Air New Zealand

Travel Tidbits for a busy holiday weekend

The Memorial Day weekend is traditionally one of the busiest travel times. And this year is no exception.

AAA projects 42.3 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more from home this Memorial Day weekend, a 7% increase over 2022.

Many people will be driving to their destinations this weekend, but AAA says nearly 3.4 million travelers are expected to fly.

That’s an increase of 11% over last year and 5.4% more than in 2019.

“This Memorial Day weekend could be the busiest at airports since 2005,” says AAA.

So if you’re flying somewhere, pack your patience – and some snacks.

Therapy Cat at SFO Airport

San Francisco International Airport’s team of certified stress-relief animals, the Wag Brigade, includes dogs, a Flemish giant rabbit named Alex, and a Juliana-breed pig named Lilou.

Now the team has a new member: Duke Ellington Morris, known around town as ‘Duke the Cat.’

Duke is certified as a therapy cat by the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and has been visiting area hospitals and other sites for many years.

Look for Duke and other SFO stress-relief animals wearing their “pet me” vests.

Air New Zealand’s amenity kits feature products inspired by Māori knowledge

Air New Zealand’s new onboard amenity kits now feature skincare products made by Aotea on Aotea/ Great Barrier Island that inspiration by traditional Māori herbal practices.

The products include native New Zealand ingredients, such as Kawakawa, Harakeke, and Mānuka, and are available to customers traveling in business premier and premium economy cabins.

“My grandmother was a Rongoā Māori (Māori medicine) practitioner,” says Aotea founder Tama Toki, “She would treat us kids with what we found in the bush and the Aotea range is an expression of that upbringing. It’s a privilege to be able to see this part of our culture onboard Air New Zealand flights.”

Watch Air New Zealand’s new domestic safety video

Oh what we’d give to be on an airplane watching a safety video right now.

Better yet, one of the charming and quirky safety videos that Air New Zealand puts together.

With borders closed due to COVID-19, most long-haul flights to and from New Zealand have been grounded and international visitors are staying home.

So Air New Zealand teamed up with Tourism New Zealand for this new safety video being shown now on domestic flights.

In the video we see various destinations across New Zealand vying to be named the 8th Wonder of the World.  And, of course, we see the important safety instructions for flyers.

“The video assists in supporting the recovery of international tourism once borders reopen, ” says Air New Zealand Chief Customer and Sales Officer Leanne Geraghty. “We know the decision-making process for visitors to come to New Zealand will be different into the future – so we need to be building the appeal and desire now in international markets in anticipation of borders reopening. It’s important to keep New Zealand as a visitor destination top of mind.” 

Take a look and let us know what you think. We’ve also added some of our favorite ANZ safety videos and TV commercials from the past.

Airports & airlines sacking single-use plastic

Our story about airports and airlines getting rid of single-use plastics first appeared on CNBC.

Business and leisure travelers concerned about climate change and “flight shame” may do their part by purchasing carbon offsets and adjusting the number of trips they take on airplanes.

Airports and airlines are trying to save the planet too with a wide range of sustainable initiatives that include cutting down the use of single-use plastics and making reusable water bottles essential travel amenities.

BYOB at SFO Airport

In 2019, San Francisco International Airport (SFO), launched an ambitious Zero Waste Concessions Program designed to significantly reduce the amount of single-use disposable plastics used at the airport.

Noting that in 2018 nearly four million slow-to-biodegrade plastic water bottles were sold at the airport, in August 2019 SFO became the first airport in the nation to ban the sale of single-use plastic water bottles.

SFO now actively encourages each passenger to bring their own reusable water bottle with them to the airport and get free water from one of the hydration stations in the terminals.

Bottled sodas, teas and juices are currently exempt from the policy. And bottled water is still being sold, but only in approved packaging made from recyclable aluminum or glass, or in compostable packaging.

Single-use plastics banned at other airports too

Airports in a growing number of other cities in the United States, and around the world, are getting serious about sustainability projects that are good for the environment and, in some cases, the bottom line.

“Whether through their participation in the Airport Carbon Accreditation program, implementation of more sustainable business practices, or even by the elimination of drinking straws and other single-use plastics, airports are taking a variety of approaches to be good neighbors in their communities,” said Scott Elmore, Vice President, Communications & Marketing for Airports Council International – North America

In February 2019, Glasgow Airport offered all 5,300 people working in an around the airport free, reusable bottles.

In September 2019, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) announced a campaign to phase out all single-use plastic straws at the airport.

In October 2019, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) announced that at least 55 airports in the country had banned single-use plastic items such as straws, plastic cutlery and plastic plates.

And January 1, 2020, is the deadline for Dubai’s two airports, Dubai International Airport (DBX) – the world’s busiest airport for international travelers – and Dubai World Central Airport (DWC) to be entirely free of single-use plastics such as plastic cutlery, drinking straws, meal packaging and bags.

