Budapest Airport is often touted as the gateway to Central and Eastern Europe. The airport is now enjoying extra connectivity to Romania and Northern Ireland.
Romania
Budapest Airport (BUD) has recently seen an increase in growth and expansion to destinations in Romania. This includes the arrival of AirConnect which links the Hungarian capital to the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca and the capital of Bucharest.
This signals that demand between the two cities is growing even further. The airline plans to operate the route twice weekly, which makes travel between the two countries even more seamless.
AirConnect has chosen Budapest as one of the first destinations outside of Romania. The airline will opt for the ATR72-600 for such services.
Competition remains
Despite the popularity of the route, the Romanian airline faces stiff competition on the routes, from airlines such as Wizz Air and Tarom. Budapest now witnesses 13 weekly flights to the Romanian capital. The city also sees five weekly flights to Cluj-Napica.
This translates to an increase in 12% share of the Hungarian connection to Romania, and with the introduction of AirConnect’s operation, Budapest now stands stronger as a gateway to secondary Romanian cities.
AirConnect now complements existing routes to Bucharest, Cluj, and Târgu Mureș, with Budapest, which sees 70,000 one-way seats this upcoming summer season.
CEO of Budapest Airport Chris Dinsdale, stated with optimism: “It’s always a great pleasure to welcome a new airline to our airport and this is deepened when you are among the carrier’s first chosen airports on its route map.”
“We’re looking forward to working with AirConnect to promote both Romania and Hungary as superb destinations and ensuring growth with our latest partner.”
Tudor Constantinescu, CEO, AirConnect, commented at the inaugural celebration: “We are excited to launch the direct service between Budapest – Bucharest and Budapest – Cluj Napoca.”
“Offering an affordable and efficient travel option that makes it easier to reach the capital of Romania and the heart of Transylvania; we hope our twice-weekly flights, on Tuesdays and Saturdays, will bring more people and more cultures together.”
Northern Ireland
As well as the Romanian market expansion, the Hungarian airport also confirmed that Belfast in Northern Ireland is underserved, and will be added to Budapest’s network for the upcoming summer season.
Ryanair commenced the twice-weekly service on 27 March, to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the very first time.
Airline Development Director, Budapest Airport Balázs Bogáts, comments: “It’s fantastic that Ryanair is filling another of our white spots this year.”
“The carrier’s latest addition of a link to Belfast joins its established services to Dublin and Shannon, seeing us offer 341 flights to Ireland this summer.”
“Building on its overall operations will see Ryanair offer close to 7,400 flights throughout S23 from Budapest.”
Budapest is becoming busier than ever as it approaches the summer season. With Budapest being a beautiful and historical city, tourism-driven demand will see low-cost airlines flying to the Hungarian capital during the peak holiday season
