Travel alerts

State of Emergency in New Caledonia

We continue to monitor the situation in New Caledonia, leading to the declaration of a State of Emergency.

Update from the New Zealand Government

The New Zealand Government has completed preparations for the New Zealand Defence Force to operate flights from New Caledonia to bring New Zealanders home. This is currently still subject to approvals from the French Authorities.

As per advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), if you are currently in New Caledonia wanting to depart, please ensure you keep your SafeTravel registration details up to date, including updating your departure date if you are staying longer than expected due to the airport closure. This will ensure that you continue to receive messaging from MFAT as they will be in contact when further information is available.

For any questions regarding this service, customers can call the New Zealand Consular Department on +64 99 20 20 20.

Further information can also be found on the Safe Travel website.

Update of Air New Zealand's services to/ from New Caledonia

The airport in Nouméa is currently scheduled to reopen at 9:00 am on Tuesday 21 May. However, Air New Zealand will only recommence services into Nouméa when we can be assured that the airport is safe and secure and that there is a safe route for our ground staff and customers to reach the airport

At the moment, we are unable to advise when we will have this assurance.

If you have upcoming travel to or from Nouméa and would like to make changes to your travel, we are offering the following options: 

👉 Choose to move your travel dates within 7 days of your original departure.
👉 Credit: You'll have a whole year to book your next journey and another year to travel.

How can you keep updated?

👉 Through this travel alert
👉Check the status of Air New Zealand flights here
👉 Keep an eye on your flight details on the Air NZ app

Disrupt Reimbursement Consideration

If your journey has been disrupted for a controllable reason, e.g. engineering, or crew shortages, and your new itinerary requires you to stay overnight in a place you do not reside, our airport team will be working hard to secure accommodation for you.

Over peak travel periods, availability is extremely limited and you may be required to source your own accommodation.

As a guideline, we recommend $250.00 per room and $90.00 per person, per night for meals. This is a recommended amount only, and all expenses must be reasonable and supported by itemised tax invoice receipts. Please retain all itemised tax invoice receipts, as they are required for reimbursement consideration.

To submit your reimbursement request, please visit here to do so. Alternatively, you can visit here for details on how to submit your claim through our messaging channels.