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NEW ZEALAND: All Arrivals To Self-Isolate For 14-Days & Cruises Paused

New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern has today announced new restrictions requiring arriving travellers to be self-quarantined for 14 days with cruising paused in an attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus.

New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern has today announced new restrictions requiring arriving travellers to be self-quarantined for 14 days with cruising paused in an attempt to stop the spread of coronavirus.

New Zealand will require all people who arrive in the country – including returning Kiwis – to self-isolate for 14 days as the country locks down to stop the spread of coronavirus.

The restrictions apply to all countries except for Pacific nations and will come into effect from 10.00 pm AEDT on Sunday.

In what is another massive blow to the cruise industry, Ardern also announced the temporary stop on all cruise ship arrivals, saying “As of midnight tonight, we’re issuing to all cruise ships not to come to New Zealand until at least June 30, that is for incoming cruise ships, at which time the directive will be reviewed”.

To date, New Zealand has six confirmed cases and no recorded deaths.

Ms Ardern said these were “far-reaching and unprecedented” measures to tackle a global pandemic.

Karry On - Air New Zealand

Following the news, Air New Zealand is now offering further fare flexibility for customers affected by the New Zealand Government’s Covid-19 travel restrictions announced today.

Customers with international flights affected by Covid-19 government-imposed restrictions due to depart up until 31 March 2020 will be eligible to:

  • Hold the value of their fare in credit for twelve months from the time of ticket purchase;
  • Receive a refund;
  • Amend the date of their flight without change fees. The normal fare difference will apply.

The airline says customers purchasing domestic tickets should consider purchasing their Flexidate or Flexitime fare products which provide greater flexibility should they need to change their travel plans.

Standard fare rules continue to apply on all domestic tickets unless they form part of an international itinerary including a destination impacted by government travel restrictions.

Full details of Air New Zealand’s fare flexibility policy regarding Covid-19 can be found on their Travel Alerts page.

The airline also asked for patience from both trade and consumers, with extremely high levels of enquiries causing delays in answering queries at their service centres.

 

For all the latest travel industry updates on coronavirus:

READ: CORONAVIRUS LATEST: Rolling Travel Industry News Updates