sure that international visitors know just how incredible our country is."

Wilson said consumer confidence had taken a dip in Australia, but he was encouraged by the number of arrivals to New Zealand.

He said while tourism operators in Queenstown and Christchurch would be nervous heading into the winter season, he was optimistic there was capacity for flights.

"I'm fairly confident there'll still be sufficient capacity on those routes to get plenty of Australian skiers across the Tasman when we kind of head into the winter season," Wilson said.

"We'll all be looking out for that first good dump of snow down south, and I'm sure that'll drive pretty significant kind of bookings at that point."

Wilson still expected a slightly quieter winter season than usual.

The airlines wouldn't want to be an airline operator at the moment in terms of balancing pricing and fuel costs with demand, he said.

"I think they're doing a really good job in terms of trying to match enough flight services to meet the demand that's there," Wilson said.

"I think when we look forward through winter, we're all feeling pretty comfortable in terms of there will be enough capacity on those routes."

He said it was really the uncertainty of beyond the next summer season, where fuel prices would sit, and what that would mean for the tourism industry.

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