Low cost airlines.

[Jimbo]

Alan Knighting wrote:

Now that budget and low cost airlines exist we spend our time tearing them to pieces.

I return regularly to the UK for work purposes on Flybe and Ryanair, simply couldn't manage without their services. However, 'low-cost' is a bit questionable. The summer flights are often breathtakingly expensive because I'm usually compelled to book at short notice. Fortunately my clients pick up the travel bill.

Our guests use 'budget airlines/car hire' and 'driving themselves' about 50/50, hardly anybody goes the 'Eurostar/TGV/car hire' route although prices seem competitive and the few who have used the 'chuffer' have reported a pleasant journey and a reliable service (although there's a bit of hanging around in Paris). In general, guests coming for longer are more likely to drive their own car than fly - which is hardly surprising - and some are nervous about hiring a left-hand drive car.

Jim

[Giddy Goat]

Thats been our finding too Jimbo - and for ourselves, still having to live in the UK for the moment, we would be lost without Ryanair and the dreaded Stansted. Ju, we live 15 mins up the road from the airport! So we fly and then hire a car each time.

It's possible that the low cost airlines are driving property purchase prices up - but if so, only marginally, as there is just a big a market from within mainland Europe for a place in the sun as there is from the UK. Bigger even perhaps?

As for Corsica, though I love it, I don't know it well Paul, but I'd have thought that there is a limit on the amount of property development that will take place there (even without government restrictions if they were to be put in place) because of the terrain? There are only so many places that new complexes can be constructed. So even if a low cost route were to be opened up, the demand will always outstrip the supply - and I wish we'd bought a slice of Corsica when we could have done!!! The only hesitation I have about the advent of a new low cost route being opened up anywhere in the world is that it inevitably changes the look and feel of a location, unless there are possibilities to get off the beaten track.

[Big Sis..]

we would be lost without Ryanair and the dreaded Stansted. Ju, we live 15 mins up the road from the airport!

Thats handy to know Gasc......Have you a large driveway....

We usually fly out of Stansted [about 2hrs drive from us] or Norwich[40 mins]....
I dont actually mind Stansted...[now weve found a better place to park than the dreaded Pink Elephant]...
Dont worry GG I dont mean at yours

Dont like Luton much though its such a faff getting there....

[Mouse]

Paul - don't forget you will be limited to the 'season' they decide to fly.
At the moment here that's mainly June - September and in some instances only for the summer holidays from airports such as Newcastle.
You may be interested to know that budget airline travellers don't tend to be at the lower end of the 'tourist' scale. I know a little about this as my husband writes for Easyjet (the inflight brochure)....and you may or may not know that this island is very celeb'd up in summer and guess who they fly with? Easyjet out of Gatwick...(infact we had Sadie frost & Kate Moss staying in the house next door but 2 & they came on Easyjet!)
Also flexibility means the island gets lots more weekend visitors (not good for villa rentals - but still helps the economy)

I think Corsica's BRAND is the important bit & it is seen as an upmarket destination with a touch of exclusiveness, so that will be the overall factor in your pricing. Infact it was so damn exclusive we were never able to get there from the North West so I guess you only had 'southern' guests from the UK! It won't be a bad thing to have a new market opened up.

The island will only attract what it can provide for....e.g. if you have no 5* hotels or luxury villas then those people won't come.
If you don't have lots of low priced budget 'touristy' accomodation then that type won't be attracted there. And you will only ever have 'volume' in the short season they fly.

Mouse
x

[Guest3]

Can't do without the low cost airlines! I'm 100% it's the low airfares that have brought us our bookings. We now have quite a few 'low cost' airlines listed on our website that fly from the all over the UK & Scotland...and amazingly Iberia that fly from Heathrow have also jumped on the band wagon, offering cheapies to Malaga! So, we're extremely lucky in having Malaga as a destination airport as there are a variety of low cost airlines to choose from in the UK depending on departure airport.