Dunedin Airport’s three-minute hug limit sparks controversy: ‘Inhumane’

An airport in New Zealand has been denounced as ‘inhumane’ and sparked a global debate for putting a time limit on a very basic human emotion.

Located in the southeast of New Zealand’s South Island, Dunedin is one of the southernmost cities in the world.

It’s known for its cold winters and general climate of cloud-covered gloom – but its inhabitants were never considered cold… until now.

It’s all the fault of Dunedin Airport’s shocking new three-minute time limit on hugging.

The airport, which is located another 27 km south of the city, has introduced a hugging campaign in the drop-off zone to avoid delays for passengers.

And just when poor huggers thought the sign ‘max. cuddle time: 3 minutes” couldn’t be crueler, it added: “For a more elaborate farewell, use the parking lot.”

However, reactions on social media have been mixed. ‘You can’t put a time limit on hugs! That’s inhumane,” one wrote.

But another was happy with it and wants the policy to be extended, writing: ‘OMG school drop-off lines need a similar sign (maximum hug time 10 sec).’

For others, the board stirred deep thoughts. ‘This got me thinking…. Who are the people I would hug for 3 minutes? Very few, mostly family, and a dear old friend,” said one.

A man is pictured crying as he hugs his partner at an airport. Possibly because Dunedin Airport has imposed a three-minute time limit on hugs

However, airport CEO Daniel De Bono was unrepentant, telling Radio New Zealand that three minutes for a goodbye hug was enough.

De Bono said airports are “hotbeds of emotions” and pointed to a study that suggests a 20-second hug is enough to get a burst of the “love hormone” oxytocin.

He said moving passengers quickly means more people can get more hugs.

Some online commenters expressed surprise at an airport that still has a free drop-off area.

A commentator from Britain said Dunedin Airport’s policy “shows warmth and compassion.”

‘(At) my local airport it would be ‘You can’t stop there’ – there’s a £100 fine if you stop and a minimum of £5 to drop someone off in the drop-off zone.”

Others saw the humorous side of the time limit, with one writing: ‘I see the airport worker now… 2:56, 2:57, 2:58, 2:59 Okay, time to break up with me!’

Mr De Bono said part of the reason for the hug curfew was that “our team has seen interesting things happen… over the years”.

The hug research he referred to when he said a 20-second hug was enough to trigger the oxytocin response in humans also found that “warm partner contact is associated with lower cardiovascular reactivity.”

In layman’s terms, this means that a hug lowers your heart rate and calms you down.

The study did not examine the effect on a person’s heart when a hug occurs with a signal telling him or her to hurry up and get on with it.