Wellington, Feb 17 NZPA - Christchurch International Airport had about 22,000 more passengers pass through its terminals last month than in January 2009.

About 526,860 people passed through the airport in January, compared to 505,077 -- an increase of about 5 percent.

The airport hosted around 6 million passengers last financial year, with numbers set to increase on completion of a deal with AirAsia X, a Malaysian long-haul, low-cost transporter, airport spokeswoman Monique Oomen said.

Ms Oomen confirmed AirAsia X managers had visited the South Island to assess what was on offer for prospective passengers.

"A trend we are seeing developing is passengers save money on their airfares, then spend more when they arrive at their holiday destination."

In a time when many established airlines were cutting back services and flights to save money as they went through turbulent financial times, the Kuala Lumpur-based airline was one of the few still adding routes, she said.

The airport's general manager of marketing and business development, Gareth Owen, said most of the travellers using the airport were tourists travelling around the South Island, he said.

"Our performance exceeds that of Auckland and Wellington, so it also confirms the pull of the South Island as a top tourist destination."