Cheap flights to Spain Summer 2006

Low-cost flight company Monarch has just announced some new routes from the UK to Spain for Summer 2006. Customers who book now online will get the cheapest flights. The new routes are the following:

• Birmingham to Lanzarote. Flights are available from £64.99 one-way and are scheduled to start flying every Thursday as from 4th May 2006.
• Birmingham to Menorca. Flights are available from £43.99 one-way and are scheduled to start flying every Friday as from 5th May 2006.
• Gatwick to Lanzarote. Flights aare available from £61.99 one way and are scheduled to start flying on Mondays and Thursdays on 1st May 2006
• Birmingham to Almeria - Flights available from £43.99 one way three times a week as from 4th May 2006

Monarch Airlines remains one of the leading UK-Spain charter companies despite not offering the cheapest flights to Spain compared with the younger low-cost companies. This is partly because unlike other charter companies whose market share has suffered severely from the competition of companies like Easyjet, Ryanair, Jet2...., Monarch Airlines managed to adapt its offer to the new scenario, improve its online booking system, adapt its on-board services to the no-frills policy of cheap flights and lower its prices.

It still offers traditional charter services (like hot meals) on board for an extra fee, as well as other extras such as free newspapers and hot towel service, no check-in charge, and the possibility of booking a seat for £5 in order to avoid the rush of passengers trying to get good seats at boarding time.

Cheap domestic flights in Spain

The Spanish low-cost airline Vueling has just launched a new special offer - 100,000 tickets at just 10 euros each for tickets purchased between 27th April and 2nd May. The offer includes flights in May and June and even though the price excludes tax and passenger charges (usually about 5 euros) and the administration fee charged by Vueling (about 8 euros) there are some excellent deals available.

For example a one-week return flight from Barcelona to Ibiza in mid-June costs just 31.09 euros (£21.50). And a weekend return flight from Alicante to Barcelona in June costs the same (usually just a one-way flight from Alicante to Barcelona with one of the bigger Spanish air companies, Iberia, Air Europa or Spanair, costs about three times this amount).

As well as operating cheap flights between Spain's main cities and tourist destinations, Vueling also flies to some of Europe's most attractive cities (although not to London just yet). The company has included their international destinations in the 100,000 flights for 10 euros, and we have found the following examples: a long weekend return flight from Madrid to Lisbon in May 20 euros return plus airport taxes for a total of 53.54 euros (£37) or a long weekend return flight from Valencia to Amsterdam at the end of May for 20 euros plus passenger charges and airport taxes, for a total of 72.41 euros (£50)

People interested in taking advantage of these cheap Spanish flights must book between today and 2nd May.

Cheap flights to Barcelona

It used to be quite difficult to find cheap flights to Barcelona even in low season, but not anymore. Most low-cost flight companies now offer special deals to Barcelona, and it has never been so easy to enjoy a short stay in one of Europe's most modern and attractive cities.

Aswell as offering some of the cheapest flights to Barcelona on offer (at the time of writing there were flights available with with Easyjet in May from London to Barcelona for as low as £16.49 one-way), Easyjet has just launched a Spanish hotel sale too, and the special offers include one central 2-star hotel in Barcelona at just 34 pounds per night if you stay between 1st May and 31st October. Hotels in Barcelona are in general very expensive, so this is an offer to bear in mind. See the complete list of Easyjet's Spain hotel offers here. This company offers cheap flights to Barcelona from all London airports aswell as from Bristol and Liverpool.

Jet2 offer cheap flights to Barcelona from Leeds-Bradford and Belfast airports, with some flights available during May at just £29.00.

And finally Flyglobespan also still have some cheap flights from Glasgow and Edinburgh to Barcelona at £50.00 and above one-way during May, although there are still a few available for as little as £29.03.

Cheap flights for golf holidays in Spain

More and more low cost air companies are creating special offers for golfers who want to take advantage of the good weather go have short golfing breaks in Spain. Some companies even include packages which include a cheap flight to Spain, acommodation in a hotel or apartment next to a golf course and golfing reservation and fees.

This is the case of low cost flight company Jet2 who have partnered with Golf Breaks to offer cheap flights to two of Spain main golfing destinations, Murcia and Costa del Sol. The company calls its offer Playing Package. Customers are invited to book their cheap flight first, and then contact Jet2 with the details of the flight in order to book accommodation through Golf-Breaks.net and get up to 50% off the public green fee rates. (2% will be charged if paying by credit card). And golfers eager to get to the golf course as soon as they arrive in Spain can even book a transfer station from the airport to the fairway!

The main golf courses in Murcia are in La Manga, just 10 minutes from San Javier Airport. Jet2 flies to Murcia from the following airports: Leeds-Bradford, Belfast, Manchester, Newcastle, Blackpool and Edinburgh and (at the time of writing) prices of May flights to Murcia start from £39 (one way) depending on the date and airport of departure.

The Costa del Sol has no less than 30 golf courses, and Jet2 flies to Malaga from Manchester and Leeds Bradford. Prices again vary according to dates and airport departure, but some cheap flights to Malaga in May are still available (at the time of writing) for as low as £49 (one-way).

