After 330 days without international arrivals, the first flight from Sydney is scheduled to touch down at Queenstown Airport this afternoon.
Qantas is the first airline to return, followed by Jetstar and Air New Zealand next month, and Virgin Australia in November.
Queenstown Airport CEO Glen Sowry says there's strong demand from Australia with activity to ramp up as winter approaches.
He says during peak days in the middle of July, they're expecting up to 57 flights - and one-third will be trans-Tasman.
