Geordiejet - well said! :ok:

Really sorry to be critical here, but some people are complaining (incorrectly imho)that PMI and AGP are the bread and butter of NCL's route network, then when someone increases CUN, people are complaining about that. Apologies again for banging on about this but there are very few cities in the world with a population like Newcastle's that have intercontinental air links like ours.
Hope no offence is taken, 'a good-natured but frank exchange of views' is the political term I think :)

How practical is it for an airline to fly to Prague/Krakow/Berlin etc for a year, by which time most people in the area who want to visit those places have been and they are not really repeat destinations, so for the following year change destinations?
Do that for 3 or 4 years then back to the first ones again.

geordiejet, I understand what you're saying. By no means would I class myself as well off but I do know that I have been very lucky to be able to travel as I have. My most exotic trips have actually been by myself, through good fortune of not currently having very many financial responsibilities (and a helping hand from a credit card along the way - seemingly a much better idea then than now)

I do apologise if any of my comments caused offence, it was certainly not my intention to come across as judgemental or insulting.

I simply struggle to understand how, when many alternative holiday destinations can be as cheap as, or cheaper than your average Spanish/Turkish resort, nobody seems to consider them. I've heard people complain at spending £5000+ on a family holiday to Palma or Marmaris, and how awful it is that the prices have gone up. It'll be interesting to see if the new availability of these routes for Summer 2018/19 makes people consider them. Places like Almeria and Halkidiki.

If it's somewhere they like, and somewhere they want to return to so as to guarantee they have a good time. Certainly, who are we to criticise.

I'm over the moon that Cancun has been increased. For all it "may as well be Benidorm" for us to have bagged 3 weekly flights is fantastic in my opinion. To have 5 weekly long haul flights on alternate weeks is fantastic!

People, myself included, may complain about the lack of destinations from Newcastle, particularly when it comes to affordable options on popular cities routes, or the lack thereof. But we do extremely well, and I'm sure we will continue to do so in our own niche.

I'd love to be able to have a weekend in Budapest or a holiday in Morocco, direct from Newcastle. I'll continue to hope these services come in time. But I do understand that for an economy such as ours, connecting through a hub or travelling to another UK airport is going to be necessary in some circumstances. I only find it a shame that the added expense and hassle of that puts many people off. Direct flights build on existing markets and in some cases, create their own. Just think back to the "I'll give it 6 months" comments about Emirates

ash666 - I would be inclined to disagree. That may be true in some cases, and markets will change. But Prague and Krakow have been served successfully for 11 months of the year with Jet2 for a decade. Every year a new load of students come to Newcastle who may make use of the flights, some people might return if they enjoyed it. I did Berlin in June last year thanks to the direct flight, I intend to go back because I loved it! There was also a surprising amount of VFR traffic on that flight, as I'm sure there are on Ryanair's Polish routes. Hopefully that's enough to keep them afloat

That's fair enough, I just wondered if these destinations got quickly "tired out".

I will be flying to Pisa in a few months so it will be interesting to see the pax numbers.
From there it is a train to Florence. I just can't understand when they originally built Florence city they didn't build an airport closer.....

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/what...anked-14467274

Trying to find any big increases in LS's programme for 2019.

All i've found so far...

ALC, now 12pw
PMI, still 12pw
MAH, now 3pw
SKG, now on B738, vs B733

From Travel Weekly:

Jet2.com and Jet2holidays are increasing capacity out of Newcastle Airport by 6% for summer 2019.

The addition of almost 55,000 extra seats to existing destinations brings the total on sale to more than 930,000 – the airline and tour operator’s largest ever summer programme from the airport.

A larger Boeing 737-800 joins the fleet out of Newcastle, offering 32 sun and city destinations in total next summer 2019.

The increase in flights and holidays are to popular destinations, including the Balearic Islands, mainland Spain, the Algarve, Greece and Turkey.

The number of flights to Alicante will increase from 11 to 12 a week, an increase in capacity of 16%.

There will be 11 weekly services to the Canaries (Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote).

Daily services and larger aircraft on weekday flights will be offered to Faro.

For Majorca there will be 12 flights a week with a 9% increase in seat capacity and a capacity hike of 26% on the three weekly services to Minorca.

More seats will be available on flights to Halkidiki; an extra Wednesday service to Zakynthos, resulting in two weekly flights to the Greek island; while the season for Antalya will be extended until November.

The move follows increased demand from local holidaymakers for package holidays

Steve Heapy, chief executive of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said the expansion demonstrated that its combination of “great value package holidays and family friendly flights” was working.

He added: “The addition of a larger Boeing 737-800 aircraft represents another huge investment in our base here, and gives local holidaymakers even more choice and flexibility.”

Nick Jones, chief executive at Newcastle International Airport, said: “It’s great to see Jet2.com and Jet2holidays announce their biggest ever programme from Newcastle and the company’s further investment – replacing one of its current based aircraft with a larger Boeing 737-800 – is testament of its commitment to the region.

“Greece continues to be a favourite with our passengers thanks to mix of stunning beaches, centuries-old sights and laid-back towns, so the larger aircraft flying to Jet2com’s newest Greek destination, Halkidiki, and the increased number of flights to Zakynthos are sure to be well received. On top of this, the extended season to Antalya will provide even more choice across the year for those choosing Turkey.”

Cancun or Mexico in general doesn't sound the safest of places for a holiday. In these days you don't know who is plotting what and where until it happens.

Been three times in past two years and feel as safe there as anywhere in the world, apart from the mad taxi drivers lol.

Its absolutely fine, its very popular with Americans of all ages including families, I was there once during Spring Break and whilst some of the younger crowd were rowdy, they were nothing like the Brits abroad you see in Benidrom, Magaluf etc...

Feb stats now available on CAA website

Anyone know why Volatea A319 flight V7/VOE 9210 is en route from Brive (BVE) to Newcastle ETA 12.42 (STA 13.00) - No return is scheduled.

Falcons vs Brive in the rugby tomorrow night

that's apparently a major worry for the Icelandic Tourist Board - just how many people in Europe still want to go there???

"From there it is a train to Florence. I just can't understand when they originally built Florence city they didn't build an airport closer....."

they did - Peretola - FLR - been there since teh 1930's

Not a long runway (5740ft) but good connectivity with places such as Paris, AMS, LGW & frankfurt - used it several times

PS "why when they originally built Florence city they didn't build an airport"

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
"The present city of Florence was established by Julius Caesar in 59 BC as a settlement for his veteran soldiers and was named originally Fluentia"

No mention of Cancun in the TUI press release on the airport website?

Yes, it was a little attempt at a jokelet on my part.

I thought that strange too.

http://photouploads.com/image/EMkr

I got it! :ok:

"Yes, it was a little attempt at a jokelet on my part."

I did get it (or rather hoped I had but spending time on things like the Carlisle thread makes you wonder sometimes..) Anyway - too good to let pass..........

:):)