For those who love nothing more than to get as far away as possible, 2024 is shaping up to be a good year. Among the new routes on the horizon are direct flights to the likes of Sao Paulo in Brazil and Bengaluru in India. Closer to home, there are also more regional flights to the Channel Islands and a handful of budget-friendly European cities from regional airports around the UK. So where can you fly to in 2024? Here are some of the most exciting new routes to plan a holiday around.
Main photo: laid-back life at Juquei beach in the Brazilian city of Sao Sebastiao (Alamy)
London Gatwick
From November 2, British Airways will add Fuerteventura to its list of Canary Island destinations. Flights will initially depart twice a week, and then from February 28, 2024, there will be a third flight.
And from November 3, the airline will return to the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh for the winter season, taking travellers to the Red Sea four times a week. Note that from December this will drop to three times a week.
Wizz Air will also be flying to Egypt, but to nearby Hurghada. Starting from October 31, this Red Sea route will operate three times a week. Its other route, launching on the same day, is to Prague and it will operate six times a week.
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Akureyri will be connected to the UK for the first time from October 31 thanks to easyJet. This northern Icelandic city, a gateway for Northern Lights hotspots and the country’s waterfalls, will enjoy direct flights twice a week.
London Heathrow
Virgin Atlantic has two new routes still to launch for 2023. From October 30, it will launch a seasonal service to Dubai, which will operate four times a week for those looking for winter sun.
And from November 15, it will operate a year-round service to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos, running twice a week.
In 2024, there are two long haul routes to look forward to from Virgin Atlantic. The first to launch is a daily flight to Bengaluru in India, which will begin on March 31, 2024. And then from May 13, 2024, it will fly to the vibrant Brazilian city of Sao Paulo everyday.
British Airways is relaunching its Abu Dhabi route after a four-year hiatus. The service will operate on a daily basis beginning April 20, 2024.
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Then on the short-haul front, it’s launching new routes to Riga and Belgrade. Starting from October 29, the Riga route will operate three times a week, while direct flights to Belgrade will start from October 31, also operating three times a week.
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London Stansted
Jet2’s summer 2024 schedule includes two new destinations: a twice weekly service to Bourgas in Bulgaria and a weekly service to Tivat in Montenegro.
London Luton
WizzAir is launching direct flights to the Egyptian capital of Cairo from October 30. It will operate three times a week, making the Pyramids of Giza that much more accessible.
For winter 2023, easyJet will be flying to Enfidha-Hammamet airport in Tunisia. From October 30, it will fly to the popular beach resort three times a week. It’s also launching a ski route to Grenoble from January 14, 2024, which will operate once a week.
Belfast
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Jet2 is adding Formentera to its summer 2024 program. Flights will start from May 16 and run for the summer season. The airline will also be flying to the Balearic island from Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, Liverpool, London Stansted, Manchester and Newcastle.
Birmingham
EasyJet is opening a new base in Birmingham in summer 2024, which means a big expansion of new routes from there. Before then, it’s launching a new direct route to Lyon from October 30, operating twice a week. There’s also a weekly service to Salzburg start January 13, 2024, which should suit skiers.
Bristol
Bristol will get a bumper list of new destinations from Jet2 in summer 2024. The list includes Izmir in Turkey (weekly), Bourgas in Bulgaria (weekly), Costa de Almeria in Spain (weekly) and Naples in Italy (twice a week).
East Midlands
As part of its summer 2024 schedule, Jet2 will have new direct flights to Crete and Naples, both of which will operate weekly.
Edinburgh
Jet2 is expanding its operations at Edinburgh. As well as more frequency on existing routes, it’s adding a new twice-weekly route to Rome from March 8, 2024, and a weekly service to Malta from May 1, 2024.
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On the long haul front, JetBlue is flying to New York JFK daily from May 22, 2024. It’s a summer-only service for now.
Glasgow
As part of its expansion into holidays in Morocco, Jet2 is launching flights to Marrakesh twice a week from November 4, 2024. The airline will also fly to the city from Birmingham, Manchester and London Stansted.
Leeds Bradford
Jet2 is flying to Agadir once a week from October 3, 2024; it’s an exclusive route for the airline. Jet2 will also be flying to the Moroccan city from Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Manchester and London Stansted.
Liverpool
Guernsey’s Aurigny Air Services will be connecting the Channel Islands with Liverpool via a new service beginning on April 2, 2024. Flights will operate three times a week.
Manchester
Virgin Atlantic is launching a summer service to Las Vegas from Manchester. Starting from June 2, 2024, it will operate twice a week.
Newcastle
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In summer 2024, Jet2 will be launching a weekly service to Crete.
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Take me there
Inspired to book a 2024 holiday? Here are the best package holidays from Tui and BA Holidays.
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