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Find cheap flights to South Island from $221

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from Australia to South Island departing on 6/6. Fares are subject to change and may not be available on all flights or dates of travel. Click the price to replicate the search for this deal.
1 adult
Thu 13/6
Thu 20/6

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Best South Island Flight Deals

Cheapest return prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours

Queenstown
Queenstowndirect$369
Christchurch
Christchurchdirect$361
Dunedin
Dunedin1 stop$519
Nelson
Nelson1 stop$758
Invercargill
Invercargill1 stop$709
Blenheim
Blenheim1 stop$865
Hokitika
Hokitika1 stop$865
Timaru
Timaru2 stops$1,007

Good to know

Low season

May

High season

December

Cheapest flight

$221
Best time to beat the crowds (9% less expensive on average)
Most popular time to fly (21% more expensive on average)
Flight from Coolangatta to Queenstown

FAQs - booking South Island flights

  • How long is the flight to South Island?

    An average direct flight from Australia to South Island takes 13h 27m, covering a distance of 4498 km. The most popular route is Sydney - Queenstown with an average flight time of 2h 55m.

  • What is the cheapest flight to South Island?

    The cheapest ticket to South Island from Australia found in the last 72 hours was $351. The most popular route is from Sydney to Queenstown and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $423.

  • Which airlines fly to South Island?

    Qantas Airways, Emirates & Singapore Airlines fly the most frequently from Australia to South Island.

  • What are the most popular destinations in South Island?

    Based on KAYAK flight searches, the most popular destination is Queenstown (60% of total searches to South Island). The next most popular destinations are Christchurch (33%) and Dunedin (3%). Searches for flights to Nelson (1%), to Blenheim (1%) and to Invercargill (1%) are also popular.

  • How does KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool help me choose the right time to buy?

    KAYAK’s flight Price Forecast tool uses historical data to determine whether the price for a given destination and date is likely to change within 7 days, so travellers know whether to wait or book now.

See more FAQs

Top tips for finding cheap flights to South Island

  • Enter your preferred departure airport and travel dates into the search form above to unlock the latest South Island flight deals.

Top 5 airlines flying to South Island

 
Need help choosing which airline to fly with from Australia to South Island? KAYAK airline reviews give an overall score for each airline based on loads of factors, including comfort, boarding, in-flight entertainment and more, to make your decision easier. See airline scores according to verified KAYAK customer reviews.
8.2
Air New ZealandOverall score based on 628 reviews
8.4Boarding
8.8Crew
8.1Comfort
7.9Entertainment
7.6Food
Airline reviews

Short flight so no entertainment, turbulence so no food service - overall flight as expected

8.0 ExcellentMichelle, Apr 2024NPL - AKL
Read more about Air New Zealand reviews

Short flight so no entertainment, turbulence so no food service - overall flight as expected

Great meal. Best seats ever! They need to teach other airlines how to do that.

Overall excellent but the Captain kept the seat belt sign on for far too long, especially at the beginning and end of the flight. It was 2 hours after take-off before the crew were able to start the service (on an 11 hour night flight, reducing our sleeping time) and the seat belt sign on went on during breakfast (90 mins before landing) and was not turned off again until we landed. This made for an uncomfortable journey of trying to limit fluid intake because it was unclear when the toilets would be available for use.

Food was not good. We asked for Muslim food and it was weird tasteless type of boiled veges.

Crew were pleasant, happy to be there and were a joy to be around. Entire operation was professional, well thought out and ran like a Swiss clock.

United flight from SFO to PDX was cancelled. I will ask for a refund. Had to book on Alaska

They announced food service but then never came around. We also couldn’t land so kept trying to get to runway and then had to come up and go around happened like 3 times and cause the child next to me to start throwing up

There was a snafu with confirming seats at check which left us in limbo for the second leg of our trip. I believe the ANZ app is not well integrated with the systems at the terminal resulting in this disconcerting error.

Flight attendants are always pleasant and helpful. Pilot kept us updated.

Just a hiccup being added to the NZ Traveller Declaration a bit late.

