Last year was a banner year for aviation - and in 2024 our horizons will stretch even further. While flights to Heathrow and Gatwick are almost back to 2019 levels, regional airports have so far been slower to shake off the post-pandemic slump.
With budget airlines opening new hubs outside London, and a healthy supply of new long-haul routes, Britain's smaller airports will get a much-needed boost. Here are the new routes to look out for this year - and the early bird promotional fares you should book now.
Spring sun in Agadir, Morocco
Both Jet2 and British Airways are launching new routes to Agadir this year, a tempting prospect of reliable warmth in spring, autumn and winter - either as a city break past the old kasbah (citadel) and souks, or as a beach holiday on the sandy south Atlantic coast. Or maybe a little bit of both.
BA's service will depart from Gatwick four times a week from March 31, with return fares from £138. Jet2's flights will start later in the year, from Stansted (from October 3, twice a week), as will Bristol regional flights (October 6, once a week), Glasgow (November 3, once a week), Leeds Bradford (October 3, once a week). once a week), and Birmingham and Manchester (both October 3, twice a week).
New flights from Gatwick to Singapore...
There's good news for Londoners looking east: Singapore Airlines will launch a new direct service from Gatwick to Singapore Changi on June 22, flying five times a week. Book before January 15 to take advantage of promotional rates, from £645 per person. The journey with the Airbus A350-900 fleet will take 13 hours.
The new service will complement the airline's four daily flights from Heathrow and five weekly flights from Manchester, expanding its offering to 38 direct flights per week from Britain to Singapore - more than any other airline .
...and on to Perth, Tokyo and Yangon
The new Singapore Airlines flight will land at Changi at 6.20am - just in time to take advantage of the further schedule, which will grow significantly in 2024.
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Key connections include an increase to four daily flights from Singapore to Perth from March 31 (back to pre-pandemic levels), four daily flights to Tokyo from September 1 and ten weekly flights to Yangon in Myanmar from August 2. new departures will tie in with the service arriving from Gatwick that morning.
And another fun fact for you: Singapore Airlines offers the fastest connecting service from Britain to Sydney, taking just 21 hours and 40 minutes, including stopover.
Liverpool is getting a lot busier
Jet2 will open a new hub in Liverpool John Lennon on March 28, the airline's 11th departure point. The spring and summer schedule already looks busy, with new direct flights to Lanzarote (from March 28, three times a week), Alicante (March 30, four times a week), Bodrum (May 1, twice a week) ) and Ibiza (May 3, three times a week) - and others.
The airline will also offer several exclusive routes from Liverpool, serving destinations not found anywhere else in its network. These include Madeira (from April 1, on Mondays), Gran Canaria (March 30, Tuesdays and Saturdays), Menorca (May 5, Wednesdays and Saturdays) and Rhodes (May 2, Mondays and Thursdays).
It will also be a banner year for Birmingham when easyJet opens its new regional base in March. Key destinations include Barcelona (from £50.89 return), Tenerife (£69.55), Malaga (£50) and Antalya (£75.55), growing to Sharm El Sheikh (£175.33), Malta (£97.42) and many other summer destinations. favorites as the year progresses.
Easier escapes to eastern Canada
Between May 1 and October 25, Canadian airline WestJet will fly between Gatwick and St John's - the provincial capital of Newfoundland and Labrador, the easternmost region of the country. The flights take less than six hours and operate three times a week (Sunday, Wednesday and Friday), with one-way fares from £232. An exciting prospect for road trips, with glacial fjords, wild national parks and thundering waterfalls within easy reach .
WestJet has also announced plans to fly between Edinburgh and Halifax for the first time this year, launching a three times weekly route between June 20 and September 3. Halifax is Atlantic Canada's gateway to spotting humpback whales in the Bay of Fundy, and the red-sand beaches of Prince Edward Island. One-way fares from around £322.
BA returns to Abu Dhabi (and Stansted)
After a four-year hiatus, British Airways will relaunch the Heathrow to Abu Dhabi route on April 20, with return fares from £449. Izmir, on Turkey's Aegean coast, is a newcomer to the airline from Heathrow: the weekly service (Saturdays ) will be priced from £146 return. While many will use it to head to the beaches, it's worth sticking around for Izmir's bazaar, the museums and the ancient treasures of nearby Ephesus.
BA will also return to London Stansted from May 18, adding three new routes to its timetable at the weekend: Nice (return from £86), Florence (£82) and Ibiza (£72).
A great year for Scotland
In addition to the above route to Canada from Edinburgh, holidaymakers north of the border will enjoy local connections to several new destinations this year. From May 25, British Airways will fly from Edinburgh to Olbia in Sardinia (weekly, from £176 return), and twice weekly to San Sebastian in northern Spain (twice weekly, from £164) - just in time for summer.
On the south-west coast of Norway, Bergen is another new wildcard from Edinburgh: from June 20, Norwegian will fly between the two cities twice a week. With mountains and fjords on the doorstep this will be popular with walkers, climbers and cruisers.
Meanwhile, in Glasgow, TUI will add a new weekly flight (on Saturdays) to Verona in May, making it easier to reach the Italian lakes of Como, Garda and Maggiore. This is in addition to the existing Wednesday service, allowing shorter journeys and greater flexibility.
Virgin Atlantic's network is growing - again
Last year was a huge success for Virgin Atlantic, with the launch of new routes to Dubai, the Maldives and Turks and Caicos - and the network is set to expand even further in 2024. From March 31, it will launch a daily service from Heathrow to Bengaluru - dubbed 'India's Silicon Valley' for its technology companies, but also rich in temples and palaces. Return fares from £487.
Virgin will also expand its winter sun program this year, with increased services to Barbados from Heathrow (twice daily) and Manchester (four times a week), from October 27, 2024. Over the summer it will also strengthen its Heathrow-US routes, increasing daily flights to New York JFK from six to seven (from £391 return), and daily flights to Boston from one to two (from £393 return).
