The Week In Travel

Prominent airlines have revealed this week that that they will be resuming flights to China following the relaxation of the country’s zero-Covid policy. Both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have announced that they will be restoring services from London Heathrow to Shanghai from 23rd April and 1st May, respectively. BA flights from Heathrow to Beijing will also be operating four times per week.

In mainland Europe, budget carrier Ryanair has gained market share on the continent. Chief executive Michael O’Leary hailed the gains the airline has made in the likes of Italy, Poland, Ireland and Spain where he claims ‘competitors have removed significant capacity or are retreating from competition’. Ryanair’s passenger traffic in Q4 of 2022 rose by 24% compared with the same quarter in 2021 and was also 7% higher than the final three months of 2019.

The journey towards more sustainable flying continues, as Lufthansa Group has signed an agreement with energy company Varo to receive ‘large volumes’ of SAF from 2026. The SAF is expected to be delivered to the German flag carrier’s Munich hub, and Varo has stated it aims to produce around 260,000 tons of SAF per year from the start date.

In technology news, three UK airports are trialling the use of e-gates for children aged 11 and under to speed up processes ahead of an anticipated busy summer period. Currently, e-gates can only be used by those aged 12 and over, for safeguarding reasons along with the changes in children’s appearances as they grow. The trials are taking place at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, with the ultimate decision on the tech being made by government ministers.

And finally, online debate has been sparked after a hotel worker was filmed removing towels which had been left on poolside sun loungers earlier in the day. Some commenters praised the employee, seeing him as the resort’s white knight and claiming that justice had been served. Other believed it was not his place and that since people got up early to reserve those spaces, they deserved to keep them. One thing is for certain though, despite only being February, this year’s sunbed wars have officially begun.