Cathay Pacific Airways will boost its services to New Zealand with double daily flights over the busy summer period, and also increase its flights during winter 2008. Cathay Pacific will introduce a double daily service on December 1, 2007 which will extend until March 29, 2008. During the winter Cathay Pacific will operate 10 scheduled flights a week and then from October 25, 2008 the double daily service will be reintroduced again.

David Figgins, Cathay Pacifics Country Manager for New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, said the airline had increased its flights to New Zealand because of the increased demand it experienced this past winter, particularly on inbound flights with the growth in tourist numbers from mainland China.

China is currently the fifth largest source of tourists to New Zealand and during the past year Chinese tourists were the fastest growing national tourism group. From September 3, 2006 to September 3, 2007, 118,372 Chinese tourists came to New Zealand, an increase of 17.4% over the previous year.

Cathay Pacific is in a unique position to help grow the inbound tourist numbers from China to New Zealand because of the integration of Dragonair into the Cathay Pacific Group in the last year. Dragonair operates to 19 destinations across China and is therefore able to provide connections from across China to New Zealand.

Said Mr Figgins: Chinese tourism is a major growth market for the New Zealand tourism industry and these extra flights give more travel choices for tourists to travel to New Zealand.

Mr Figgins said that the two daily services from New Zealand provided ideal connections for business people travelling to Asia and the Middle East.

Our morning flight, which arrives mid afternoon in Hong Kong, is conveniently timed for same day connections through to China and most Asian destinations, while our afternoon flight is perfect for passengers who want to arrive mid evening in Hong Kong, and have a refreshing nights sleep before their business appointments the next day.
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