An Air New Zealand spokeswoman said there were a number of factors that determined fare prices including operating costs such as fuel, airways charges, airport landing and navigation costs, and passenger demand for a particular route.
Travel to and from Tauranga involved travelling on the smaller turboprop aircraft in the Air New Zealand fleet meaning relative operating costs were considerably higher, the spokeswoman said.
In comparison, Air NZ operated larger jet aircraft on its transtasman services that had relatively lower operating costs, shared between considerably more customers.
"We are conscious that to support regional economies we need to offer as many cheap seats as possible and in the past three weeks alone have offered nearly 400 seats to and from Tauranga for between $20 and $75.
"Taking a wider view, in the last financial year we offered more than 12,000 seats for travel to and from Tauranga for under $100, nearly double what was offered five years ago."
Trustpower's Graeme Purches said the company's employees often drove to other cities instead of flying because of the cost, but it was something it had to put up with to be based in Tauranga.
Mr Purches said wherever possible, flights were planned ahead of time at a lower cost, but there were times when someone had to fly at short notice, incurring higher charges.
When the company held the Trustpower Community Awards in Wairoa on Monday instead of flying to Gisborne and driving the rest of the way, the three employees who attended drove the whole way.
"When there are three of you going, the fees are more reasonable. It costs $50 a day to rent a car.
"It is difficult and it makes life difficult, but Tauranga is where we are and where we want to be, so we've got to put up with it.
"And at least we're not as bad as some areas."
Pyes Pa resident Peter Turmer said he was shocked by how much a flight to visit a friend in Invercargill would have cost.
"It's nearly as expensive as a flight to London."
- Additional reporting APNZ