One good feature of the Jet2 online flight reservation system is that it allows you to compare the prices of all flights available in one given month, so that you can find the cheapest option which best suits you. Another feature of Jet2 is that passengers can pay extra for a bit of extra leg room, although this has to be done at the airport and availability of extra roomy seats is limited.

Special offer for Autumn flights to Spain

Thomas Cook has listed its cheapest flights to Spain for Autumn 2006. People who book their Autumn flight online now can get some very good deals.

Here are some examples e have seen on their website (remember all flights are one-way and can change from one day to another)

• Flights to Almeria on 21st September from £39.00 (Manchester) and £35.99 (from Gatwick)
• Flights to Gerona from Manchester on 21st September £39.99 (this special offer flight is also available for some May dates)
• Flights to Ibiza on 23rd September for just £35.99 (Gatwick) or £39.99 (Manchester)
• Flights to Mallorca from Gatwick from £35.99 on 18th November
• Flights to Menorca from Stansted airport from £39.99 on 17th and 22nd September
• And various other special deals to Tenerife, Lanzarote, Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria and Jerez.

Anyone interested in booking one of these cheap flights can access the special offers by clicking on the blue Deals button on the Fly Thomas Cook home page.

Cheap flights to Alicante in June

Excel Airways (www.xl.com) has just launched a special offer on a 7-day return flight from London Gatwick to Alicante Spain in June. Flights on the 19th June (return 26th June) have been reduced from £89 to £69.

The company adds on a £25.00 fuel supplement charge per passenger plus a £5.00 credit/debit card fee, so the total is actually £99.00, but even so it is still a very cheap flight.

Passengers wanting to take advantage of this deal will need to get up early on 19th June as the outbound flight leaves Gatwick at 0615 and arrives at 09.40, but the return journey is at a much more civilized 10.50.

This week in June is infact one of the best times of the whole year to visit Alicante, as it is when the whole city lights up and celebrates the yearly Hogueras Fiestas. They start on 20th and go on (night and day) until 24th June. See Hogueras fiestas in Alicante for more information.

More useful Alicante links:

• Guide to Alicante, Spain
• Hotels in Alicante
• Restaurants in Alicante

Cheap flights to Malaga, Spain

The fact that Malaga Airport receives flights from over 50 European cities indicates the growing popularity of the Costa del Sol among tourists. And growing demand is accompanied by an increas in the offer of cheap flights to Malaga in recent years. This year no less than 18 different low-cost flight companies are operating from Malaga and a third of all air passangers who land at Malaga airport fly with a low-cost company. In 2005 4 million travellers flew to and from Malaga, that is an increase of 30 percent with respect to the previous year.

More and more low cost airlines fly to and from Malaga.
Easyjet recently set up connections between Malaga and Basle, Geneva, Milan, Berlin, Dortmund and will soon operate direct flights between Malaga and Glasgow. The German low-cost airline Germanwings plans to operate flights between Malaga and Stuttgart between May and October, and the Spanish cheap flight company Vueling has announced it will offer a new domestic route from Malaga to Madrid this Summer. Monarch invested 50 million euros in a new base in Malaga last November and hopes to transfer over 900,000 passengers each year. (Incidentally today the company is offering a special offer of a flight from Luton airport to Malaga on 18th June for just 14.99 on its website).

Malaga Airport
The aiport at Malaga is a 10km drive from the city along the E-15 motorway and the N-340 road. The airport has three carparks next to the terminal which cost almost 10 euros per day. Buses to Malaga from the airport leave every half hour and cost one euro. There are also buses linking the airport to Marbella and other Costa del Sol resorts. The airport has a station opposite Terminal 2 and regular trains run from 07.00 to 23.45. The journey to Malaga by taxi takes about 20 minutes and costs about 15 euros.

The best offers of cheap Summer flights to Malaga
EasyJet, Ryanair, Monarch, Thomsonfly, Air Berlin, Bmibaby, First Choice.... all offer cheap flights to Malaga. As always, passengers are advised to book Summer flights as soon as possible. We did a search in all the above airlines to see who was offering the cheapest 2-week return flights from London (or another airport if no London-Malaga flight is available) to Malaga, outbound 1/08/2006, inbound 15/08/2006. See the cheapest flights to Malaga below (prices as shown today on their websites):

• Ryanair: Dublin-Malaga: £136.81
• Easyjet: London-Malaga: £147.98
• Excel Airways: London-Malaga: £170.00
• Thomsonfly: London-Malaga: £179.22
• Monarch: London-Malaga: £187.17
• Bmibaby: Manchester-Malaga: £194.38

People wanting to take advantage of these cheap Summer flights to Malaga are advised to book as soon as possible.

Related links: Guide to Malaga, Hotels in Malaga, Hotels in Marbella, Restaurants in Malaga

Book flights to Spain online

One of the reasons the low cost airlines have been so successful is because the fact that passengers reserve their flights directly, either over the phone or electronically, means that no agent commission has to be added to the price.

