Tag: Milan

British Airways expands short-haul network from London Heathrow

British Airways has announced the addition of new destinations to its short-haul route network from London Heathrow.

The new destinations include Riga in Latvia and Belgrade in Serbia, with flights set to commence from October 2023.

The respective offerings include:

Riga, Latvia (RIX): British Airways will launch a three-times weekly service from London Heathrow starting from October 29, 2023. The flights will operate on a mix of A320 and A321 aircraft, with return fares available from £73, or £1 + 23,500 Avios. Riga is the largest city in both Latvia and the Baltic states, known for its foodie scene, unique architecture, and green spaces.

Belgrade, Serbia (BEG): British Airways will begin a three-times weekly service from London Heathrow on October 31, 2023. Flights will be operated on a mix of A320 and A321 aircraft, with return fares available from £105, or £1 + 23,500 Avios. Belgrade, located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, attracts visitors with its rich history, vibrant nightlife, and Bohemian quarter, Skadarlija.

Cologne, Germany (CGN): British Airways will launch a 12-times weekly service from London Heathrow starting October 30, 2023. Flights will be operated on a mix of A320 and A321 aircraft, with return fares available from £92, or £1 + 18,500 Avios. Cologne offers visitors a blend of historic landmarks, world-class museums, and a lively scene of traditional German food and drink.

Additionally, British Airways’ subsidiary, BA Cityflyer, based at London City Airport, will introduce a weekly service to Milan Linate Airport (LIN) from November 5, 2023, using Embraer 190 aircraft. Weekly winter flights from Heathrow to Turin, Italy (TRN), will also be available from December 10, 2023, to complement the existing daily service from London Gatwick with BA Euroflyer.

Furthermore, BA Cityflyer’s route to San Sebastian, Spain (EAS), will be extended into the winter season, becoming a year-round route. Heathrow operations to Ljubljana, Slovenia (LJU), and Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport (SAW) will also continue into the winter, offering more travel options for passengers.

Neil Chernoff, British Airways’ Director of Network and Alliances, said: ‘We are excited to be adding European cities Riga, Belgrade and Cologne to our route network. These are destinations that we think our customers will love, offering an alternative to some of the more well-known cities we fly to. We also know that Italy in particular is a firm favourite with our customers, so we look forward to adding more capacity with flights to Milan and Turin, alongside more choice across Europe generally.’

Customers can book flights and explore British Airways Holidays packages on the company’s website, www.ba.com. The airline’s flight network includes more than 190 destinations across over 65 countries.

Jet2 announces expanded Summer 23 services to Verona, Lake Garda

Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, the UK leisure airline and tour operator, have announced the extension of their Summer 23 season to Verona with more flights and holidays in October from Birmingham Airport,.

The additional flights to the region will operate until October 28, from Birmingham Airport. Jet2 will operate twice weekly services (Wednesday and Saturday) from Birmingham Airport, with flights starting in early May. With the extension, Jet2 will have thousands more seats on sale to the destination.

Further, Jet2holidays has also announced that a bigger selection of hotels at Lake Garda are now available to book until late October. In response to demand, Jet2holidays has recently added Aris Apartments, Villa Nicolli, Hotel Regina Adelaide, Hotel Serenella and Principe di Lazise to its portfolio of properties in Lake Garda, meaning the company now has over 50 2-5 star hotels in the region.

With the new services from Birmingham Airport, holidaymakers will have greater access to Lake Garda, located midway between Milan and Venice. A region of contrasts, the majestic lake is bordered with rugged alpine vistas, waterfront towns and lush vineyards. At the north end, holidaymakers have access to a variety of sporting activities, while further south they can enjoy exploring villages, wine tasting and al fresco dining. Resorts on sale include Bardolino, Malcesine, Sirmione, Limone, Desenzano, Riva, Gardone Riviera, San Felice del Benaco, Peschiera, Nago and Lazise.