I liked everything accept the delay try to improve in that area

Flight never took off. Boarded after multiple 30 minutes interval delays for hours.. then after an hour onboard, captain announce cancellation and back on the bus to the terminal with no information and everyone to fend for self.. Emirates did absolutely nothing to communicate either electronically or announcement. It’s unprecedented I know with the flood but lack of communication creates anxiety and extra pain for staff. Emirates should do better.. no supervisors monitoring floor and passengers abusing them which isn’t right but should Have had supervisors monitoring

Flight from Dubai to Zagreb very bad cabin crew. Bad food

Checkin and boarding staff at Delhi Airport is not cooperative with passengers Their behavior very humiliating . They don’t allow Lap top bag and Ladies’ purse/vanity bag which most of the airlines allow besides cabin baggage and check in baggages. They try to charge extra payment on the pretext of small variations which normally other Airlines staff don’t do. Airline staff should be courteous & cooperative but check in staff of Emirates Airline at Delhi was not so at all.

I was traveling business purposes and I only had one carry on and a personal computer back pack . My carry on was 8.5 kg little more than allowable. At jfk airport check in they did not let me carry it . I was little disappointed.

Probably the best flight I’ve ever been on. Emirates first class is leagues beyond British airways and Lufthansa’s.

The individual attention the crew gives to passengers is commendable and I find them positively helpful.

The amenities offered in the Business class is far away less compared with other Air Companies. Emirates is going down in the competition pricing the same value as Qatar airways for example.

Crew in Hyderabad could have been more helpful they were only focused on ripping customers.

On both legs of my trips (Jhb - Dxb and Dxb - Jhb) the entertainment system did not work.

This time is good . Don’t cancel flight with out early notice .

Very good experience, considering the short flight the meals were served promptly after takeoff.

X class seats in row 3 with the new configuration are very poor in fact I feel 3B and 3E should no longer be considered as X class seat as there is no forward seat pocket available to these seats and greatly reduced leg room due the intrusion of the business class armrests/table module

It was pretty good. Everyone friendly. Like all airlines, the draconian limitations on baggage and weight and not giving even a free soda kind of drags down the experience a bit.

Last 10 minutes boarding they canceled the flight and didn’t organise anything

Estheticly the plane looks great, although the seats are way too upright. If the seats were just slightly more reclined then the comfort level would increase tenfold. I had the stiffest neck after just a short flight due to this. A nap was almost out of the question.

Cabin crew were very professional and welcoming. They certainly appeared to have lifted their game. Congratulations

I know not directly a Virgin "thing" but I hold Virgin responsible for their subcontractors. Had to wait 45 minutes waiting for baggage at PER before the belt conveyor even started. This is unacceptable and hopefully Virgin engages with whoever to pull their fingers out. I realise PER staff are generally slow at the best of times but this was ridiculous. Maybe more seating for those waiting, a cafe in the baggage area for a light meal while we wait or at the very least a troop of dancing girls to entertain the punters while they stare at the conveyor belt start light almost willing it to fire up.

Very poor. Flight was cancelled due to captain exceeding hours. Told to fend for ourselves for 12 hours until a new flight could be done. This meant overnight accommodation in Hobart. Next plane was delayed and no food onboard. No apologies from Virgin. Extremely disappointing.

Flight was cancelled due to a mechanical fault - Virgin rebooked me on a flight 6 hours later so I cancelled and flew with another carrier

The international flight from Sydney to Dallas had great food. I have travelled a lot over the years and this has been the most memorable in my experience so far.

Initial flight was cancelled so moved to an alternative flight. As a result, stuck in a middle seat. Flight then place in holding pattern prior to landing resulting in a very late trip home.

There was nothing I didn’t like, prices a little lower would help

BA Airbus A380 BC upstairs had 2 3 2 layout. The seat was comfy but access for those in middle or window seats had to climb over others fest to get to ailse when seats in bed mode. The layout was not nearly as private as other layouts. The staff was amazing as well as the food. Most airline food is average but this was restaurant quality.

