Booking Air New Zealand Pet Travel
Air New Zealand is yet another safe air travel option for pets. However, unlike other airlines, Air New Zealand will not allow pets to travel in-cabin. While this may seem scary to most pet owners, we have booked many pets as cargo with Air New Zealand and know it is a safe option for travel.
To help you get started, we’ve put together a few simple steps to walk you through the rules and booking process for Air New Zealand pet travel. If you get stuck along the way or need to book internationally with Air New Zealand, let us know and our team of experts will step in to help!
Accompanied Pets or Pets Traveling as Checked Baggage
1. First, it’s important to determine whether your pet can travel as checked baggage on your ticket. Air New Zealand only allows this type of travel for dogs, cats, and small caged birds traveling domestically within New Zealand.
Also, Air New Zealand has a strict rule of one travel crate per person. Two pets who are comparable in size up to 14kg and are used to sharing space together may travel in the same crate. Similarly, if up to three pets are from the same litter and not older than 6 months of age, they may travel in the same crate as well. All other pets are required to travel in their own crate.
If you have multiple pets who cannot travel together, a pet other than a cat, dog, or bird, or if you’re pet will be traveling internationally with Air New Zealand, please go to step 3.
2. Before you can book your pet as excess baggage, you will need to find an IATA approved travel crate for your pet to travel in. We have tips on how to find the right travel kennel on our on this page of our website.
When you’re ready to book and want to do so directly with Air New Zealand, call their contact centre at 0800 737 000. The pricing for pets traveling as excess baggage are:
| Weight (Travel Crate + Pet) | Price |
| Up to 25kg | $75 NZD |
| 26kg and above | $100 NZD |
Keep in mind that even though your pet will be traveling with you as checked baggage, you’ll still need to follow the pet import requirements for your destination country.
Reno flew on Air New Zealand in 2016.
Unapproved Pets
The following breeds are not accepted on international flights:
- Snub-nose dogs or cats
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American Pit Bull Terrier
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Dogo Argentino
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Japanese Tosa
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Brazilian Fila
Unaccompanied Pets or Pets Traveling as Cargo
3. As with accompanied travel, your pet will need an approved travel crate to fly on its own. Please visit our Pet Travel Crates page to learn more about what kennels and sizes are appropriate for your pet’s journey.
Air New Zealand requires that you go through a professional pet-shipping company, like PetRelocation, to book your pet’s international journey. This is because they want to be sure all of the necessary pet import requirements for your destination country have been met for your pet’s safety.
If you’re traveling from New Zealand to a different country, it is best to get in touch directly with one of Air New Zealand’s approved local transporters. You can find a list of these local approved pet travel companies here.