Flying Abroad - Cheap flight offers, travel information, city mini-guides and more...

Blackpool Geneva Jet2 Flybaboo changes name

Fri, 16 May 2008 07:33:00 GMT

Swiss budget airline Flybaboo thats based in Geneva is changing its name to something more serious - only joking.

The airline has now rebranded and calls itself "Baboo" instead. Not a huge name change and less characters to paint onto the plane but passengers probably won't notice.

The airline has taken delivery of three new aircraft, they are branded "Baboo" and will fly from Geneva to St.Petersburg in Russia and also to Kiev in Russia.

Jet2 are also Geneva bound with Blackpool travellers being able to hit the slopes with flights starting from 13th December 2008.

Geneva is becoming an increasingly popular destination for winter sports fans and the new Blackpool to Geneva service from Jet2 gives passengers in the north of England an alternative to Liverpool or Manchester airports when wanting to fly to the snow this winter.

Ryanair add more new routes

Thu, 15 May 2008 20:03:00 GMT

Despite being a very short flight, Ryanair will this summer start operating three flights a day from 22nd July between Dublin and Kerry in Ireland.

The Irish Department of Transport are subsidising the service so passengers benefit at the tax-payers expense.

Ryanair have also announced a new route from Manchester Airport to Frankfurt (Hahn) Airport in Germany.

And, looks like Frankfurt is going to get busier, Ryanair are also starting a service from Hamburg in Germany to Frankfurt from Autumn this year.

easyJet Zurich travel tip

Thu, 15 May 2008 16:33:00 GMT

Heres a short travel tip for travellers flying from Zurich to Luton with easyJet - it will allow you to get onto the plane first without having to pay the £5.45 "speedy boarding" charge.

Landing charges are high at Zurich airport, so easyJet don't take the plane up to the terminal but instead park the plane on the edge of the airport and a bus takes you the short distance to the terminal. This keeps costs down for the airline which helps keen ticket prices down.

When travelling from Zurich to Luton with easyJet, passengers who pay the £5.45 speed boarding charge get to get onto the bus from the terminal to the plane first.

As the bus driver lets off the speedy travellers first - those people are told to go to the front left hand side of the bus.

The bus has three doors on each side, but the driver will open the front left door (when looking from the back of the bus forward) first, and then about 20 seconds later open the other two doors.

So if you work your way to the front left hand door when getting on the bus, you'll be one of the first few people to leave the bus and get on the plane, before the other doors open.

Swiss starts Switzerland to Shanghai flights

Wed, 14 May 2008 08:41:00 GMT

Swiss Airlines have started a new daily flight between Zurich in Switzerland and Shanghai in China.

The service is a daily non-stop flight which is in addition to the airlines existing service from Zurich to Hong Kong.

The number of Swiss tourists visiting China has seen a sizeable increase in the last few years, and business travel has also increased dramatically - being fuelled by a 50% increase in trade between the two countries.

Having a regular service to several major Chinese cities is seen to improve the links between the two countries and encourage tourism in both countries.

Passengers wanting to fly from Zurich to China are able to also fly via Frankfurt or Munich with Lufthansa Airlines.

Swiss International Airlines are part of the Star Alliance which allows passengers to use local partners (Air China and Shanghai Airlines are also Star Alliance members) for domestic flights from Shanghai.

New European cities within reach from Stansted Airport

Tue, 13 May 2008 11:13:00 GMT

Stansted airport has this week seen new flights launched to two increasingly popular European cities.

Aegean Airlines has increased its route network with a twice per day flight between Stansted and Athens in Greece.

Lithuanian Airlines has also added Stansted to Vilnius in Lithuania flights also starting this week.

Passengers using Stansted are spoilt for choice of where to fly to and Stansted is now the airport in the UK serving the most European destinations.

Travellers also have a choice of over 33 airlines to fly with to destinations both short haul and long haul.

