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Find cheap flights to South Island from $550

This is the cheapest one-way flight price found by a KAYAK user in the last 72 hours by searching for a flight from the United States to South Island departing on 8/15. 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
0 bags
sáb. 6/29
sáb. 7/6

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Best South Island Flight Deals

Cheapest round-trip prices found by our users on KAYAK in the last 72 hours

Christchurch
Christchurch1 stop$770
Queenstown
Queenstown2 stops$958
Dunedin
Dunedin3 stops$1,372
Nelson
Nelson2 stops$2,002
Blenheim
Blenheim1 stop$1,593

Good to know

Low season

August

High season

December

Cheapest flight

$550
Best time to beat the crowds with an average 5% drop in price.
Most popular time to fly with an average 23% increase in price.
Flight from San Francisco to Christchurch

FAQs - booking South Island flights

  • How long is the flight to South Island?

    An average nonstop flight from the United States to South Island takes 27h 16m, covering a distance of 7967 miles. The most popular route is Los Angeles - Christchurch with an average flight time of 17h 20m.

  • What is the cheapest flight to South Island?

    The cheapest ticket to South Island from the United States found in the last 72 hours was $667. The most popular route is from Los Angeles to Christchurch and the cheapest round-trip airline ticket found on this route in the last 72 hours was $783.

  • What are the most popular destinations in South Island?

    Based on KAYAK flight searches, the most popular destination is Christchurch (50% of total searches to South Island). The next most popular destinations are Queenstown (34%) and Blenheim (6%). Searches for flights to Dunedin (5%), to Nelson (3%) 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 travelers 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 the United States 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.
8.1
Air New ZealandOverall score based on 608 reviews
8.1Comfort
8.4Boarding
7.6Food
8.7Crew
7.9Entertainment
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.

Business class Seats on the A350 from Nan to YVR were wonderful. The flight crew was okay but could do with better training. Toilets were clean but ran out of paper towels towards the end of the flight. The food/menu and the wine offered really needs considerable improvement. Dinner options were either Bolani, a beef sandwich (even this could be made much better), or paneer butter masala. Unfortunately, if you are not a fan of Fijian food, there isn’t much choice. Dessert was either turmeric ice cream or fruits but unfortunately, they were out of fruit! So the only option was turmeric ice cream. I’m not certain how many passengers like turmeric but I am not one of them. They need to cater to a more diverse group of people. Perhaps they need a new chef? The movies& tv shows were mostly older so I didn’t find that interesting either. It was however, fun to view the plane’s exterior cameras as we take off and land. The best thing about this flight are the business class seats.

Comfortable as one can get in Economy, food was very good, staff were super friendly & efficient.

Really liked the plane and business class seat. Food was ok but could be better. Service was very good.

Better connections, much better cabin crew, much cleaner cabin that Qantas, American and probably other carriers.

Better connections, much better cabin crews, much cleaner aircraft than Qantas, American and probably others.

Fiji left without me because American Airlines was too stupid to get to LAX on time. Fiji should have offered a standby on another flight but they told me tough luck. I will never fly with this company again.

The A350 aircraft business class experience was very good. Comfortable and well appointed pod, and supplemental bed pad available for sleeping. Food was very good.

Business class seats and amenities were excellent, crew very attentive. Slept well. Food good, lounge experience nice. Would fly them again. A350 aircraft excellent, very quiet.

The flight attendants were extremely friendly and helpful. Everything ran on time. I highly recommend Fiji Airways.

The experience was lovely in every respect. The crews were delightful.

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

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

Amazing! Was put on the earlier flight and I requested for an aisle seat and was given it. Thanks Qantas!

It was nice having space in the way back where it thinned out with passengers, most folks in the far back were able to lay down and sleep. That was a pleasant surprise. Made the 15 hr flight go by pretty smooth, watching a few movies and resting. I had previously never used an airplane toilet, but finally used one. It wasn't too bad. All workers were very helpful and friendly. Their hospitality was welcomed as well

Enjoyed the new possibilities of in flight entertainment. Been awhile since I've flown, and that was a nice surprise. Being able to pick from such a variety was personalized and welcomed.

