One of Europe’s largest airlines, easyJet, will operate direct flights between Akureyri, North Iceland and London, from October 31 of this year, Visit North Iceland reports. The flights will operate twice a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, through March 2024. Locals of North Iceland have long been calling for more direct flight connections to mainland Europe, both for residents of Iceland and in support of tourism operators in the region, but although several airlines have promised to operate international flights to Akureyri Airport in the past, few have delivered.
EasyJet has already opened for bookings for the flights between Akureyri and Gatwick Airport, which Arnheiður Jóhannsdóttir, CEO of Visit North Iceland, says are “the result of years of preparatory work and collaboration.” Arnheiður adds that direct flights between the UK and Akureyri that were offered a few years ago proved successful and that this new route could lead to over 1,500 overnight stays per week in North Iceland during the winter season.
Akureyri Airport is completing an extension to the terminal that is expected to be fully completed in the spring of 2024. The development of the airport is intended to facilitate international travel to and from the region.
Several airlines have previously announced intentions to fly direct between Akureyri and mainland Europe, but many have also pulled out when conditions did not prove in their favour, including German Airline Condor which was set to fly to Akureyri and Egilsstaðir, East Iceland this summer. Plans to begin the services in 2024 are, however, reportedly underway.
