More than 90 people were airlifted from Fiordland charter boats as holidaymakers rushed to beat the clock and get home.
Kiwis were given 48 hours to return home after a national lockdown came into force on Tuesday night.
That sparked a busy two days for Southern Lakes Helicopters director Sir Richard Hayes.
The Te Anau company made 15 trips on Wednesday to pick up charter boat passengers from near Fiordland, and a final two trips yesterday afternoon.
"Everyone’s been good about it. They’ve understood the seriousness and the gravity of the situation," he said.
"No complaints at all, even though they were having a heck of a holiday."
The tourist hot spot had been very busy with holidaymakers recently, he said.
Many boats also sailed for ports in places such as Deep Cove or Bluff.
People scrambled to get flights home, while others hired rental cars.
One group of four was planning to drive to Motueka, taking turns at the wheel to get home before last night’s deadline.
Department of Conservation southern South Island operations director Aaron Fleming said most of its facilities were not bookable at this time of year, operating on a first-come, first-served basis, so it could not provide an estimate of the total number of people who might be in the back country.
"On Rakiura, we’ve been in contact with transport operators to get an understanding of how many people may be in the back country and will work with them to get people back to the mainland as needed.”
