BUDGET airline Ryanair is set to launch more flights from Norwich to Alicante, marking its first-ever winter schedule from the tiny UK airport.
In April this year, the budget carrier started operating from Norwich Airport for the first time.
Following on from the success of the summer service between Norwich Airport and Alicante, the no-frills airline has decided to extend the duration of the route.
The twice-weekly service will operate every Monday and Saturday throughout the winter.
Monday morning flights will depart from Alicante at 8.20am before touching down in the UK at 10am.
Return flights will then leave Norwich Airport at 10.30am, landing in Alicante at 2.10pm later that day.
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Saturday flights will operate one hour earlier, leaving the Spanish airport at 7.20am local time.
Sun Online Travel have found return fares for £49.98 in November when temperatures will be as high as 20C in the Spanish holiday hotspot.
Jade Kirwan, Ryanair's Head of Comms, said: "We are pleased to announce our first ever Winter schedule at Norwich which will see the extension of our popular Alicante route into the Winter 2024 season, giving customers in the Norfolk region more choice for their Winter sun breaks at Europe’s lowest fares in Europe, and supporting important regional development through continued connectivity, inbound tourism, and local jobs.
"We’ve had a strong first Summer of operations at Norwich and we look forward to a strong first Winter season ahead."
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The news comes after Richard Pace, the Managing Director at Norwich Airport said that he was hoping to see at least two or three more flights added to the airport's route map in time for summer 2025.
In an interview with BBC Radio Norfolk, he spoke of the success of the first few months of flights from Norwich Airport and said he would know more about the future routes from next month.
There is no indication of where the new routes will travel to, or when they will begin.
He said that "both commercially and operationally" things were going well at Norwich, claiming that all flights boasted a capacity of 90 per cent or more.
He then added: “I think I’d like to see another two or three routes next summer added to what we’ve already got, and we'll know that hopefully in September.
"All the signs, the way we perform, the way that the customers have supported Norwich... I see no reason why we won't see additional capacity for next summer."
It has already been a big year for Norwich, with the city named as one of Time Out's top places to visit in 2024.
The travel magazine praised the Boards National Park, its two cathedrals, as well Norwich Castle - set to unveil a £10m makeover in 2024.
Ryanair is launching several other new routes from small regional airports across the UK.
New Ryanair Routes
Earlier this year, the budget carrier confirmed four new routes would be launching from the UK later this year.
Flying from London Stansted Airport, the new routes include Dubrovnik, Linz, Reggio and Sarajevo.
All four will be launching for winter 2024, giving Brit holidaymakers a wider choice of winter destinations.
Most Brits will have heard of Dubrovnik, with the Croatian city being dubbed the Pearl of the Adriatic and loved by Game of Thrones fans after it was used as a filming location.
Linz is a city in Austria, which sits between Salzburg and Vienna on the Danube River.
Not only is it known for its huge graffiti attraction and Old Town, but it is home to the oldest cake in the world, the Linzer Torte.
Italy's Reggio is set to get more popular with Brits, with the first direct flights to the city launched by Ryanair earlier this year, from Manchester Airport.
But the new Ryanair flights will make flying to the coastal city easier from the UK capital.
And Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is often overlooked despite being home to cheap beers and food.
Flights already operate to the city from both London Stansted and London Luton, with Ryanair and Wizz Air, respectively.
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Advice for flying with Ryanair
- All Ryanair passengers can bring a small personal bag on board but this must fit under the seat in front of you, but it must be no bigger than 40cm x 20cm x 25cm
- Any over-sized cabin bags will be refused at the boarding gate and put in the hold for a fee
- Ryanair also charges passengers up to £55 check-in at the airport
- Anyone who loses their card at the airport will have to pay a £20 reissue fee
- Book to sit in the front five rows if you want to head off the plane first
- Extra legroom seats can be found in rows 1 A, B, C or 2 D, E, F as well as row 16 and 17 near the emergency exit
- The worst seat on Ryanair's Boeing 737-800 aircraft is also 11A because of its lack of window.
Other new Ryanair routes include Newcastle to Marrakech in October.
Earlier this year, Jet2 confirmed that a new route will operate between Manchester Airport and Porto.