Flights to Amsterdam, Paris, Malaga and Palma most popular since the sale’s launch. Skiathos, Calabria and Rovaniemi saw boost in popularity vs last year, along with central European destinations.
easyJet and easyJet holidays bookings took off during their biggest ever Big Orange Sale, filling two planes a minute at peak booking periods and seeing the busiest ever sale trading day for package holidays Sunshine Saturday, typically known in the industry to be the busiest day of the year for Brits to book an overseas holiday.
Flights to Amsterdam, Paris, Alicante and Malaga have proved to be the most popular since the launch of the sale, while Greek island Skiathos, Calabria in Italy and Rovaniemi in Lapland are among the destinations to have experienced the greatest rise in popularity compared to 2023.
Central European destinations Zadar in Croatia and Tivat in Montenegro have also seen a boost in popularity for 2024, while Brits have been booking flights to French destinations like Rennes and La Rochelle in greater numbers. Last minute flights in January were most popular, as travellers snapped up winter sun breaks and hot spots like Tenerife saw a boost versus last year.
Geneva, Lyon and Innsbruck are top for ski breaks. The airline has been focusing on expanding ski routes with the addition of three aircraft in Switzerland which will see it increase its ski flying programme by 20% this year compared to last.
May proved to be the most popular summer month for flight bookings since the start of the sale with people taking advantage of half term deals to the likes of Palma de Mallorca, Malaga and Faro, while August is currently set to be the most popular departure month for package holidays.
The ever-popular Palma de Mallorca in the Balearic Islands has been the most-booked peak summer destination for flight since the sale began. Copenhagen has seen an increase in popularity this summer compared to last year, with the airport providing quick access to the Swedish city of Malmö which is playing host to this year’s Eurovision song contest.
For package holidays, easyJet’s tour operator arm saw a boost in bookings for May, June and July, with Spain accounting for over a quarter of all summer 2024 beach sales and other beach bestsellers including the Algarve, Crete, Rhodes, Turkey and Tunisia. Families made up over a third of beach bookings, while over 70% of sales were into 4* or 5* properties. All inclusive continued to dominate, with over 60% of beach bookers opting for this board basis. Recent research carried out by the airline in recent months showed more than two thirds of Brits (67%) have said they more likely to travel abroad in 2024 than in 2023. Protecting holiday spend remains a priority for most with over three quarters (77%) saying they will prioritise spending money on a holiday over anything else in their yearly budget – up from 70% last year.
easyJet CEO Johan Lundgren commented: “With flights and holidays bookings taking off during this traditionally busy booking period as well as strong booking momentum for summer 2024, we continue to see that the value and importance of holidays for our customers. The popularity of easyJet holidays also continues to grow, with 48% more customers in our first quarter of the year and an expected increase of more than 35% this financial year, all of which is a which is testament to the strength of demand for our brand and network and we remain focused on delivering for our customers.”
easyJet places engine order with CFM
easyJet has also announced that, following a highly competitive selection process, it has selected CFM as its engine supplier to provide 314 engines to power its firm order of 157 Airbus aircraft, together with spare engines and secured pricing for 200 engines for the 100 purchase rights. This new agreement continues the long-standing partnership between easyJet and CFM which has been in place since 1995 and its entire current fleet is powered by CFM engines.
The agreements for new aircraft and engines form part of easyJet’s fleet renewal and upgauging plan but also bring with them cost benefits and sustainability improvements to the business. The aircraft order, comprised of 56 A320neo and 101 A321neo aircraft, is for deliveries between FY2029 and FY2034 following shareholder agreement in December 2023.
The A320neos and A321neos will be powered by the CFM LEAP-1A engines. The adoption of the more efficient new technology aircraft and engines is also a core component of easyJet’s path to net zero carbon emissions. The new engine deal is a key component in the ongoing modernisation of the easyJet fleet and deliver between a 13% to 30% unit fuel burn efficiency improvement, depending on which aircraft are replaced. Alongside this, the new aircraft are significantly quieter, with half the noise footprint of the older aircraft they are replacing.
Johan Lundgren commented: “We are very pleased to have signed a deal with CFM, following a competitive selection process. This agreement for more than 300 engines will provide important environmental benefits through a significant improvement in fuel efficiency and a reduction in noise as well as enable easyJet to continue to affirm its leading position at Europe’s primary airports. easyJet has a long history working with CFM and look forward to continuing to work in partnership in the years to come.”
Gaël Méheust, president and CEO of CFM International, said: “We are proud to embark on a new journey with easyJet, a trusted partner that shares our ambition to build more sustainable air travel. We remain committed to delivering the very best CFM has to offer in terms of efficiency, reliability, and world-class customer support.”
The advanced CFM LEAP engine family provides 15 to 20 percent better fuel consumption and lower CO2 emissions, as well as a significant improvement in noise compared to previous generation engines. Since its entry into service in 2016, the LEAP engine has allowed our customers to save more than 30 million tons of CO2*.
*Compared to same flights powered by CFM56 engines.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