Famed as the setting for Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, Verona is perfect for romantic getaways. The piazzas and tangle of medieval backstreets, a visit to Juliet’s ivy-clad balcony or a stylish shopping along Via Mazzini – Verona is a popular destination among young and old.

Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said: ‘We are delighted to be extending the Summer 23 season to Verona, and offering more flights and holidays to this popular destination until the end of October from Birmingham Airport. Our existing services to Verona are proving very popular so following the positive response, we have extended our presence in the region even further. By working with the Italian government, hoteliers and partners, we are able to put on more flights and bring even more holidaymakers to Verona and Lake Garda. This is a region experiencing very strong demand and given the assurance that customers get from our award-winning flights and ATOL protected package holidays, we are very confident that these additional flights will prove extremely popular.’

Ryanair announces biggest ever Bristol Airport schedule for Summer ’23

Budget airline Ryanair has announced its biggest ever schedule at Bristol Airport for 2023, with flights to 33 international destinations.

New routes for next year include Bydgoszcz, Porto, Marseille and Venice, which will see the company achieve a 10 percent a growth on its 2022 operation.

The number of flights to existing destinations, including Dublin, Limoges, Milan and Palma will also be increased, taking the total number of flights out of Bristol to more than 290 a week. To assist the expansion, Ryanair has added a fifth aircraft to its fleet, which now includes two environmentally efficient Boeing 737 8-200 Gamechanger aircraft that offer 16 percent less fuel consumption and a reduction on noise pollution of 40 percent.

The additional routes and planes are part of a USD500 million investment in Bristol, which will support 150 aviation jobs and 1,500 indirect jobs at the airport.

Ryanair DAC CEO, Eddie Wilson, said, ‘As the UK’s most reliable airline, Ryanair is delighted to announce even more growth at Bristol with the addition of a fifth based aircraft and our biggest ever schedule for Bristol- offering over 290 weekly flights on 33 routes, including four new routes to Bydgoszcz, Porto, Marseille and Venice for summer 23. With such a vast selection of sunny hotspots and city break destinations to choose from, UK holidaymakers can start booking their low fare summer holidays now on Ryanair.com. Ryanair is driving the UK’s economic recovery through our delivery of year-round tourism, regional investment and job creation.

‘However, if UK tourism is to continue to grow, especially in regional UK locations like Bristol, the government should immediately scrap APD in full for all travel and provide incentives for airlines, like Ryanair, to stimulate growth and recovery for the UK (an island-based economy) and its regions.’

Dave Lees, Bristol Airport CEO, said, ‘We are delighted with Ryanair’s announcement increasing the 2023 flight programme to its largest ever schedule from Bristol Airport. This is a clear demonstration of confidence returning in the region for air travel. Expanding Ryanair’s route network and adding extra capacity to existing routes, gives customers in the South West easy and affordable access to air travel on an increasing number of destinations and flexibility of stay lengths, without the need to travel to other airports for their flights.

‘Bristol Airport looks forward to working with Ryanair on developing their route network and also ensuring the increased use of quieter aircraft and more environmentally efficient operations in the future.’

British Airways City Flyer offers new European routes for summer 2022

British Airways is launching four new routes across Europe for the coming summer season.

Operating from London City Airport, customers can now book to fly to Barcelona, Luxembourg, Milan and Thessaloniki – adding to BA CityFlyer’s network. Flights to all destinations will operate on BA CityFlyer’s Embraer E190 aircraft. Luxembourg and Milan will operate from March 27, every day of the week. On 18 June, Thessaloniki will launch, operating once a week on Saturday, while on 19 June, Barcelona will operate six times a week – every day apart from Saturday.

A limited number of tickets start from the below fares, based on a return ticket in Euro Traveller to Barcelona with fares from £82; to Luxembourg from £82; to Milan from £104 and to Thessaloniki from £126. Routes to Jersey and Guernsey are also returning following their launch in Summer 2021. Flights will operate on Monday and Friday from June 20 to September 2.

