Airport faces backlash after putting time limit of 3 minutes on goodbye hugs

21 October 2024, 10:13 | Updated: 21 October 2024, 13:25

An airport in New Zealand has faced criticism after erecting signs limiting cuddling outside departures to 3 minutes.

The signs, erected outside departures at - located on New Zealand's South Island - read “max hug time 3 minutes”

The signs around the airport's drop of zones also suggest that “for fonder farewells please use the car park”.

One local said the warning messages at the airport's drop-off zones can be “quite intense” - with the airport threatening to clamp wheels or impose fines to those not abiding by the rules.

The airport says they hope to avoid such measures, but insisted they wanted to keep traffic flowing at its drop-off zone.

A sign erected in the airport’s drop-off zone warns: “Max hug time 3 minutes. For fonder farewells please use the car park.”

“We’re trying to have fun with it. It is an airport and those drop off locations are common locations for farewells,” the airport's chief executive, Dan De Bono, told radio station RNZ.

He added that too many people were spending too long in the airport's drop-off areas.

“There’s no space left for others,” De Bono added. “It’s about enabling others to have hugs.”

It comes as the image, posted to Facebook, saw users comment "You can’t put a time limit on hugs! That’s inhumane!"

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Another wrote: I love it. It shows warmth and compassion. My local airport it would be 'you can't stop there' - there's a £100 fine if you stop and a minimum £5.00 to drop someone off in the drop-off zone. I love Nice airport - they have 'Kiss and Fly'.

"Sometimes, travellers were using the drop-off zone to engage in last-minute amorous acts", De Bono said.

“Airports are hotbeds of emotion … our staff have seen some interesting things over the years.”

The airport added that it will not have a special unit enforcing the hugging rules.

De Bono added that staff may, however, politely ask those lingering to move emotional interactions to the car park.

"We’re not here to tell people how long they should hug for," he said, adding: "It’s more the message of please move on and provide space for others.”