East Midlands Airport (EMA) is getting ready for the February half-term holiday, with 105,000 people already booked to fly – an increase of 16% on last year.
The three main airlines serving EMA – Ryanair, Tui and Jet2 – are all operating flights to a range of European destinations throughout February, from winter sunshine favourites in southern Spain and the Canaries as well as major ski resorts.
With local schools taking breaks between February 12 and 26, up to 28 flights a day are scheduled over that period.
School children from further afield, such as South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire, are also on half-term at the same time and families making the most of the first school break of the year are picking EMA for its low-cost flights and effortless travel experience.
They can choose from cities such as Paris, Berlin, Prague, Riga and Milan, the most popular beach destinations including Tenerife, Alicante, Lanzarote, Palma and Malaga, as well as Geneva, Salzburg and Chambery for a gateway to the Alpine ski slopes. There are also trips closer to home available such as Dublin, Belfast and Knock.
The half-term break is often a yardstick for how the main summer peak season will shape up – so airport bosses are encouraged by the popularity of EMA in the coming weeks, with 16,500 more people booked for flights than last year.
EMA’s Managing Director Steve Griffiths said: “We’re really looking forward to welcoming everyone during the February half-term holidays. We know it’s a popular time to get away as we move from winter towards spring so we have plenty of routes on offer and as always will ensure our customers have a hassle-free and enjoyable experience at the airport.
“The number of people choosing EMA this half-term contributes to overall passenger numbers looking set to return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of this financial year. This bodes extremely well for the 2024/5 financial year ahead and what is gearing up to be our best summer yet.”