While Internet has affected most sectors of the economy, the travel industry has literally been transformed by the possibilities offered by online reservation. Consumers no longer have to go along to the local travel agents to book hotels, trains, flights etc. And the young, low-cost airlines have been the quickest to recognise the advantage of having quick, user-friendly websites to encourage online booking.

See below for a quick review of what we think are the best low-cost airlines offering online purchase of cheap flights to Spain. Click on the airline's name to access its website.

Easyjet: Excellent website, very easy to register and to book flights online. Refunds on cancelled flights are not possible, but Easyjet do let you change the details of a booking (name, flight, day....) either over the phone or, as from this year, online, although you are charged for the change. Easyjet do flights to the following Spanish airports: Alicante, Almería, Asturias, Barcelona, Bilbao, Ibiza, Madrid, Mallorca, Malaga, Murcia, Menorca and Valencia.

Ryanair: The directors of this company have confirmed rumours that the airline plans to offer free tickets in the future if its onboard gambling games prove to be as profitable as Ryanair expects. Check the site for regular sales to top destinations in Spain which are often as low as 14p. Ryanair is Europe's largest low-cost airline and offers flights to the following Spanish airports: Girona, Barcelona, Murcia, Valencia, Zaragoza, Santiago de Compostela, Almeria, Vitoria, Santander, Jerez, Seville, Granada, Malaga and Valladolid.

Thomsonfly: Flight from 24 UK airports to the following destinations in Spain: Malaga, Alicante, Mallorca, Valencia, Mallorca, Ibiza, Barcelona and Gerona. Best deals available to customers who book early. For example, flights for October to Malaga are now on offer at just £1.49.

Jet2: Based at Leeds Bradford with hubs at Manchester and Belfast. The airline flies to the following destinations in Spain: Alicante, Barcelona, Ibiza, Malaga, Murcia, Palma, Menorca, Tenerife, Valencia . The company has just launched a special offer of flights to Spain in June and July starting from £15 one-way.

Easyjet special promotion

Easyjet has launched a special promotion on all its flights with up to 40 percent discount on many major destinations for people wanting to fly before 30th June.

4 million seats at greatly reduced prices are available for anyone who books from now until midnight Tuesday 25th April. This offer includes the Summer half term school holiday and is valid for all Easyjet Spain destinations.

A few tips for people looking for a flight on the Easyjet website:

• All special promotions are highlighted in yellow. So when you get your flight options, if the background of the box with flight price, number and times is white, the price is standard. If it is bright yellow, the flight is part of the promotion
• To get the cheapest option, go to the Want the cheapest prices? box on the right-hand side of the site, and click on "calendar". You will be able to compare prices over a two-week period
• Flights midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) are usually cheaper than weekend flights. So if you can be flexible about when you fly, try to choose midweek dates
• If you fly regularly between Spain and the UK you may be interested in receiving news about Easyjet special offers as and when they happen. Subscribe to their news letter to get regular updates here: https://www.easyjet.com/EN/members/newMember.asp
• You can make changes to your booking online anytime, but you will be charged for this. Changes to any booking for whatever reason cost £15 if you make the change yourself online per passenger per flight and £20 per passenger and per flight if you do it over the phone
• If you need to phone Easyjet to make changes to existing bookings, call 0905 821 0905 (calls cost 65p per minute; calls from mobiles and other networks may cost more). If you are phoning from Spain, call 90 229 9992 (operators speak Spanish and English).

Latest news about low-cost flights to Spain

This is a new section in which we will try to keep all our visitors up-to-date with the latest news and offers from all low-cost companies selling flights from the UK to Spain.

Thanks to the success of low-cost air companies like Ryanair, Jet2, Thomsonfly, Easyjet etc., the average price of flights from Britain to all major Spanish destinations has fallen substantially over the past few years. And experienced travellers who know how to shop around can fly between Spain and the UK for next to nothing. It's just a question of knowing how to do it.

Some Spanish friends of ours wanted to visit London last June but couldn't find a cheap offer from Alicante airport to London, so they checked out the offers from the small San Javier airport in Murcia and found a bargain return flight to London Stansted for just 0.90 euros(plus airport tax)!! San Javier Airport is just one hour's drive away along the motorway from Alicante.

Through this blog we hope to give you some ideas to find the cheapest way of flying to Spain. We will publish and update information on the latest special offers, offer tips on how and where to search for cheap flights to Spain, give the latest news about new routes between the smaller Spanish and British airports and publish the low-cost flight experiences - good and bad - sent to us by our visitors (if you want to share your experience of a cheap flight to Spain with our readers, send us an email to euroresi@euroresidentes.com).

There are lots of reasons for travelling to Spain. Some people who are buying a house in Spain need to come over frequently to look at property for sale, others make frequent visits to family who live here. One removal company told us that more and more families have moved their family base here from Britain, their children go to international schools in Spain, while the main wage-earner commutes from southern Spain to London three or four days a week. Golfers from colder or wetter climes come over for weekend breaks in the Autumn and Winter months to play on one of the many golf courses along the warm Mediterranean coast. Whether you want to have a cultural weekend break exploring one of the hundreds of beautiful places in Spain, or just want to relax on a beach somewhere, if you know where to look and how to plan, you can do so at a very cheap price.