British holidaymakers searching for an underrated Spanish destination are in luck as Jet2 will soon launch direct flights to an Andalusian city described as Malaga with fewer crowds.
Starting in May, the new route will run from Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds Bradford Airport to Jerez, in the province of Cadiz. The city is famous for wine, flamenco dancing and horses.
The news couldn’t have come at a better time for travellers. Last week, Ryanair revealed it will axe flights to 12 popular Spanish hotspots, including Jerez, Zaragoza and Santander, in a bid to reduce the tax and surcharges it pays for operating at airports across the continent.
Changes to the low-cost Irish airline’s 2025 flight schedule will also impact destinations in Italy, Denmark and France, but Spain is the country hardest hit.
Ryanair route cuts coming in 2025
Spain
Ryanair has revealed it will cut its Spanish summer traffic this year by 18%, which means 800,000 seats across 12 routes will be lost.
In a statement, the airline confirmed it will be shutting down operations in Jerez and Valladolid, closing one of its bases in Santiago and cutting traffic in Asturias, Zaragoza, Santander and Vigo. The airline said the ‘completely avoidable loss’ will be ‘devastating for Spain’s regional connectivity, jobs and tourism’.
The airline told Metro: ‘We have been forced to cut capacity to/ from short-sighted markets that are bizarrely introducing or increasing aviation taxes.
‘These capacity cuts are due to increased costs making these markets uncompetitive compared to their EU counterparts who are actively lowering costs and, as a result, benefitting from rapid Ryanair growth.’
Ryanair’s CEO, Eddie Wilson, attributed the schedule changes to the Spanish state-controlled airport operator, Aena, which he claims has imposed ‘unjustified’ price hikes in airport charges.
Aena had initially scaled back the charges, which airlines pay to use the airport’s facilities. But Ryanair says they’ve been increasing since.
However, Aena claimed the average fee of €10.35 (£8.75) per passenger is ‘among the lowest in Europe’.
Which Spanish destinations are affected?
Ryanair will be stopping all flights to and from:
- Jerez (Cádiz)
- Valladolid
It will also reduce flights in and out of:
- Vigo
- Santiago de Compostela
- Zaragoza
- Santander
- Asturias
Italy
Spain is not the only destination affected by the Ryanair cuts.
The airline confirmed last month that it will remove one of its aircraft from Rome’s Fiumicino (the country’s largest airport) due to municipal surcharges in Italy’s main airports that start on April 1, 2025.
‘This means no growth for Rome despite the celebrations for the Jubilee for the Jubilee year,’ the airline said.
Denmark
Flights have also been scrapped to and from Aalborg after Denmark announced the introduction of an aviation tax of DKK50 (£5.60). Ryanair has said this makes serving its regional airports ‘hopelessly uncompetitive’ compared to other EU countries.
This means the country will lose 1.7million seats and 32 for the summer, according to the airline.
Do you fly with Ryanair?
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Yes
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No
Currently, passengers can find tickets for £14.99 from London Stansted to the historic town, but as of next month, all flights will be stopped.
It will also be closing its base at Billund Airport, which currently houses two aircraft. While this means passengers won’t be able to get a Ryanair flight to the city, British Airways will still operate services.
France
Ryanair routes to and from France are also under threat as the country is set to increase its aviation tax this year.
The tax on an economy class short-haul flight within France or Europe will rise from €2.63 to €7.40 on flights departing from France.
The increase is backed by the Minister of Public Accounts Amelie de Montchalin. She commented: ‘It is a measure of fiscal and ecological injustice.’ She highlighted that ‘the 20% of the population with the highest income are responsible for more than half of the expenses devoted to air travel’.
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While the airline has not announced any cancellations just yet, Ryanair’s chief executive Michael O’Leary, threatened to reduce flights to the country if the tax was increased.
At a press conference last week, O’Leary said: ‘France is already a high-tax country, and if it increases already high taxes further, we will probably reduce our capacity.
‘France is going against the tide. Europe will not become more efficient or more competitive by over-taxing air fares.’
Ryanair's boarding pass row
Earlier this month, Ryanair was criticised for plans to scrap paper boarding passes in favour of digital check-ins.
Customers were furious. Metro readers have been sharing their views, with some urging other flyers to boycott the airline in protest against the change.
Youssef Ka wrote: ‘People should just boycott… Not everyone has a smart phone or apps…’, while Raymond Skinner added, ‘Just Boycott them, go easyJet, Jet2 instead’.
Dan James echoed: ‘Simple, don’t fly with them, they’re awful anyway’ and Andrew Kaye simply said, ‘I’d rather walk’.
Do you agree with the airline’s decision? Read the full story here.
This article was originally published on February 14, 2025.
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