TheCity

Tag: travel

Up to 5,000 seats added to DUB-LCY route

LCY runway. Credit: London City Airport

From today (October 27), London City Airport (LCY) will receive up to 5,000 more seats a week from Dublin when British Airways and FlyBe join Cityjet on the Dublin to London route.

British Airways commenced a five-a-day service from Dublin to London City Airport yesterday using a mix of Embraer 170 and 190 jets.

Credit: Eoghan Corry/Travel Extra

Willie Walsh (pictured), the Dublin-born chief executive of International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways, said: “[The DUB-LCY route] complements our existing London Heathrow service and the excellent schedule means customers will have plenty of choice whether flying for business or leisure.”

The airline hopes to attract business travellers with an early morning departure from Dublin (07:00).

Regional airline FlyBe’s new service launches today. The airline is also targeting business travellers with four daily flights starting at 07:00 as well.

Dublin’s US immigration pre-clearance facilities are an attractive feature for westbound travellers in Britain. FlyBe recently signed an interline deal with Aer Lingus that allows travellers from Britain to connect on the Irish carrier’s transatlantic services using the same ticket.

However, FlyBe chief executive Saad Hammad has suggested the airline will not immediately target this niche.

Another Dublin native, Declan Collier, CEO of LCY, naturally welcomed the two new routes.

“Our vision to position LCY as the airport of choice for both business and leisure passengers has received a huge boost as a result of this news,” he said. “We believe that the increased capacity on the route is good news for passengers, offering more choice of when and how to travel. And I can’t deny that I privately welcome the news as it greatly enhances my own options for flying back home to Ireland.”

The route will now be serviced by 15 daily flights from three three airlines.

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November 6, 2014
New travel routes announced at Dublin Airport

Sun rises on Dublin Airport’s Terminal 2 and its new travel plans. Photo: Philip Wall/Twitter

Passengers looking to get away from Ireland for a short holiday or weekend break this winter can now broaden their destination plans as Dublin Airport has announced 19 new routes.

These new routes include potential short trips to Inverness (Scotland) and Cologne (Germany) as well as the continuation of long-haul flights to San Francisco (USA) and Toronto (Canada).

Dublin Airport says that they will have an extra 950,000 seats available this upcoming winter, a 10% rise from the same time last year.

Speaking about the new announcement, the airport’s Managing Director,Vincent Harrison said, “These new winter services, coupled with the additional frequency and capacity on many existing routes, significantly strengthens Dublin Airport’s route network, providing even more choice and flexibility for our customers.”

The introduction of Dublin Airport’s Terminal 2 in November 2010 and its sustained success has seen the transport hub become increasingly popular among tourists and those passing by on stop-over flights.

Ireland’s main airline Aer Lingus is continuing to grow on the international market. Photo: Eric Salard/Flickr

Dublin Airport is ranked just outside the top 20 busiest airports in Europe. It handled nearly 20.2 million passengers in 2013 and that number is set to rise significantly come the end of 2014.

The airport has a large presence on social media and their free WiFi service is in contrast to many other airports around the world where customers have to pay to access the internet. It has 89,400 Twitter followers, over 6,300 Instagram followers and over 60,500 likes on Facebook.

The airport’s ability to generate business interest for Ireland was rewarded in September 2014 when they won an aviation marketing award at the World Routes Award ceremony in Chicago.

With new routes planned to Reykjavik (Iceland), Helsinki (announced by Finnair) and a link from Los Angeles to Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) for 2015, residents of Dublin and the wider commuter belt can start to plan some exciting escapes.

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October 23, 2014
5 european cities you have to see

Every continent has its array of beauty, culture and heritage. Asia has its oriental mysteries, Africa with savannahs of land, the enchantment captures a visit to South America whilst north of the Mexican Gulf lay the sky scrapers of the USA.

And then there’s Europe, so many different cultures and histories. A people so vast and different, it makes for a wonderful visit. I’m going to look at five European cities that you have to see before you die.

5. Milan

Fashion capital of Europe and home to all things Italian, the Milanese love to socialise and you regularly see them enjoying the easier side of life. Milan has so much to offer from Teatro alla scala to the San Siro to ill Dumo. Milan is definitely worth a visit.

Milan, the fashion capital of the world

4. Marseille

One of the most picture esc cities in Europe, Marseille is on France’s south coast touching the Mediterranean Sea. Marseille’s restaurants offer loads of traditional French cuisine and some excellent wines.

The beautiful port of Marseille

Longchamp Place and the Old Port are just some of the great experiences you can have whilst in the French Riviera.

Amsterdam, really is a continential city

3. Amsterdam

The most continental city you’ll find, ‘The Dam’ has so many trams, and bike’s and boats. The Dutch are such a friendly people, maybe due to their choice of how to relax, and will be most eager to assist you. The beautiful canals, the lovely streets and of course the local beers are some of the things that make Amsterdam a must see before you die. The Heineken experience and the Anne Frank house are just some of the trips you can embark on once in Holland.

Arc de Triomph, Barcelona

2. Barcelona

The Capital of Catalonia, the home of great night clubs and also the longest pedestrian street in the world. ‘Las Ramblas’ is 12km long and stretches from plaza de Catalina to the Iberian Peninsula. Barcelona has so many UNIESCO world heritage sites, and so much to see and do. The Gaudi Cathedral, the Arch de Triumph and of course the Camp nou. The local food, beer and lifestyle are so desirable.