Although classed as a "London" airport, Stansted is situated quite a way from the centre of London. Despite this, the airport has seen dramatic growth over the last 10 years and currently handles over 23.5 million passengers a year.

Stansted has also submitted an application for a second runway which if given the go-ahead will able the airport to handle over 35 million passengers a year.

Euromanx ceases flying with immediate effect

Mon, 12 May 2008 16:31:00 GMT

EuroManx, the airline focused on high quality flights to and from the Isle of Man has ceased to trade and no more flights will be operated.

For passengers who have already booked tickets, alternative arrangements are being made.

Flybe will, if they have room, carry passengers to Liverpool, Manchester and London Luton and Gatwick. Flybe can be contacted on a special number of 0871 522 6157.

The reason cited by the airline ceasing to trade were that over the last six months, rising fuel prices and reduced passenger numbers were major obstacles to the airline being able to continue to operate.

EuroManx operated for approximately 5 years, specialising in flights based around the Isle of Man.

Inverness to Manchester and Exeter and Southampton

Mon, 12 May 2008 10:01:00 GMT

Flybe has announced new flights from its base at Inverness to Manchester, Exeter and Southampton.

The new routes are part of the airline's summer schedule, and tickets for these new routes are on sale from the Flybe website from only £24.99 one-way including taxes.

The new service from Inverness to Manchester will operate twice a day.

From Inverness to Southampton will operate once a day and prices start from £45.99 one-way including taxes.

From Inverness to Exeter, flights will operate once a day with ticket prices from £32.99 one-way including taxes.

Flying from the South of England to North Scotland is an attractive proposition for many travellers as the 12+ hours journey is often mind numbing on the endless roads - even if you are lucky enough to not hit any traffic jams or accidents.

Rising petrol prices have also meant that driving is more expensive and when taking all factors into account, flying is often a more favourable and realistic alterative to driving.

Jet2 announce first ever flights from Leeds Bradford to New York

Sun, 11 May 2008 20:13:00 GMT

Jet2.com has announced that from its base to Leeds Bradford Airport, it will offer the first ever transatlantic flights to Newark Airport in New York.

Flights will cost £580 return, including taxes.

Over the christmas period, the airline is offering four-day shopping trips from £699 return including taxes.

With the favourable exchange rate, the US is an attractive place to go for a holiday or even a long weekend and shopping trip.

Jet2's spokesman said that customers have been asking for flights to New York and this new announcement from the airline is an important one and that they are proud to be the first airline to offer this new service.

In a statement from the airline, it said there will initially be four departures, but if there is sufficient demand, more will be added.

Flybe extends its Birmingham to Isle of Man route

Sun, 11 May 2008 19:31:00 GMT

Since it started flying the Birmingham to Isle of Man route in March 2008, Flybe has seen considerable success and ticket sales on the route.

The airline has announced that it will continue the twice-daily service into the winter season and NOT stop the service in October as was originally planned.

A spokesman for Flybe said that the airline was surprised at how quickly the route has become a success and that after high ticket sales, the decision to continue the service into the winter schedule and into 2009 was made without hesitation.

Flybe is a bigt player in the cheap/budget flight market and attracts both business and leisure travellers.

Passengers flying with Flybe can take advantage of the airline's Rewards4All programme or Flybe Credit Card which allows points to be earned and allowing passengers to take free flights if they've earned enough points.

Edinburgh to Geneva flights resume with Flyglobespan

Sun, 11 May 2008 18:33:00 GMT

Scottish airline Flyglobespan cancelled its Edinburgh to Geneva, Switzerland service last year and has just announced that from 20th December 2008 the airline will once again fly between the two cities.

There will be two weekly flights between Edinburgh and Geneva and the route is expected to be popular with Scottish skiiers and snowboarders wanting to get guaranteed snow over the winter.

Flyglobespan fly a total of 41 routes across europe, including to Croatia, Egypt, Italy, Portugal, Spain, the UK and Cyprus.