A South Island mayor wants the trans-Tasman bubble re-inflated saying Aucklanders pose a similar Covid risk as Australian travellers.
From 15 December, fully vaccinated people will be able to travel across the Auckland border freely while those unvaccinated will need a negative Covid-19 test.
New Zealanders can skip across the ditch quarantine free, but they're faced with fighting for a highly sought after spot in managed isolation on the way back home.
Tess Brunton has more.