Following a marathon flight riddled by delays and changes from Santiago, Chile, my flight to Melbourne from Sydney was on schedule but I was transferred to the next flight. The reason by ticketing and the floor manager was I missed the entry to flight by one minute! That's right, the emphasised that if I was 1 minute earlier I would be on the flight. I asked what was the point them emphasising 1minute overdue and how that helped me or the situation. They didn't care at all. Replying that if it was one minute earlier they would've done something and smirking delivering the information. Australian's do call Australia home, Qantas calls Australian's suckers.

1) crackly headphone jack 2) one of the emergency seats recline. Usually second row does. But in this case neither did 3) food was scrambled eggs or fruit. 4) fruit should not be the option to eggs 5)miserable unpleasant crew not a smile. Thought that was a virgin thing

Qantas are unable to service and unfit for purpose, they cannot transport Australians on time to overseas destinations. On top of the inflated ticketing, the Sydney flight to Santiago was impacted because the plane was delayed arriving and then further bungling by Qantas admitting the ground new ground crew in charge of cleaning were not trained. The impact on passengers with connecting flights was tremendous and long ques of frustrated passengers waiting for rescheduling. **Qantas has become the Australian Spirit of disappointment**

The staff we fantastic and seemed to work very well with each other

Business lounge in Melbourne mediocre. Look at Emirates or Qatar, Qantas! Great friendly crew. Food was good but Emirates is a level above. Business seat good. But can’t compare to Qatar. Main reason for booking Qantas is loyalty and terrific connection via Perth to LHR.

I was pleasantly surprised with my flight to LA with Qantas. Although seats were not the roomies, service was excellent.

Note that food has to be purchased in flight. No free food. And no entertainment in flight. So I’ve treated these two items as okay which, in this case, means neutral/not applicable.

My Dad needed assistance to board the plane. The Jetstar staff were excellent with him and made the experience a lot easier😁

No food taken so can't rate also no entertainment so can't rate.

Would be better if can provide small free snacks on a long flight

Boarding was easy and unstressful, though the early "final call" was a bit off-putting. The crew were pleasant, and the seats were comfortable. The prices for food and drink were reasonable, apart from tea and coffee, where simple percolated coffee was charged at espresso prices. Deboarding was OK, though some Jetstar passengers appear to have a bad habit of pushing forward from their assigned rows, making it more difficult to get out for passengers that have paid a premium to sit up-front. Jetstar might want to look to address this to stop it from spreading.

I was allocated an exit row seat and was told to move so it could be given away to someone who had purchased two extra legroom seats and one regular seat but wanted the three to sit together. I was also charged for entertainment after booking but before checking in, and the ground crew couldn't do anything about refunding it. When the whole plane was given access to the entertainment as an apology for the flight being four hours late, I was told they couldn't do anything about that either, so I was charged for something I didn't want even though it would have been free anyway

I got to the airport earlier than I expected, and they let me change to an earlier flight with no trouble.

It was a super crowded time to travel out of Melbourne, but the flight was OK

Worst flying experience of my life. FIVE HOURS delayed! Rude and unhelpful staff and poor communication from the grounds team. Never flying Jetstar again

Worst experience ever flying Melbourne to Phuket. 5 hours delayed! Didn’t land till 1am in the morning. Staff were rude and unhelpful

Book Cheap South Island Plane Tickets

Recent return flight deals

12/6Wed
directJetstar
3h 15mMEL-CHC
19/6Wed
directJetstar
3h 45mCHC-MEL
$361
18/7Thu
directJetstar
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
23/7Tue
directJetstar
3h 25mZQN-MEL
$369
19/6Wed
1 stopAir New Zealand
12h 45mMEL-ZQN
29/6Sat
directAir New Zealand
3h 40mZQN-MEL
$470
14/6Fri
directAir New Zealand
3h 05mSYD-CHC
16/6Sun
directAir New Zealand
3h 40mCHC-SYD
$470
4/11Mon
1 stopVirgin Australia
17h 20mMEL-ZQN
24/11Sun
directVirgin Australia
3h 35mZQN-MEL
$511
19/6Wed
directVirgin Australia
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
25/6Tue
directVirgin Australia
3h 35mZQN-MEL
$514
1/6Sat
directQantas Airways
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
6/6Thu
directQantas Airways
3h 30mZQN-MEL
$585
1/6Sat
directQantas Airways
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
6/6Thu
1 stopQantas Airways
9h 10mZQN-MEL
$618
22/6Sat
directEmirates
3h 25mBNE-CHC
27/6Thu
directEmirates
3h 55mCHC-BNE
$768
21/6Fri
directEmirates
3h 25mBNE-CHC
27/6Thu
directEmirates
3h 55mCHC-BNE
$783

