easyJet to relaunch services from Southend Airport, as well as additional services for Summer 23

It seems easyJet is busy getting ready for Summer 2023, with a raft of new routes – including relaunching a further service out of Southend Airport.

Southend will gain a seasonal connection to Amsterdam. This is in addition to Faro, Málaga and Palma de Mallorca which are operated by the airline.

11 routes were announced and are all available for booking. They feature both cities and summer sun destinations. These include (with lead-in prices too):

• London Gatwick to Ancona flights will operate twice weekly on Mondays and Fridays from 26 June with fares from £28.99
• London Gatwick to Calvi flights will operate twice a week on Wednesdays and Sundays from 28 June with fares from £42.89
• London Luton to Izmir flights will operate twice weekly on Mondays and Saturdays from 3 April with fares from £41.99
• Southend to Amsterdam flights will operate twice weekly on Mondays and Saturdays from 24 May with fares from £22.99
• Bristol to Chania flights will operate twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 27 June with fares from £32.99
• Birmingham to Naples flights will operate twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1 April with fares from £26.99
• Manchester to Paris Orly flights will operate Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 27 March with fares from £22.99 (Year Round Service)
• Edinburgh to Antalya flights will operate twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 3 June fares from £39.99
• Edinburgh to Santorini flights will operate on Tuesdays from 6 June fares from £39.99
• Glasgow to Lisbon flights will operate twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays from 2 June with fares from £39.99
• Belfast to Antalya flights will operate twice weekly on Wednesdays and Sundays from 26 March with fares from £37.99

For those who need a package holiday, these flights will be offered via easyJet holidays, which include 23kg luggage per person, flights and hotel accommodation, and transfers on all beach holidays.

In Quotes

Ali Gayward, easyJet’s UK Country Manager, said:

“We are delighted to be launching even more new routes from the UK and to be operating to new destinations for the very first time this summer, so that we can provide our customers with an even wider range of fantastic beach and city routes across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East to explore and enjoy. We remain committed to strengthening our unrivalled short-haul network and providing affordable and convenient connections for our customers across the UK, all with great value fares and the warm welcome that our crew are famous for.”

Good news for Southend – as well as for others

Southend Airport’s position is precarious, mainly because most of the airlines that had bases there (Ryanair, easyJet and Wizzair) abandoned their operations during the pandemic. Only easyJet has returned in some force, with a bare-bones service.

Passenger numbers have dropped from a high of just over two million passengers a year down to near enough nothing.

Whilst one extra route isn’t much, it is a deployment of an aircraft twice a week to the airport. While it may not be the route to kick demand into high gear, a short city hop is enough to remind people that options still exist out of Southend Airport – and it remains an active option for travellers who don’t fancy the drive up to Stansted, Luton or Gatwick.

For those in other locations, it provides extra ideas, as holiday spending continues to be a priority for those who want to escape from the crisis of the week at home.

And there is plenty of choices as easyJet serves 19 UK airports, offering over 476 routes to over 133 destinations from the UK to Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.