Travel Week Mag

easyJet, the UK’s largest airline, will carry over 1 million passengers across its network over the Easter holidays. Easter is the busiest travel period of the year so far, and with the addition of 78 new easyJet routes to convenient airports over the last 12 months, customers have an even greater choice of destinations across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East to explore at famously low prices.

This Easter travellers are clearly looking to take advantage of the last of the snow in the Alps or escape for a little winter sun, with the top five easyJet destinations over the holidays being:

1. Geneva, Switzerland

2. Malaga, Spain

3. Faro, Portugal

4. Palma, Spain

5. Marrakech, Morroco


And the airline’s new routes to the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheik, the Canaries and Cyprus are proving increasingly popular, particularly for families.

As a result of beach holidays being so popular this Easter, city break destinations still have good availability and great low fares are still available to destinations such as Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen and Paris, with fares from as little as £102, £152, £170 and £102 return inc taxes, respectively. Ideal for couples seeking a romantic break away.

Paul Simmons, easyJet UK general manager commented: “This Easter travellers are looking to escape post Budget blues and the endless grey winter. The majority seem to be seeking a little winter sun with families heading for the beaches and couples seeking romantic get-aways in some of the great cities of Southern Europe.”

Oman's Tourism Ministry, Oman Air and Muscat's leading hotels have joined forces to launch the Sultanate's first pan European campaign. The campaign is a fresh and exciting start for a new era of marketing Oman in Europe.

The Ministry of Tourism's Undersecretary of Tourism, His Excellency Mohammed Al Tobi said that "the campaign, under the theme 'Now is the Time!" has been made possible by an unprecedented level of close cooperation and focus, unseen in the industry before. As a result, we have an exciting campaign that positions Oman as a year-round destination underpinned by highly competitive inclusive holiday packages, which include return air fares, accommodation and breakfasts at price points, all of which we see as very good value. I am sure the campaign will generate many first-time visitors to our beautiful country".

The "Now is the Time!" campaign offers highly competitive 6 and 7-day holiday packages, return air fares and accommodation. Packages are common-rated across Europe. The packages include return air fares, 4 and 5 star twin share accommodation and breakfasts for travel from 12 April to 1October 2010.

Oman's tourism strategy is aimed at boosting the European market.

His Excellency continued "Our research shows there were close to four million arrivals from Europe to our neighbouring countries in 2009, so our campaign's objective is to attract first-time visitors as well as those able to include Oman as part of a wider travel plan to the region. Additionally, we see Oman Air's growing European presence, with non-stop services from London, Frankfurt, Munich and Paris, as an opportunity to develop Muscat as the 'authentic' gateway to the Gulf, as Muscat was in the age of sail".

Oman's tactical campaign builds on Oman Air's European expansion, with the carrier allocating a record of 12,000 seats to the campaign, its largest ever commitment to a single promotion.

Peter Hill, Oman Air's Chief Executive added "Oman Air is totally committed to this campaign which showcases our non-stop services to Muscat and our new Airbus A330 services that are second to none in terms of comfort and hospitality and offer a unique flying experience. The campaign will turn heads and put Oman Air on the map. It comes at a time when we are looking to increase services to Europe".

Speaking for the hotels involved in the campaign, Arbind Shrestha, General Manager of Shangri-La's Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa concluded "the campaign demonstrates the industry is working to a single vision, and the synergy it drives will no doubt optimize the benefits to all "
Alison Cryer, Director UK & Ireland announced "The campaign has been well received in the UK and we have already agreed joint marketing activity with Dream Ticket and Lotus and are finalizing proposals from several other tour operators."

She added: "The UK saw a growth of 9% in 2009 and with this new campaign we are expecting a higher level for 2010".

Continental Airlines on Saturday, March 27, will inaugurate service between New York and Munich, Germany, with daily nonstop flights from the airline's hub at Newark Liberty International Airport.

"Launching nonstop service to Munich allows us to link Continental's New York hub to the Munich hub of our new partner Lufthansa," said Jim Compton, Continental's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "It's a great example of how joining Star Alliance is allowing our customers to seamlessly connect to a greater number of travel destinations."

Convenient Flight Schedule

Continental will operate the nonstop daily flight with a Boeing 767-200ER aircraft, seating 25 passengers in BusinessFirst and 149 passengers in economy class. Flight CO106 will depart Newark Liberty daily at 5:30 p.m. and arrive in Munich at 7:40 a.m. the next day. The return flight, CO107, will depart Munich's Franz Josef Strauss International Airport daily at 9:20 a.m. and arrive at Newark Liberty at 12:35 p.m. the same day. The schedule of the Continental service complements that of Lufthansa's existing daily New York/Newark-Munich service, which departs Newark Liberty about three hours later and Munich about six hours later.

The new flight has been timed to provide convenient connections at Munich, where Star Alliance member flights provide service to more than 95 destinations in Western Europe, Eastern Europe and the Middle East, and at New York/Newark with an extensive network of Continental flights to more than 100 destinations throughout the U.S., Canada and Latin America. Continental operates the largest hub in the New York City metropolitan area at Newark Liberty International Airport.

Munich becomes the fourth German city to be served with daily flights to New York by Continental after Frankfurt, Berlin and Hamburg; the airline also operates daily service between Frankfurt and Houston. Munich is the 30th destination in Continental's overall trans-Atlantic network.

Award-winning BusinessFirst Service

The new flights will feature Continental's BusinessFirst service, rated by Condé Nast Traveler magazine as the highest among all U.S. carriers for trans-Atlantic flights for 10 years in a row. Continental's BusinessFirst amenities include an extensive gourmet menu served with premium wines and champagnes created by Continental's Congress of Chefs and Sommeliers. A specially selected and trained corps of concierges is available to provide individualized pre-flight and post-flight services for BusinessFirst customers at 35 international airports worldwide. Customers traveling in BusinessFirst are also able to access any of Continental's 24 Presidents Clubs and other airline affiliated lounges worldwide.

Munich Destination

The new service will provide daily nonstop flights to Germany's third largest city and the economic centre of southern Germany. Munich, the capital of Bavaria, has a population of 1.3 million in the city and 5 million in the Munich Metropolitan Region. Famed for its historic and modern architecture and annual Oktoberfest beer celebration, Munich boasts a wealth of cultural attractions and institutions. Among the many world-renowned companies whose headquarters are in the city are Siemens AG (electronics), BMW (cars), MAN AG (trucks, engineering), Allianz (insurance) and Munich Re (re-insurance). Lufthansa operates a hub at Munich's Franz Josef Strauss International Airport, which is the second-largest airport in Germany after Frankfurt.

Continental also offers tour packages to Germany through Continental Airlines Vacations.