New flights will link UK to beautiful Spanish holiday island all year round

The Balearic Islands are to soon see their connections to the UK boosted as easyJet has announced it will extend its existing summer route to operate all year round.

From November 6, the low-cost airline will operate flights between Menorca and London Gatwick twice a week - on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

By operating also during the winter, the route will provide travellers with 16,000 more seats throughout the low tourist seasons.

This will allow the Balearic island to boost its international connectivity, its residents to travel to London more easily and British tourists to enjoy the stunning island during a quieter time.

In 2022, Menorca welcomed 1.6 million tourists, up from 1.4 million recorded in 2019. Of these, 26.6 percent flew in from Britain, making the UK the most popular country of origin among international visitors to the Spanish island, according to a survey by INE and IBESTAT.

But most of these tourists normally head to the island during the warmer months, from May to October.

Yet, Menorca has a lot to offer also during autumn and winter. In October and November, the days are normally warm, with temperatures in the low 20s, while between December and February the average temperatures rarely drop to single digits.

Enhancing the travel links across the whole year could help make tourism in Menorca more sustainable for locals, as tourists could choose to head to the island during less busy periods than the peak summer.

Adolfo Vilafranca, President of the Council of Menorca, said, as reported by the Majorca Daily Bulletin: "We are demonstrating our work with concrete facts: this agreement is the result of a lot of hard work and goodwill to connect the island even more in the low season, guaranteeing international routes during the winter months.

"Being able to have this air route that allows us to be directly connected to London, is the answer to a popular demand in two directions: both from residents of the island who want to fly to the British capital, and from those the United Kingdom who want to visit us between November and March, that is, away from the summer.

"We are focused on moving towards a sustainable season throughout the year. In fact, the promotional activities agreed with easyJet will be linked to Menorca’s culture, active tourism, gastronomy and nature."

Menorca hasn't been immune to the recent wave of overtourism protests sweeping across the Canaries and Balearics.

In June, thousands of Menorca residents took to the streets against mass tourism and overcrowding. Protesters stressed they are in favour of sustainable tourists, with the industry accounting for around 45 percent of the Balearics' GDP, but want a different model that does not push them out of their homes and raises their cost of living.