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Recent one-way flight deals

6/6Thu
directJetstar
3h 20mOOL-ZQN
$221
14/6Fri
directJetstar
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
$225
11/7Thu
directAir New Zealand
3h 05mSYD-CHC
$289
21/6Fri
directAir New Zealand
3h 05mSYD-CHC
$290
1/7Mon
1 stopVirgin Australia
18h 00mMEL-ZQN
$322
18/9Wed
1 stopVirgin Australia
7h 35mMEL-ZQN
$333
1/6Sat
directQantas Airways
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
$336
14/7Sun
directQantas Airways
3h 00mSYD-CHC
$351
30/6Sun
directEmirates
3h 05mSYD-CHC
$370
6/6Thu
directEmirates
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
$386

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Recent domestic flight deals

16/7Tue
directJetstar
0h 50mWLG-CHC
25/7Thu
directJetstar
0h 50mCHC-WLG
$101
20/6Thu
directJetstar
1h 20mAKL-CHC
4/7Thu
directJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$104
12/6Wed
directJetstar
1h 25mAKL-CHC
19/6Wed
directJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$106
13/6Thu
directJetstar
1h 25mAKL-CHC
20/6Thu
directJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$107
20/6Thu
directJetstar
1h 20mAKL-CHC
4/7Thu
directJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$109
23/6Sun
direct
1h 25mWLG-ZQN
29/6Sat
direct
1h 20mZQN-WLG
$151
25/6Tue
directAir New Zealand
1h 25mWLG-ZQN
29/6Sat
directAir New Zealand
1h 20mZQN-WLG
$156
26/6Wed
directAir New Zealand
1h 25mWLG-ZQN
29/6Sat
directAir New Zealand
1h 20mZQN-WLG
$166
8/7Mon
directAir New Zealand
1h 25mAKL-CHC
15/7Mon
directAir New Zealand
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$186
25/6Tue
directAir New Zealand
1h 25mWLG-ZQN
3/7Wed
directAir New Zealand
1h 20mZQN-WLG
$186

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Last minute flights to South Island

Last minute flight, train and bus deals

17/5Fri
directJetstar
3h 10mMEL-ZQN
24/5Fri
directJetstar
3h 25mZQN-MEL
$366
17/5Fri
directJetstar
2h 55mSYD-ZQN
24/5Fri
directJetstar
3h 15mZQN-SYD
$458
17/5Fri
multi-stopVirgin Australia
17h 00mMEL-ZQN
24/5Fri
multi-stopVirgin Australia
7h 25mZQN-MEL
$632
17/5Fri
multi-stopAir New Zealand
16h 20mSYD-ZQN
24/5Fri
multi-stopAir New Zealand
27h 20mZQN-SYD
$641
15/5Wed
multi-stopAir New Zealand
16h 20mSYD-ZQN
17/5Fri
multi-stopAir New Zealand
23h 50mZQN-SYD
$643
15/5Wed
directQantas Airways
3h 25mBNE-ZQN
18/5Sat
multi-stopQantas Airways
9h 40mZQN-BNE
$667
16/5Thu
multi-stopVirgin Australia
16h 00mMEL-ZQN
19/5Sun
multi-stopVirgin Australia
7h 40mZQN-MEL
$683
17/5Fri
directQantas Airways
3h 00mSYD-CHC
24/5Fri
directQantas Airways
3h 30mCHC-SYD
$692
18/5Sat
directEmirates
3h 05mSYD-ZQN
25/5Sat
directEmirates
3h 15mZQN-SYD
$1,179
18/5Sat
directEmirates
3h 05mSYD-ZQN
10/8Sat
directEmirates
3h 15mZQN-SYD
$3,168

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Flights to South Island

Cabin classes:

$593
$497
$559
$57