Monarch Unveils New Routes for Summer 2012

There was good news this week for anyone considering cheap holidays in Croatia, Greece or Italy next summer, when budget airline Monarch announced plans for 14 new routes to these popular tourist destinations.

Monarch Airlines has a medium-term strategy to expand the number of leisure routes it operates across Europe and to provide a greater focus on scheduled services – previously Monarch was known mainly for charter flights.

From the carrier’s base at Manchester Airport, cheap flights to Dubrovnik, Milan, Venice and Verona will be available from next summer, and holidaymakers heading for Rome will be able to fly there from London Luton and Birmingham airports. Meanwhile, both Birmingham and London Gatwick airports will begin offering cheap flights to Crete, Dubrovnik, Milan and Venice.

One of the factors making all the new routes possible is the addition of two new Airbus A320 aircraft to the Monarch Airlines fleet, said managing director Kevin George.

“The strategy for Monarch Airlines is now firmly focused on its scheduled operations and we are delighted to be adding these new routes to our already extensive network of leisure destinations across Europe,” he declared, adding that the new destinations to Italy only go to secure Monarch’s place as the “leading leisure-focused airline” operating cheap flights to destinations throughout the Mediterranean and the Canary Islands.

The ever-growing interest in cheap holidays in Croatia are likely to make the new Dubrovnik routes a popular choice, as this region lies in the heart of Dalmatia, reckoned by many to be the most beautiful part of the Adriatic coast, thanks to its lush green scenery, beautiful lakes, picturesque islands and white pebble beaches – all set off by a typical Mediterranean climate. Visiting in 1929, George Bernard Shaw remarked: “If you want to see heaven on earth, come to Dubrovnik.”