The number of arrivals from Japan at Auckland Airport in July has jumped 101.7% on the same period last year.Japan routes accounted for 2.5% of total passengers last month and Korean arrivals grew 13.6% over the same period.Auckland Airport corporate rela
The number of arrivals from Japan at Auckland Airport in July has jumped 101.7% on the same period last year.
Japan routes accounted for 2.5% of total passengers last month and Korean arrivals grew 13.6% over the same period.
Auckland Airport corporate relations manager Richard Llewellyn said the Japanese increase was likely to be due to the amount of promotional activity in Japan and an increase in chartered flights between the two countries.
"And there's still a lot of potential for growth in that market and it's a very valuable market - Japanese people tend to spend quite a lot when they come here so it's very good for the tourism and hospitality industries too," he said.
There was a total increase of 4.9% in international passengers arriving or departing from Auckland Airport on last July.
Over the past 12 months, the number of international passengers grew 1.5% to 7.45 million and domestic passenger traffic increased by 7.6% to 6.06 million.
While some markets were starting to show consistent growth, the North American and European markets remained fragile, Mr Llewellyn said.
This followed the same trend being seen in New Zealand since the economic crisis of long-haul flights being less popular. However, the July figures probably reflected people preferring the warmer temperatures in the northern hemisphere at this time of year.
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