Air NZ targets Japanese charters

Air New Zealand plans to boost its charter business from Japan to help increase weak tourist numbers in that market.

The airline sold out four charters in quick time which brought more than 1000 Japanese tourists here last month.

It hoped to double that number next summer, said Chris Myers, the airline's general manager Japan and Korea. "We'd like to think we can double the numbers next year. Our travel agent partners have said let's drop some more in."

The airline operated three charters from Nagoya and one from Okinawa, away from Tokyo and Osaka where its scheduled services operate.

Myers said charter flights were designed to complement scheduled services to other parts of Japan.

"It was a good way to get some incremental growth away from some of our main gateway ports."

Air New Zealand's Japan services were built out of charter services in the 1980s and early 1990s, he said.

Last year the swine flu scare forced the airline to cut services but these were now back at regular levels of 12 services a week.

"It's far too early to say if this is the start of a rebound in visitor numbers, but it is fair to say we are doing all we can to grow the numbers from Japan, including putting in extra capacity when possible."

Last year 78,426 Japanese visited, down 23 per cent on the previous year.

Arrival figures from Japan peaked at 173,500 in 2002, but have been affected by the Sars epidemic and bird flu health scares in 2003 and 2005 and economic stagnation and the global financial crisis which hit in 2008.

Tourism New Zealand and Auckland International Airport chipped in with some funding to promote New Zealand as a destination in the lead-up to the charters. The airport also provided a VIP welcome for the charters.

Myers said many Japanese were looking for something different from the traditional, regimented package tours.

"It's an important market to New Zealand - it's a market of high spend but the most important thing is that we change the perception away from just mountains, lakes and sheep to activity- focused, which is what we're famous for worldwide. To do that takes time and effort and dollars."