easyJet is to restart its route between Budapest Airport (BUD) and Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport (LYS).
The year-round service will be operated twice-weekly, starting on 21 August 2024.
easyJet previously operated the BUD-LYS route pre-pandemic (2019/2020), with an annual seat capacity of almost 50,000.
In 2019, traffic on the route was predominantly inbound leisure passengers from France (90%+).
As the service matured, it gained increasing popularity among Hungarian travellers, increasing their share to 24%, and a similar trend is forecast in 2024.
180,000 French tourists visited Budapest in 2019, growing to 193,000 in 2023; this corresponds to an impressive 7% growth on pre-pandemic levels.
Máté Ritter, Head of Airline Development, Budapest Airport says: “We are delighted to welcome the resumption of easyJet’s BUD-LYS service.
“The launch of a new French route is very timely and responds well to the trend of increasing tourism demand from France.
“In 2023, even without a direct route, there were 22,000 two-way transfer passengers travelling from LYS to BUD, making it one of BUD’s largest indirect city-pairs in Europe.
“The proximity of Lyon to the French Alps, with many of its renowned ski resorts only a two-hour drive from the airport, is sure to attract Hungarian skiers and make it a popular route in both directions.”
