Air New Zealand has cancelled some domestic flights, including in and out of Tauranga Airport over the next few days.

"We are actively monitoring Cyclone Gabrielle as it nears the North Island of New Zealand," says an Air New Zealand spokesperson.

"Updates we are receiving suggest we will need to carefully monitor our schedule from mid-Sunday February 12 through to Tuesday February 14."

Air New Zealand has made the following cancellations to their schedule:

• All flights to or from Kerikeri and Whangarei between midday Sunday and Tuesday morning have been cancelled
• The last flights on Sunday night into Hamilton and Tauranga have been cancelled
• All turboprop flights to, from or through Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga from midday Sunday through to midday Monday have been cancelled

"More cancellations are likely so if your travel is not essential, please consider postponing your plans, especially if you have children travelling alone or if you are travelling with pets," says an Air New Zealand spokesperson.

"If your flight is affected by the weather, we will contact you directly using the details provided in your booking.

"We are working as fast as we can to manage the thousands of customers impacted by recent weather events, and our Contact Centre is overwhelmed with calls."

Air New Zealand ask, that for passengers safety, that they do not travel to airports unless they are due to depart.

"Our airport staff are not able to assist with rebooking flights."

Passengers who have incoming flights with Air New Zealand

Anyone with a ticket booked for travel to/from and via Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Kerikeri, Whangarei, Rotorua, Taupo, Gisborne, Napier or New Plymouth, up to and including Friday February 17 2023, is being offered the following booking flexibility by Air New Zealand:

• For Domestic travel, you will be able to change your travel to a date up to and including Wednesday 22 February 2023 without fare difference, penalty, or service fees.
• For International travel, you will be able to change your travel to a date up to and including Wednesday 22 February 2023 without fare difference, penalty, or service fees. If travel is only available in a higher cabin, the fare differential will apply.
• You can change your booking to a different Air New Zealand origin or destination or change to a later date up to and including Wednesday 22nd February 2023 without penalty or service fees. Any fare difference will apply.

"We understand you may no longer wish to travel and so by going to the Manage Booking page you can enter your six digit booking reference along with your family name, continue through to your booking and follow the instructions to hold the unused value of your ticket in credit," says an Air New Zealand spokesperson.

"Your credit will be valid for 12 months from the date of issue. Remember, you can also use the Air New Zealand app to view, change and manage your booking.

"If you have booked through a travel agent, please contact them directly to make any changes.

"We will continue to monitor the situation and should there be an improvement in the weather this flexibility will come to an end," says an Air New Zealand spokesperson.

The Bay of Plenty has a strong wind watch in place but this may change, says a MetService New Zealand spokesperson.

Helpful advice for preparing for Cyclone Gabrielle is available on the MetService New Zealand website.