Ryanair confirms new route from UK airport to beautiful holiday destination

Ryanair has announced a brand new holiday destination for Brits looking for a sunny getaway for next year.

A beautiful Italian holiday spot is now easier than ever to access, and it's part of an 'exciting' expansion of the airlines presence in the EU country.

The new route, that will go from Bournemouth Airport to the western tip of Sicily in Trapani-Marsala will begin operation in January 2026 and the airline said it will "enhance connectivity and the availability of low fares for Sicilian residents".

READ MORE: Pizza Express is giving a lucky fan free pizza for a year on one condition

READ MORE: M&S brings back popular product 10 years after being axed from shelves

It comes after Sicilian authorities decided to scrap the Municipal Tax at its smaller regional airports in Trapani-Marsala, and scrapping this levy has made access to the areas easier for tourists.

According to Daily Express, Ryanair CEO Eddie Wilson said: "As Europe and Italy's number one airline, Ryanair is delighted to announce this major investment at Trapani-Marsala with the opening of a new base from January 2026. We've worked closely with both the regional government and Airgest teams to deliver this exciting investment.

"Since first flying to Sicily in 2003, Ryanair has carried more than 100 million passengers to and from Sicily [and] our new Trapani-Marsala base will deliver two new aircraft, 23 routes, more than one million passengers annually and support over 800 local jobs.

"Ryanair welcomes [Sicilian] President Schifani and the Sicilian Government's decision to scrap the Municipal Tax at the smaller Sicilian airports, and now is the right time to take the next step. Extending this measure to all Sicilian airports would unlock further connectivity, deliver low fares and strengthen year-round connectivity for Sicilian citizens and visitors."

Alongside its route to and from Bournemouth, in southwest England, the site will see the launch of services to London, Baden-Baden, Bari, Bratislava, Brussels, Katowice, Pescara, Saarbrücken, Stockholm and Verona. The move also means there is a creation of 800 local jobs and will facilitate 23 new routes and 260,000 extra seats.

Mr Wilson has also urged the Italian government to "scrap" the Municipal Tax at all Italian airports, as Ryanair is prepared to invest $4 billion (£3 billion) in Italy.

Adding 40 new aircraft, 20 million additional passengers and over 250 new routes. Byscrapping this tax, it will "stimulate capacity" as well as help to reduce fares and drive economic growth.

He has also previously challenged Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over a 0.5 euro per passenger rise in the municipal surtax for non-EU flights for airports exceeding 10 million passengers a year. He described it as a "short-sighted and regressive" policy that would be "damaging" for Italian tourism.

Do you have a story to share? Email niamh.kirk@reachplc.com