Boarding was terrible - the ground staff member Fredeya at lax was more military than customer service, have never encountered a customer service representative as rude as her. Apart from that all other staff were wonderful and the flight was good.

I travelled first class from LAX to MEL and it was a series of disasters which I put down to lax staff who dont care and a suck it attitude to customers - its all lip service and no delivery. The flight was delayed due to aircraft refuellers putting on 300,000 litres of fuel on a 380Q1. I entered via the first class bridge loaded my bags in the overhead locker. the lady in the next isle in first class also had hers in there as she wasn't allocated a locker over her seat. The attendant asked would I like a champagne - I said yes please. he promptly delivered a empty glass and the glass left on the desk. Then he ignored me for 20 minutes. When i asked him is he out of champagne he gave me the usual rubbish I was distracted. There are four staff and 15 first class passengers - give me a break. the glass stayed there on takeoff and then was still there 9 hours into the flight. When I arrived to my seat I told him I had eaten and wouldn't be eating on the flight - it was 10.30pm. Yet he comes by later 4am ( I happen to be awake) and says are you eating with us? I asked for the bed to be made up - they put a 3 inch 7cm mattress on the chair but as usual the break in the chair - the mattress sinks into it - so I had to move it around so I didnt get my back sunk in the V - Im 187cm tall. The cabinet next to 1K is for staff bags and the toilet is next door. I tried to avoid this seat but couldn't change - in to the flight 8 hours and the cabin rest change over kicks in - this attendant is shining his torch in my eyes taking out and returning his bag. Then the toilet starts flushing and forget trying to get to sleep. Yet no-one else needed torch! 11 hours into the 15.5 hour flight I ask for breakfast - I order two poached eggs, bacon on multigrain toast, tomatos and mushrooms. I get no bacon or toast and have to order it and the eggs are cold. Then I order a coffee which is so badly spilled - and not by air turbulence she brings back a serviette and replaces the first one rather than providing a clean dry saucer! First class in Qantas is a joke as the staff just don't get the meaning of prompt service and attention to detail. I will fly business class rather than first on Qantas as its better value for money but I have been very impressed with United First Polaris and given I fly internationally every month this is going to be my choice.

I was in premium economy. My seat didn’t recline much - it was broken. My phone charger didn’t work.

Experience was great. My only advice is to have a pasta dish on the menu. Otherwise everything was excellent.

Short flight. Needed a smart phone to watch any movie.

Well....let's start from the point that I had to stay in airport for 12 hours instead of 2 that was scheduled. Poor company and even worst customer service. Never again....

The flight and boarding were easy peasy. I was traveling with my 4-year-old, so a smooth boarding experience was especially appreciated. My only piece of feedback is really about where our gate was in O'Hare. They've shoved four gates into a tiny corner of the B terminal and there isn't early enough room or seating for everyone. Not United's problem, but did dent the overall experience.

We liked the fully reclinable seats. Had center seats, so it was difficult to talk to spouse. Crew was great

Aisle chair was good and liked the foot bar preventing you from putting your foot in the isle, The breakfast on this international flight to Zurich was horrible (Europeans, specially, used to good food) may make this a dealbreaker for booking with United Airlines again. I agreed with my Spanish fellow passenger.

Dinner was okay but the breakfast was not eatable on the flight San Francisco to Zurich.

There was no screens on board AND the WiFi didn’t work. My seat was broken and couldn’t recline so I couldn’t even sleep. The flight attendants didn’t offer anything to make it more comfortable. It was such an old cramped plane, when the person in front of me reclined I couldn’t even open my tray table. All the United ads talk about guaranteeing everyone gets a screen!

The Wi-Fi was unavailable on this flight for some reason.

The flight was delayed almost 2 hours. Bad customer service etc. I will never fly Luthansa. Ever!!!

On time take off…US cabins look tired and need of refresh!

Fine. Though no food or entertainment so the survey needs to be updated with those options.

