Wizz Air launches new Luton-Tenerife South route

The Hungarian airline, which runs 340 routes Europe-wide, currently only operates about 12 in Spain, but it is a young company with some of the newest aircraft in the industry at present.

Managing director for Wizz Air UK, Owain Jones, says the firm is 'delighted' to be able to expand its network by offering 'direct and affordable' flights to and from 'the beautiful island of Tenerife'.

“Lots of people know Tenerife for its beaches but, as always, we want our passengers to discover the other wonderful and lesser-known hidden corners of their destination – forests, volcanoes, mountains, are all waiting to be uncovered,” Jones says.

The inaugural Wizz Air flight from Luton to Tenerife South landed at exactly 16.41 on Saturday, and the island government, or Cabildo, organised a special reception for passengers and crew with a costumed parade and a free promotional kit about Tenerife which included a detailed map, playing cards with questions about their destination, and a bag of typical savoury snacks known as rosquetes.

Wizz Air's new route between Tenerife and the UK comes shortly after Jet2 announced an additional 197,000 seats from Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow to the island, as well as promising to continue increasing places available for the coming summer and for winter 2020.

British Airways has 4,000 flight seats between the UK and Tenerife for the winter season, whilst TUI has expanded its places to 2,000 and easyJet to 16,000.

All three intend to offer even more for next summer, according to conversations they had with Canary Island tourism bosses at the London World Travel Market (WTM) trade fair a week or so ago.

Cabildo president Pedro Martín says each Wizz Air flight offers 189 seats and will cover the Luton-Tenerife South route three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

As a result, by the end of the winter season, nearly 30,000 passengers will have travelled on Wizz Air between Tenerife and Luton – largely thanks to concerted effort by the Cabildo, including its chief executive of tourism, David Pérez, head manager at the airport, Gustavo Díez, and all the staff working in connection with the island's two air terminals.

Tenerife South is one of the three airports in Spain where low-cost Irish carrier Ryanair has announced base closures – news which has caused strikes and protests among pilots and cabin crew and over which negotiations are ongoing.

Wizz Air's head office is in Vecsés, Hungary, and its young fleet comprises around 100 Airbus 320-232, 321, and 321Neo.

Photograph of the first Wizz Air flight from Luton landing at Tenerife South airport taken by the Cabildo, or island government, of the largest of the Canary Islands