Tom Stoddart, Managing Director of BA CityFlyer, which will operate the new services, said: ‘As customers start to plan their next summer getaway, we wanted to offer new routes to some of the most popular European destinations. Conveniently accessible from London City airport, they are a great addition to our extensive network.’

British Airways has introduced a flexible booking policy allowing customers to exchange their booking for a voucher or move their dates without incurring a change fee if their plans change. British Airways Holidays’ customers also have access to a range of additional flexible booking options, as part of the company’s Customer Promise, including securing a holiday with a deposit from £60pp.

easyJet announces expansion of services at Bristol

easyJet, the UK-based regional airline, has announced three new routes from Bristol.

As part of the route expansion, easyJet will operate a Bristol-Milan Malpensa service four times a week throughout the year on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, with first flights taking off on July 1, 2019. Flights between Bristol and Brindisi in Southern Italy will operate twice a week on Wednesdays and Sundays and will launch on the July 3, and flights between Bristol and Biarritz in the South of France will operate twice a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays with flights launching on July 2, both operating throughout the summer season.

In addition, easyJet will also increase its Bristol – Paris Charles de Gaulle frequency, adding an additional daily flight to and from the French capital.

With the three new routes, Bristol network will have a total of 74 routes. The airline will base an additional 86-seat Airbus A320 aircraft in Bristol that joins seven 156-seat Airbus A319 and nine 186-seat A320 aircraft currently serving the airline’s customers in the South West. The additional aircraft will provide 93,000 additional seats for customers looking to travel to and from Bristol this summer.

Ali Gayward, easyJet’s UK Country Manager, said: ‘We are absolutely delighted to be celebrating further expansion at Bristol Airport. The addition of another aircraft and even more routes will help us to deliver long term, sustainable growth at the base providing passengers with an even greater range of convenient flights to a fantastic variety of destinations across our network – all with low fares and great service.

‘We’re putting flights on sale today, allowing our customers to book early and take advantage of our lowest fares to some of our most popular business and leisure destinations.

‘Our ongoing growth at Bristol demonstrates easyJet’s long-term commitment to providing connectivity for the South West. We continue to be the largest airline at Bristol and in the coming weeks we will carry our 55 millionth passenger, showing that our customers continue to book with confidence.’

Nigel Scott, Business Development Director for Bristol Airport said: ‘This is fantastic news as easyJet continues to invest in Bristol Airport and basing seventeen aircraft at its second largest base. The additional aircraft will provide extra flights to Paris, and an additional three new destinations of Milan, Brindisi and Biarritz to the route network from Bristol Airport. The additional flight to Paris will provide twice daily flights to this hub city, particularly required by businesses in the region for the long-haul route connectivity. These new routes increase the choice of destinations available to passengers in the South West and Wales region, selecting to fly from their local airport.’

British Airways launches new year-round service from London Gatwick to Milan Bergamo

British Airways has announced plans to launch a new year-round service from London Gatwick to Milan Bergamo.

The new service will be launched on September 1, 2019, with flights operating every day of the week except for Saturday. Bergamo Airport is located nearly 45km from Milan, a world fashion capital considered perfect for a weekend city break. The Airport is also the closest gateway to Lake Como and Lake Garda, as well as the Franciacorta Wine Region. Bergamo also borders the Alps, providing access to a number of ski resorts during winter. Travellers can book their seats on ba.com.

British Airways is also increasing the number of flights to winter sun destination Cancun, which will move to a five-per-week service during the winter season.

Adam Carson, British Airways’ Managing Director of Gatwick, said: ‘Milan Bergamo adds another exciting destination to our Gatwick network and is perfectly located for a city break, a summer visit to the lakes or even a skiing holiday in the Alps.

‘From Gatwick we fly to over 70 destinations as our network continues to expand we’re adding new routes designed to appeal to both leisure and business customers.’