Experience was bad. 3.5 hour delay for a 2.5 hour trip. There was no r Transparency about the reason for the delay and it was done 30 mins at a time.

Original flight delayed several times and finally canceled at 2:30 in the morning. Staff at the gate was not very helpful in resolving problems or communicating why there were delays. I spent 34 hours at the airport before I could leave, they couldn't book me on another early flight even after canceling my original flight. Next flight available after my original flight was canceled was 22 hours later. I will never fly American Airlines again.

very very tight seats unfriendly crew who do not seem to care about the comfort of their passengers and do not know how to smile poor ground staff support at LHR and PHX

The boarding process and flight were great. However, I waited about 40 minutes for my luggage. It did not come up on the designated belt. Instead, everyone’s bags were on a cart. Not sure what the issue was, but we were not informed until another passenger went looking for her bags and found them.

There were delays on both ends. It made it less than excellent. This plane was great though

AA1537 the AC was not working properly. It was very hot and uncomfortable.

So uncomfortable to sit in the tiny space on a long, international. Food was rough. Please, less white flour and processed food.

Worst experience flying American Airlines. I fly with them often, so I was super disappointed in the service I received at gate 30 in LGA on May 24, mid-day. The flight was delayed twice. I was patiently waiting in the American Airlines lounge when I received the notice on my app that the plane was boarding 45 minutes before its newly re-scheduled take off of 4 pm (from the orginal 1:45 pm then 3:00 pm). It took me 5 min to travel from the lounge to the gate and when I arrived there at 3:20 flight gate attendant told me the flight had closed and that they announced for passengers multiple times. I showed them the notification on my app and they were really rude and unempathetic. The person who rescheduled my flight at customer service wasn't any happier but was at least helpful in getting me on the next flight.

Flight was 1/2 hour delayed leaving Phoenix. Otherwise it was an average flight. Flight crew on this trip was very nice.

Our flight was delayed 2.5 hrs due to plane being too hot! After 1.5 hrs, airline decided to use another plane but had to wait for gate, baggage transfer & beverage transfer. Anyone could tell after first half hour that another plane was required and although did not affect us many would miss connecting flights at Heathrow. I have found the stewards are not the friendliest in the industry and the food is questionable, even as I like airplane food normally, the best of the 2 flights was the yogurt & granola for breakfast.

Book Cheap South Island Plane Tickets

Recent round-trip flight deals

11/5mar.
1 stopFiji Airways
17h 45mSFO-CHC
11/26mar.
1 stopFiji Airways
19h 25mCHC-SFO
$770
8/15jue.
1 stopFiji Airways
17h 20mLAX-CHC
8/27mar.
1 stopFiji Airways
18h 40mCHC-LAX
$770
11/1vie.
1 stopAir New Zealand
21h 30mLAX-ZQN
11/17dom.
2 stopsAir New Zealand
17h 15mZQN-LAX
$1,035
11/1vie.
1 stopAir New Zealand
17h 50mLAX-ZQN
11/17dom.
1 stopAir New Zealand
17h 50mZQN-LAX
$1,070
11/24dom.
1 stopQantas Airways
22h 10mSFO-CHC
12/8dom.
1 stopQantas Airways
20h 25mCHC-SFO
$1,096
8/14mié.
1 stopQantas Airways
20h 40mLAX-CHC
8/26lun.
1 stopQantas Airways
18h 55mCHC-LAX
$1,096
11/26mar.
2 stopsAmerican Airlines
40h 55mLAX-CHC
12/11mié.
1 stopAmerican Airlines
19h 35mCHC-LAX
$1,327
11/5mar.
2 stopsUnited Airlines
49h 23mSFO-CHC
11/26mar.
1 stopUnited Airlines
15h 05mCHC-SFO
$1,364
7/1lun.
1 stopAmerican Airlines
30h 25mLAX-CHC
7/22lun.
2 stopsAmerican Airlines
40h 25mCHC-LAX
$1,369
11/5mar.
2 stopsUnited Airlines
49h 23mSFO-CHC
11/26mar.
2 stopsUnited Airlines
40h 05mCHC-SFO
$1,376

