For many families, it's an annual tradition to travel to the islands to see their families and re-connect with their culture, and for others it is a long awaited holiday away from New Zealand.
Kaumosi Opie, aged 34, visited Tuvalu last year for the first time since she moved to New Zealand as a 9 year old.
It was at that trip where her and her sister decided they will make it a tradition to visit Tuvalu every Christmas.