Spanish low-cost carrier Vueling last week announced its intention to strengthen its UK market by adding London Gatwick to its network. The addition of Gatwick comes as Vueling is looking for a busy summer 2023 schedule.

New Alicante to Gatwick

As part of its summer schedule, Vueling will allow British holidaymakers to fly to one of Spain's top tourist destinations: Alicante. Vueling hopes to commence the route on the 28th of March of this year. Gatwick to Alicante will likely operate using an Airbus A320 to fly the 1,430 km route and will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

On the Tuesday flight, the LGW-ALC flight leaves at 18:45 local time and arrives in Spain at 20:25. On the Thursday flight, it leaves at 17:30 and arrives at 19:10. On the Saturday flight, it leaves at 19:40 and arrives in Spain at 21:20.

By adding this new route, British holidaymakers will enjoy the sun in the Costa Blanca and allow them to travel to the infamous holiday town of Benidorm. Sun, Sea, and Sangria will definitely be on the tables for passengers as Vueling will offer competitive prices in the British market.

Competing in the market

At the moment, Vueling already offers passengers flights from Barcelona to London Gatwick. The airline claims that one out of every four passengers flies with Vueling to and from Barcelona. That is a lot of passengers, given that easyJet also flies to Barcelona and has a well-established base in Gatwick.

In relation to the new flights to Alicante, passengers have more choices. British Airways, easyJet, and Ryanair all fly the route too. Vueling, which is owned by the International Airlines Group (IAG), will be competing with its sister airline British Airways - also owned by IAG.

Vueling is majorly disrupting the market here and believes it can succeed. In a statement to Simple Flying, Vueling says:

“Vueling is also focusing on its strategy for deseasonalisation and a total digitalisation of sales distribution.”

Vueling isn’t just focusing on Spain, either. With operations in other major European countries.

“[Vueling], which led the Spanish domestic market in 2022, is also focused on the international market, through its international hubs in London-Gatwick and Paris-Orly. In 2022, Vueling gained a stronger presence at Gatwick, almost doubling operations compared to summer 2019 and scheduling 16 direct routes from the London airport during the 2022 summer season”

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Biggest summer yet?

With summer 2023 being predicted by other airlines as the busiest summer yet, Vueling has announced its schedule for the season. In addition to flights to Gatwick, Vueling also added flights from Bilbao to Zurich, Florence, Rome, Marrakech, Prague, Brussels, and Hamburg.

Regarding IAG, it is also looking forward to the busy summer season. Vueling's sister airline Aer Lingus has announced new flights from its hub in Dublin to Cleveland, Kos, Olbia, and Brindisi. British Airways has announced new flights to Florence. Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier, also increased its scheduled flights from Madrid to a number of its current destinations both in Europe and worldwide.

What do you think about the announcement by Vueling? Let us know in the comments below.