Berlin’s Checkpoint Charlie

1. Berlin

The German capital has been through an awful lot, but for a tourist it’s a pleasure. The second biggest city in Europe area wise, Berlin has four city centres. The former Russian centre of ‘Alexanderplatz’, the British centre ‘tiergarten’, France’s ‘podstammerplatz’ and America’s ‘Bundesplatz’. The history that accompanies berlin is amazing, Sauchausen concentration camp is a real eye opener and so too is the Topograph of terror museum. The German beer is the nicest in the world and a look at checkpoint Charlie is a must do. Berlin ‘the experience’ is what the City should be called, as it really is Europe’s bundci

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November 30, 2013
Living life one city at a time

Images by Dalene and Peter Heck via hecktictravels.com

In 2009, having overcome personal tragedies, Canadian couple Dalene and Peter Heck did what many dream of doing – they quit their jobs, sold their house and set out to explore the world.

Since then, the couple have traveled to over 40 countries: Morocco, Peru, Croatia, Malta, Finland, Guatemala, Jordan and Turkey, to name but a few, and have no intentions of stopping.

So how do they afford it? The pair have been house-sitting their way around the world for four years. This has allowed them to greatly reduce their costs. Aside from this, Dalene and Peter run a blog called “hecktictravels.com”. They have also published a book about house-sitting entitled “How to Become a House-Sitter and See the World”.

In an interview with Dalene Heck she spoke of one of their most recent escapades: “Our venture to Greenland was our most adventurous and “off the beaten path” destination to date. We completed an eight day kayaking/camping excursion up the east coast, covering over 96 kilometers. It was one of the most rewarding travel experiences we’ve ever had,” said Dalene.

The two self-proclaimed nomads recently stopped off in Ireland: “We were just in Ireland for a conference on travel blogging, and also to spend some more time in a country that we love. We last visited for the summer of 2010, taking care of a house for a friend in County Meath. We saw a lot of the country during those two months, and we knew we had to come back.”

“Just a few hours in the country reminded us exactly why we wanted to return – because of the incredibly friendly people. We always feel well taken care of and this visit was no different. We loved every minute of it,” said Dalene.

Don’t be fooled, this lifestyle is not easy. “Most of us nomadic-types work very hard at a number of different things in order to make this lifestyle sustainable.”

Between them, the couple share a host of skills that they utilize to “put food on the table”. Dalene is a writer, event planner, social media consultant, teacher and videographer. Peter is a professional photographer and teacher.

“This has all been a long time in the works, and anyone who thinks they can start a blog and simply travel the world for free is sadly mistaken,” they write on their blog.

Like everything in life travelling has its ups and downs, fatigue and frustration can creep in at times says Dalene. However, those moments “are few in comparison to how much we absolutely love our lifestyle”.

Whether you’ve got wanderlust in your blood or you simply wish to get away from it all, there has never been a better time.

“I do think that people should just travel more. There is so much to be learned by visiting a new corner of the world – not just about how others live, but to learn more about ourselves.”

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November 1, 2013
New site take-off? 9 ways you know you’re flying Ryanair

Sit back and relax, right? Photography: ‘fabbriciuse’ via Flickr

Ryanair has finally accepted their website is AWFUL.

Speaking on RTE’s Prime Time, Chief Executive Michael O’Leary accepted that the site is “the source of most complaints [from customers]”.

O’Leary described the site as “clunky” and “very frustrating”, echoing the user experience of… everyone.

But we’re in luck, O’Leary has promised a rollout of developments in the coming weeks making the site “simpler to engage with”.

To celebrate the good news, The City has compiled a list of the nine ways you know you’re on a Ryanair flight.

1. You’ve inadvertently added travel insurance, RyanairTalk or a bus transfer to your booking.

We’ve all done it, at least once. The frustration of booking the flight becomes a minefield of finger-slips. And that travel insurance doesn’t come cheap!

2. Ok. You’ve made the booking. Wait. You forgot to print out the boarding pass!

Quick! You’ve twenty minutes until the four hour deadline. It’s a game of mission impossible with the printer cables.

3. Phew, you’re at the airport. Carry-on luggage? Ryanair doesn’t think so!

You bought duty-free didn’t you? Silly, silly silly. You’re clearly a Ryanair nube. Now comes the 10 minute struggle at the departure gates stuffing Toblerones and that reduced bottle of Jack into your tattered old school rucksack.

4. You’re in. Time for the seat scramble.

It’s like a game of musical chairs, except your only sound track is the gentle hum of elevator music. Yep, no pre-assigned seating with Ryanair. Get held up at the departure gates with that Toblerone? Welcome to the seat right at the back next to the screaming baby.

5. Buckle up. Phone on airplane mode and… OFF. Ready for your safety demonstration?

Keep tuned in, because blink and its gone. Your hostess of the most-ess will be throwing on the oxygen mask and life vest like it’s a real life emergency. Don’t forget to thoroughly read the safety card!

6. And it’s take off! Sit back, enjoy the ride and, you guessed it, the Ryanair lottery tickets.

Relax they said. Take a nap they said. Oh, and listen to us drone on as we patrol the isle with tickets, perfumes, e-ciggarettes and miniature aeroplanes.

7. It’s no use, you’re awake. You might as well get a cup of tae. €3!?

Yep, and you better hope you’re sorry tush you’re not hungry. A packet soup is another €3.50, and a panini accompaniment will set you back €5.50. Wallet empty and only 15 minutes into the flight. Lets hope you’re not travelling too far.

8. You got some sleep and the captain’s announcing the landing. Wait for it… wait for it… “toot to-toot!”

The infamous Ryanair on-time trumpet jingle.

9. Phone on and airplane mode off. Hysterical beeping from your phone. Backpack on. Ready for the hike to the arrivals lounge?

That’s an estimated 30 minute walk. What Ryanair doesn’t tell you is that the secret to their cheap flights is in them having you walk half the journey… enjoy! Oh, and welcome to your destination.

Got any other fond memories of your Ryanair travels? Tell us in the comments!

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October 9, 2013