Bargain air fares tipped for another year

Air New Zealand released international fares to America and China for under $1000 yesterday. Photo / Mark Mitchell

A dramatic price drop by Air New Zealand on return flights to international destinations won't be a one-off, says a travel industry leader.

Yesterday Air New Zealand made return flights on more than 200 trips to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Tokyo and Shanghai available for less than $1,000.

House of Travel commercial director Brent Thomas said he didn't think the "exceptional" fares would be a "one-time blip".

Thomas said increased competition, low oil prices and increasingly efficient aircraft were all behind the low fares. These factors were expected to continue to influence the aviation industry well into next year, Thomas said.

"The benefit gets passed on to the customer.

"Every now and then there will be promotional fares that are just exceptional as we saw yesterday, but the days of having a number of those specials out there is increasing ... with all these additional cut-price carriers coming into market," he said.

Thomas said House of Travel was expecting a bumper year.

"We are picking a growth of 5 or 7 per cent this year, after a growth of 8 per cent last year. That may have to be revised up if we continue to see these kind of prices."

More people would be looking at cheap fares to international destinations in Australia and South East Asia for a short holiday like a weekend or five days away, Thomas said in addition to a longer getaway.