Fares to Milan Bergamo start from £25 one-way in Euro Traveller and £99 in Club Europe, and customers can choose to cut the cost of flights by using Avios part payment. Customers can select from a range of savings by destination and cabin while collecting Avios and Tier Points on their bookings.

The new route comes as British Airways is investing GBP6.5 billion to improve its customer experience over the next five years, including new aircraft, new cabins, new catering, new lounges, WiFi, and new routes.

Flybe launches first phase of 2019 summer schedule from Cardiff Airport

Flybe, the European regional airline, has announced the first phase of its 2019 summer schedule from Cardiff, offering a range of destinations for both leisure and business customers, Wales’ national airport said in a release.

As part of the first phase of Flybe’s summer 2019 schedule at Cardiff Airport, the airline will increase its services to Paris Charles de Gaulle to 10 return flights a week, and five return flights a week to Glasgow; extend ski flights to Chambery and Geneva until the end of April for Easter; and introduce popular routes to Faro, Venice, Milan Malpensa and Rome Fiumicino and key business routes including Belfast City, Dublin and Edinburgh. The announcement of extra flights to Paris and Glasgow comes after increased demand for these destinations, and further capacity will be added when the second phase is released in the coming weeks, the airline said.

Allowing customers to plan early, seats are now on sale at flybe.com and are currently available for travel to and from Cardiff between March 31 and June 16, 2019. All routes will be operated on three aircraft now based at Cardiff Airport. Details of schedules will be available at www.flybe.com.

Flybe CCO, Roy Kinnear, commented: ‘We have listened to our customers’ feedback and know that many like to plan their travel far in advance. Our new schedule features many of our most popular high frequency services and also highlights Flybe’s ongoing commitment to unparalleled connectivity from regional airports to destinations across the UK, Europe and beyond.’

Cardiff Airport’s CEO, Deb Barber, added: ‘It’s great to see Flybe adding flights for Summer 2019 on sale early, giving our customers that extra time to plan, book and benefit from great fares.’

Flybe, which opened its Cardiff base in 2015, offers multiple opportunities for onward travel either with its own services or via its 11 code share partner airlines. The options are available via the ‘One Stop to the World’ link at http://onestop.flybe.com/en-GB/flights.

British Airways expands services at London City

British Airways has said that it is expanding its services at London City and regional operation with three new routes and increased frequencies.

The UK-based airline, which has recently announced plans to increase flights from Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol in summer 2018, said that it will double its weekday services between London City and Milan Linate and add a new weekday service to Frankfurt from January.

In addition, British Airways will operate new summer services from Manchester and Edinburgh to Florence and a weekly service between Manchester and Dublin.

According to the plan, London City to Milan Linate flights will be increased from 11 to 23 flights a week, Frankfurt from 20 to 24 flights a week and Dublin from 32 to 36 flights a week. The new weekly summer only flights from Manchester to Florence and Dublin and from Edinburgh to Florence will start in May 2018. Tickets are available to book on www.ba.com, with Manchester-Dublin at fares from £25 each way; and Manchester-Florence and Edinburgh-Florence at fares from £59.

The extra flights are introduced following the arrival of two new 98-seat Embraer 190 aircraft in January and April 2018, bringing the total fleet number to 22.

Luke Hayhoe, British Airways’ general manager customer and commercial, said: ‘The new Embraer 190 jets will be a welcome addition to our fleet as we continue to grow our route network and frequencies both from our home base at London City and from other UK regional airports. It enables us to expand both our business and leisure routes, with much improved schedules and timings to Milan Linate and Frankfurt.

‘This year we have almost doubled the number of routes we operate compared to last year and the winter season brings a further five new routes, London City to Paris Orly, Prague and Reykjavik and Manchester to Chambery and Salzburg ahead of the new routes next summer.’

This year, British Airways has announced dozens of new flights from London City, Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol airports, the airline said.