“Along with our partners, including global brands such as McDonalds, Costa Coffee and Starbucks, we are committed to not only removing single-use plastics but in their place providing appropriate and importantly sustainable alternatives,” said Eugene Barry, Dubai Airport’s Executive Vice President – Commercial, in a statement.

Barry says finding replacements for plastic bottles remains a challenge for the airports, so for now bottle recycling efforts are being beefed up.

Going forward, a bill passed by the Atlanta City Council and waiting for the mayor’s approval is set to ban single-use plastics in the city and at Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) by the end of 2020. Following the new law shouldn’t be too much of a reach: ATL’s guidelines for increased sustainability already seek to divert 90% of the airport’s total waste from landfills.

Not all airports are nixing the plastic water bottles, though.

In its food court, Portland International Airport (PDX) eliminates a great deal of plastic with its Green Plate Program that gives travelers the option of having meals served on reusable plates with reusable utensils.

But the airport’s environmental team hasn’t pressed to impose a ban on plastic bottles because “not every traveler chooses to tote around what can sometimes be a very expensive refillable bottle,” said PDX spokesperson Kama Simonds, “Further, what if travelers to our airport were unaware of the ban? This could have unintended consequences of either leaving folks with less hydration and/or potentially having a sugary drink as the option, which isn’t healthy.”

Airport vendors and airlines doing their part

HMSHost, which operates dining venues in more than 120 airports around the world, says it is on track to honor its commitment to eliminate plastic straws in its North American operations by the end of 2020.

The company has already eliminated plastic cocktail stirrers and currently only provides straws on request in its casual dining restaurants.

In September, Alaska Airlines kicked off a “FillBeforeYouFly” initiative, asking passengers to help reduce the use of single-use plastic bottles inflight by bringing their reusable water bottles to the airport and filling them at airport hydrations stations before their flight.

In November, Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) introduced sustainable meal packaging that includes paper with a coating made of organic plant-based plastic instead of oil-based plastic as well as cutlery made of plant-based plastic.

And earlier this year, Air New Zealand removed individual plastic water bottles from its Business Premier and Premium Economy cabins and switched to compostable plant-based coffee cups made from paper and corn instead of plastic.

The airline is encouraging passengers to bring their own reusable cups on board aircraft and into lounges. And, in a truly tasty move, ANZ is running a test program to serve coffee and ice-cream in edible, vanilla-flavored cups made by New Zealand-based twiice.

Edible coffee cups on Air New Zealand

Edible cups on your airplane?  Air New Zealand gives it a try.

Airlines are joining the waste reduction movement with aggressive recycling efforts and sustainability campaigns that include avoiding plastic straws and single-use dining items.

Now Air New Zealand, which currently serves, more than eight million cups of coffee, is running a tasty test: edible coffee cups.

Air New Zealand’s current cups are compostable, but they still end up in landfills.

So, the airline is doing a trial campaign of serving coffee and desserts in vanilla-flavored, leakproof, edible cups made by New Zealand company ‘twiice’.

Customers on the ground and in the air are being served coffee and ice-cream in these edible cups.

Sounds yummy, right?

The ‘twiice’ edible cup trial goes with Air New Zealand’s recent switch to plant-based cups on board all aircraft and in lounges. Those cups, made from paper and corn instead of plastic, can break down in a commercial composter and are expected to keep about 15 million cups from going to landfill annually.

Smile Day at JFK + Space pillow from Air New Zealand

World Smile Day will be celebrated on Friday, October 4 and JFK International Airport’s Terminal 4 is ready to celebrate.

What’s World Smile Day? It’s a day that honors Harvey Ball, a commercial artist from Worcester, Massachusetts who invented the smiley face in 1963.

(Although others claim to be the original Smiley Face inventor as well).

Celebrations are supposed to take the form of smiling at other people (of course) and doing kind acts for others throughout the day. 

For its kind act of kindness, JKF T4 will be inviting passengers to take smiling photos and then share those images on Instagram and Twitter.

The preferred Hashtag: #T4SMILE.

T4 will then take those photos and make photo stickers of the images. Those stickers will then be put together to form a giant wall mural near the terminal help desk in front of the DFS store.

To encourage people to smile, T4 staff will also be handing out buttons and T4-branded toothbrushes and toothpaste.

Pillows for the people

Another thing that might make you smile is getting a great pillow on a plane.

Air New Zealand is doing its part in that arena by rolling out a new pillow that uses technology originally developed for astronauts.

According to the airline, the pillow is coated with Outlast, a substance first developed for use in space gloves to protect against extreme temperature fluctuations and to keep hands cool. 

The coating absorbs heat as the skin gets hot. And, as the skin cools, the heat is released.   

The new hypoallergenic pillow is now available to Business Premier passengers traveling on the airline’s Chicago route to Auckland, the longest route in the Air New Zealand network.