Emirates continues to bring its international network back. With France reopening, the UAE-based airline is returning to Nice and Lyon this summer. The two routes, which are resumptions, will come back online in July and align with Emirates' strategy of returning its international routes as countries reopen.

Emirates is coming back to France

Already serving Paris, Emirates is set to resume flights from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Nice Côte d'Azur Airport (NCE) and Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport (LYS). Service to Nice will resume on July 2nd, while service to Lyon will resume on July 9th.

Both cities will initially see four flights per week using a Boeing 777-300ER. EK077 will depart Dubai for Nice on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays at 08:45 and arriving in NCE at 13:40. The return flight, EK-78, will depart Nice on the same days at 15:55 and arrive in Dubai at 00:10 the next day (all times are local).

For Lyon, EK081 will depart Dubai to Lyon on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays at 14:35 and arrive in LYS at 19:30 the same day. The return flight will depart LYS at 21:45 and arrive in DXB at 06:05 the next day (again, all times are local).

Emirates LYS NCE
The two routes are to southern France. Rendering created at Great Circle Mapper

Stay informed: Sign up for our daily and weekly aviation news digests.

Already flying the Airbus A380 to France

These two route resumptions come as Emirates has already returned the Airbus A380 to service in France. The global giant is flying its flagship Airbus A380 on 14 flights per week between Paris and Dubai.

The Airbus A380s flying to Paris, according to Emirates, even sport the airline's latest premium economy cabin and refreshed products in all other classes. Note that access to premium economy currently remains restricted, as Emirates is waiting to have more jets with the cabin type before opening it up fully for booking.

Passengers can also take advantage of connecting opportunities in Dubai to travel to destinations in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East.

Emirates Getty
Emirates has made the A380 work, with a huge fleet, but other airlines have struggled. Photo: Getty Images

The airline's international travel strategy

France is opening its borders for most passengers from June 9th. Tourists coming from an "orange" or "green" list country (which is most of the world, including the UAE, Thailand, Japan, the US, and more) will face the least restrictions. Arrivals from a "red" country (including India, Argentina, Nepal, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, Brazil, and more) will face additional restrictions.

With France opening up to most of the world, Emirates is continuing to chart its strategy of adding capacity back in markets as they open. Whereas some other airlines have maintained their flying throughout the crisis, Emirates has opted to go with a slightly more conservative strategy and bring back destinations as travel restrictions allow.

Emirates 777
Emirates was the first airline to unprecedentedly unbundle its business class fares in 2019. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

In recent weeks, Spain, Thailand, Italy, and others have moved to reopen for fully vaccinated travelers or those who undergo mandatory testing. As each destination announced plans to reopen, Emirates followed with more flights, primarily using its Boeing 777 aircraft.

As more countries open up, expect Emirates to come back to more destinations and restore frequencies. However, it is starting to get a little late in the summer booking curve, so Emirates is being cautious with the amount of capacity it deploys in destinations that are just now starting to reopen. Expect the airline to continue to express cautious optimism with returning its network.

Emirates is not alone in bringing back more France capacity. Both Delta Air Lines and Air France are moving to grow services to the country as the reopening moves forward. Delta will also be coming back to Nice.

Are you glad to see Emirates restore these two services to France? Let us know in the comments!