Ryanair launches winter 2017 schedule at Liverpool

Irish low fares airline Ryanair has launched its 2017 winter schedule at Liverpool, with two new routes to Copenhagen and Milan, and a new winter service to Prague.

Ryanair’s winter 2017 schedule from Liverpool will deliver a total of 24 routes, including the four-times weekly route to Copenhagen, thrice-weekly flights to Milan Malpensa, and a four-times weekly new winter service to Prague. The schedule will see Ryanair operating 90 weekly flights from the airport, which will help deliver two million customers per annum and support 1,500 jobs at Liverpool John Lennon Airport.

Ryanair said that it will continue to connect Liverpool with major European cities on increased frequency, low fare services including Barcelona (four weekly), Milan (three weekly) and Dublin (four daily), and also offer a wide range of winter sun routes, making it more suited for business and leisure customers.

Ryanair’s Robin Kiely said: ‘We are pleased to launch our Liverpool winter 2017 schedule, which includes 2 brand new routes to Copenhagen and Milan, the continuation of our new Prague route into winter, and 24 routes in total, which will deliver 2m annual customers at Liverpool John Lennon Airport. These new routes will go on sale on the Ryanair.com website later this week as we continue to grow our Liverpool traffic, tourism and jobs, underlining our commitment to LJLA and the Liverpool region.

‘We are also pleased to report record bookings on our Liverpool summer 2017 schedule and customers can look forward to even lower fares so there’s never been a better time to book a low fare flight on Ryanair. We urge all customers who wish to book their holidays to do so now on the Ryanair.com website or mobile app, where they can avail of the lowest fare air travel to and from Liverpool.’

LJLA’s Director of Air Service Development, Paul Winfield, said: ‘Today’s news means that since September last year, Ryanair have now announced seven new destinations from Liverpool including three capital cities. Further growth next winter and the current success of their forthcoming summer programme, should make 2017 one of Ryanair’s busiest from Liverpool in recent years.’

Ryanair added that its Liverpool summer 2017 schedule is attracting record bookings, with increased frequencies on lower fares to sun destinations, including three new routes to Bari (twice weekly), Girona (twice weekly) and Prague (four time weekly), which will commence in March.

easyJet commences new Glasgow – Milan Malpensa route

easyJet, the UK-based budget airline, has expanded its Scottish network with the launch of a new route from Glasgow to Milan Malpensa.

 

The airline already flies to Milan Malpensa from Edinburgh, London Gatwick and London Luton.

 

Glasgow’s first direct connection to Milan, the new year-round service is expected to carry 26,000 annually. Flights will operate twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays with fares starting from GBP25.49 one way per person, based on two people travelling on the same booking.

 

Ali Gayward, easyJet’s Head of Scotland, said: ‘As Scotland’s largest airline we are pleased to further strengthen our network with the launch of this new route to Milan Malpensa.

 

‘Milan’s rich history, range of shops and extensive choice of restaurants are amongst the key attractions for visitors to Milan and we believe that this will prove a popular addition to our existing network.’

 

Paul White, business development manager at Glasgow Airport, said: ‘Milan is a fantastic new addition to the wide range of European cities easyJet serves from Glasgow, and we are excited to be bringing this brand new route to our customers.

 

‘Milan and Glasgow have many things in common – as well as being economic powerhouses the two cities enjoy a fantastic reputation for being fashion capitals. Not only will this new route provide Scottish passengers with the opportunity to visit one of Europe’s top citybreak destinations, it has huge potential to generate significant in-bound tourism for Glasgow and the West of Scotland. We have enjoyed tremendous success in strengthening our links with European cities this year, and look forward to working with easyJet to continue the airline’s growth at Glasgow Airport.’

 

With its rich tradition of art and culture, Milan is a much sought-after tourist destination with sights including the Brera Art Gallery, its elaborate cathedral, Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper at the Santa Maria delle Grazie Church, La Scala opera house and Castello Sforzesc, as well as Milan’s main museum ‘Pinacoteca’.