KEY POINTS:
Return airfares to Los Angeles on sale for less than $500 this morning caused a flurry of online activity.
The first long-haul destination offered through Air New Zealand's "grabaseat" saw New Zealanders snapping up 220 "ludicrously low" $496 return fares in less than an hour.
The airline was delighted by the response, general manager marketing Steve Bayliss said.
"LA is one of our most popular destinations and we know Kiwis and their families love to holiday there," he said.
Traffic to the airline's website had more than doubled since the grabaseat initiative was launched in July last year, he said.
More than 4000 domestic fares sold in the first week and it had since been extended to include Australia, the Pacific Islands and now a long-haul destination.
The Los Angeles fare had a maximum stay of five days, giving the airline a chance to assess the market for short visits to long-haul destinations, Mr Bayliss said.
- NZPA