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Recent one-way flight deals

8/15jue.
1 stopFiji Airways
17h 40mSFO-CHC
$550
8/14mié.
3 stops
43h 05mSFO-CHC
$556
11/19mar.
2 stopsAir New Zealand
39h 27mTPA-CHC
$826
10/28lun.
3 stopsAmerican Airlines
30h 03mTPA-CHC
$833
10/28lun.
2 stopsAmerican Airlines
32h 05mTPA-CHC
$834
11/24dom.
2 stopsAir New Zealand
18h 25mSFO-CHC
$839
10/27dom.
2 stopsUnited Airlines
59h 02mTPA-CHC
$895
11/23sáb.
2 stopsUnited Airlines
40h 38mSFO-CHC
$937
7/3mié.
1 stopQantas Airways
23h 00mLAX-CHC
$1,035
10/18vie.
2 stopsQantas Airways
38h 31mTPA-CHC
$1,217

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Recent domestic flight deals

7/23mar.
nonstopJetstar
0h 50mWLG-CHC
7/28dom.
nonstopJetstar
0h 50mCHC-WLG
$52
7/30mar.
nonstopJetstar
1h 25mAKL-CHC
8/6mar.
nonstopJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$62
7/22lun.
nonstopJetstar
1h 50mAKL-ZQN
7/31mié.
nonstopJetstar
1h 50mZQN-AKL
$77
6/14vie.
nonstopJetstar
0h 50mWLG-CHC
6/17lun.
nonstopJetstar
0h 50mCHC-WLG
$79
11/25lun.
nonstopJetstar
1h 25mAKL-CHC
12/1dom.
nonstopJetstar
1h 20mCHC-AKL
$81
11/12mar.
nonstop
1h 25mAKL-CHC
11/29vie.
nonstop
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$104
10/25vie.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mAKL-CHC
10/27dom.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$110
11/25lun.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mAKL-CHC
12/1dom.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$115
9/27vie.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mAKL-CHC
10/3jue.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$121
10/25vie.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mAKL-CHC
10/27dom.
nonstopAir New Zealand
1h 25mCHC-AKL
$124

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Last minute flights to South Island

Last minute flight, train and bus deals

6/1sáb.
multi-stopQantas Airways
29h 10mLAX-CHC
6/15sáb.
multi-stopQantas Airways
27h 15mCHC-LAX
$1,230
6/1sáb.
multi-stopQantas Airways
29h 10mLAX-CHC
6/15sáb.
multi-stopQantas Airways
38h 45mCHC-LAX
$1,331
6/1sáb.
multi-stopFiji Airways
29h 25mSFO-CHC
10/19sáb.
multi-stopFiji Airways
19h 10mCHC-SFO
$1,480
6/3lun.
multi-stop
30h 20mLAX-CHC
6/19mié.
multi-stop
21h 25mCHC-LAX
$1,504
6/2dom.
multi-stop
30h 20mLAX-CHC
6/19mié.
multi-stop
21h 25mCHC-LAX
$1,515
6/4mar.
multi-stop
36h 55mLAX-CHC
6/20jue.
multi-stop
27h 15mCHC-LAX
$1,533
6/4mar.
multi-stop
22h 50mLAX-CHC
6/18mar.
multi-stop
21h 25mCHC-LAX
$1,552
6/1sáb.
multi-stopFiji Airways
17h 40mSFO-CHC
10/19sáb.
multi-stopFiji Airways
19h 10mCHC-SFO
$1,930
6/4mar.
multi-stopAmerican Airlines
40h 30mLAX-CHC
6/18mar.
multi-stopAmerican Airlines
40h 25mCHC-LAX
$2,005
5/31vie.
multi-stopUnited Airlines
38h 25mSFO-CHC
10/19sáb.
multi-stopUnited Airlines
14h 55mCHC-SFO
$2,242

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Flights to South Island

Cabin classes:

$94
$124
$62
$24

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