New Air Route Gives Wellington a World of Opportunities

Changes to Singapore Airlines’ route linking Wellington to the world will enhance economic opportunities for the region.

Wellington was connected to Singapore via a short stopover in Canberra. From 1 May, the Singapore Airlines flight will instead touchdown in Melbourne while on its way to Singapore.

The route provides an even quicker way for Wellingtonians to get to Singapore, which is a gateway to the rest of the world. For travellers wanting to visit Wellington, they can easily access the Singapore Airlines network.

WREDA’s Interim Chief Executive Derek Fry says Wellington has an agreement with Singapore Airlines to provide a long-haul service to Singapore via Australia. That hasn’t changed and therefore the particulars of the agreement Wellington has with the airline remain the same.

“A Wellington-Singapore via Melbourne service will provide more opportunity for Wellington. The opportunity for our region from South East Asia and across the Singapore Airlines network is still excellent but Melbourne itself is a large market for Wellington with plenty of potential for growth both in the tourism and business sectors.

“Whilst we have good connectivity with Melbourne, increased capacity, more flexibility with flight times and a strong business class offer means this Singapore Airlines service enhances the potential of tourism to the Wellington region from Victoria, is well-timed for business-related travel and of course gives Wellingtonians more travel choice to an Australian city that’s widely liked here.

“It will be a shame to lose the direct connectivity with Canberra, but we’ve developed strong awareness of Wellington as a tourism destination in ACT so will continue to attract visitors either as a short break or as part of their New Zealand holiday. We’ve also developed worthwhile partnerships across the conference, film and start-up sectors.”