Ryanair Holdings plc

10/25/2023 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/25/2023 09:01

RYANAIR ANNOUNCES RECORD ADVANCE BOOKINGS ON ITS 17 ROUTES TO/FROM ALBANIA STARTS ON TUES 31 OCT

RYANAIR DELIVERS LOW FARES FOR TIRANA

Ryanair, Europe's biggest passenger airline (183.5m customers) today (25th Oct) reported that it has received record advance bookings on its 17 new routes to/from Tirana, which start next week on Tues 31st Oct. Ryanair's 17 new routes to/from Albania will connect the country with major inbound visitor markets including Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Sweden and the UK, where Ryanair believes substantial traffic and tourism growth will be stimulated thanks to Ryanair's really low air fares, which finally offer low fare competition and choice to the high fare airlines, who presently dominate in Albania. Ryanair's 17 low fare routes to/from Tirana will drive connectivity, year-round traffic and tourism growth, as well as supporting hundreds of new jobs at the airport while providing Albanian citizens/visitors with lower fares and more choice year round.

Ryanair's new Albanian services will deliver;

  • 17 new routes including Brussels, Dusseldorf, London, Milan, Paris and Rome
  • Fares that start from just €15 one way
  • Over 1.5m passengers p.a. in year 1
  • Sustaining over 1,000 local jobs in Albania

Over the last 4 decades, Ryanair has revolutionised air travel across Europe with its unique combination of low fares, on time flights, new Boeing 737 aircraft and great customer service. Albanian traffic and tourism have been held back during that time by high fare incumbent carriers, who have failed to deliver year-round traffic and tourism growth. Ryanair is determined to end that high fare oligopoly.

With air fares that start from just €15 one way, Ryanair's 17 new routes to Tirana this winter will feature high frequency services including double daily rotations to London and Milan, with daily services to Bologna, Brussels, Catania, Pisa, Rome and Venice. Ryanair expects to bring hundreds of thousands of first-time visitors to Albania this winter. Ryanair is continuing to work with the Albanian Govt and the Albanian airports to explore new routes to and from Tirana, as well as the possibility of opening new services at other Albanian airports over the next year or 2.

Ryanair's Group CEO, Michael O'Leary, visited Tirana today with a team of sales and Ops people to promote the start of Ryanair's flights to/from Tirana on Tues 31st Oct next. To celebrate these record advance bookings, Ryanair has launched a 3 day seat sale across all 17 new routes to and from Tirana, with 50,000 one way fares on sale from €14.99, which are available from travel from Nov 2023 until March 2024 (although these seats must be booked by 28th Oct directly on the Ryanair.com website).

Speaking in Tirana, Ryanair's Michael O'Leary said:

"Next week on Tues 31st Oct, the Ryanair low fare revolution comes to Albania. We will start 17 new routes to/from Tirana, and already more than 70% of these seats have been sold for the first month of operations. The scale of Ryanair's winter operation in Tirana with 17 routes, and over 200 weekly frequencies shows the extraordinary demand there is for low fare inbound travel to Albania, and for low fare outbound flights among Albanian citizens, especially around Tirana. As Italy's No.1 airline, Ryanair believes it can deliver dramatic and sustainable traffic and tourism growth, not just this winter, but for many years to come in Albania.

For too long, new route and traffic growth in Albania has been held back by the high fare incumbent airlines such as Lufthansa, Air France, BA and Wizz. From next Tues 31st Oct, this era of high fares ends. Ryanair's low fares are coming to Tirana. Thousands of visitors are coming to Tirana, and we look forward to carrying many thousands of Albanian citizens to/from Europe to visit friends and relatives.

Ryanair is the only major airline in Europe that has recovered to 130% of its pre-Covid traffic. This winter we hope to take 57 new aircraft deliveries from Boeing as part of our post-Covid growth and recovery plan. We are proud to open 17 new routes to/from Tirana next week, and we are thrilled and amazed at the strength of forward bookings, and the demand that exists in Albania and all across Europe for Ryanair's low fare flights to/from Tirana. Ryanair plans to grow its fleet to 800 aircraft, and its traffic to 300m passengers annually over the next decade, and we believe that Albania will be a key growth market for Ryanair's low fares."