A state of emergency is now in force across Southland and the Queenstown Lakes district.
Roads across Queenstown and the surrounding district are closed and more than 100 people have been evacuated from flooded areas in the town.
However, Queenstown Aiport said this morning that it remained open and had not experienced flooding.
Because of the state of emergency, it advised passengers to travel only if it was safe to do so.
The stretch of State Highway 1 from Mataura to Gore remains closed by flooding.
Alpine passes across the South Island are also under snow warnings and watches, with MetService advising heavy snow may disrupt travel in affected areas.
Waka Kotahi director regional relationships Steve Mutton said there was likely to be more traffic than usual on the roads this weekend so drivers should expect journey times to be longer and for there to be congestion at the usual locations – SH1 northbound between Puhoi and Wellsford and SH1 southbound between Manukau and Bombay.
“More cars on the road, tired drivers and people driving on unfamiliar roads can make holiday driving stressful and risky,” said Mutton.
“Checking your car is safe before your journey, keeping your speed down, driving sober, watching for the signs of fatigue and sharing the driving are just some of the things you can do to ensure you arrive safely at your destination.”
He said people should check current road and traffic conditions before leaving on their journey.
Auckland Airport chief customer officer Scott Tasker said the three busiest days for international departures during the upcoming holidays were expected to be today and tomorrow, while the busiest for international arrivals were likely to be next Sunday and the final weekend of the school holidays.
Domestically, the busiest departure days are expected to be next Friday, September 29; Thursday, October 5; and Friday, October 6. The busiest arrival days are tipped for today and the next two Fridays – September 22 and 29 and October 6.
“These school holidays are going to be busy with lots of people heading away, and now even more so with the Warriors in the NRL preliminary final in Brisbane. We ask that travellers come prepared and allow plenty of time,” Tasker said.
Average daily passenger numbers during these school holidays are expected to be 10 per cent higher than for the July school holidays, with travel at about 90 per cent of the levels seen in the same school holiday period in 2019.
To deal with the anticipated crowds, extra staff have been brought in and a new fast-track biosecurity trial implemented for low-risk passengers to skip queues at the border.
Earlier this week Auckland Airport, Biosecurity New Zealand and other government departments apologised after passengers experienced ongoing long processing delays at the border.
Those entering New Zealand have repeatedly complained about long waits, with hundreds waiting in queues for more than two hours after midnight and there being nowhere for the elderly and children to rest.
Auckland International Airport is expecting up to 15,000 travellers a day through its terminals on the first three days of the school holidays.
Tomorrow is expected to be the busiest, with forward bookings of airfares at 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
The airport said there was still building work continuing in the domestic and international terminals, which might add to pressure on passengers. In particular, the public toilets in the domestic terminal are being rebuilt.
