"A new destination will be added to Budapest Airport’s (BA) growing route network: as of today, Aer Lingus will carry passengers between Budapest and Belfast three times a week. This will be the first ever scheduled flight to the capital of Northern Ireland from Budapest Airport.With the introduction of the Belfast flight, there are now seven cities in the United Kingdom with direct aerial link to Budapest Airport.
The Irish carrier will operate the new route on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday with its Airbus A320 aircraft. The first plane from Belfast will touch the tarmac of Budapest Airport at 18:50 today.
Aer Lingus will enjoy the standard benefits offered to airlines linking Budapest Airport with new destinations in line with the “Incentive scheme” of the BA tariff manual. In the first year Aer Lingus will pay no landing fee at all. In the second and third years it will enjoy a discount of 50 and 25 percent, respectively. Budapest Airport launched the incentive program in order to develop traffic and to strengthen the Hungarian tourism sector.
The launch of the new route will establish a direct air link between Budapest and Northern Ireland (with a population of 1 million 700 thousand). It is great news for Budapest Airport that after London, Bristol, East Midlands, Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow, Belfast is added to the list of cities in the United Kingdom that can be reached directly from the Hungarian capital. Up to now, six airlines – British Airways, Malév, Easyjet, Jet2.com, Ryanair, and Wizz Air – offered flights to the United Kingdom and in 2007 Budapest Airport handled more than 915 thousand passengers traveling to or from the UK.
BA Deputy CEO Dimitrios Gatsonis said, “The United Kingdom is one of the most important markets for us and I’m very glad that the relationship has been strengthened with a new destination. The new flight will certainly enhance tourism and business relations between Hungary and Northern Ireland.
Top tourist attractions in Belfast:
The capital of Northern Ireland has a population of around 600 thousand.
Belfast is the second largest city on the Irish Island. It is situated at the mouth of the river Lagan and owes its prosperity to fishing and commerce as well as the textile industry brought to the city by the Huguenots.
The Belfast skyline brings back the golden Victorian age. Its landmark buildings are the City Hall and the Great Opera. The covered marketplace is also a popular tourist destination.
In the shipyards of the city, warships and five-star cruisers were built in the first half of the 20th century. Titanic was also built in the dockyard of Belfast.
The Cathedral neighborhood is the most historic part of the city. Its cobbled streets are lined with art galleries and pubs.
In the Titanic quarter visitors can tour the shipyard that used to be the biggest in the world and the gigantic steam-operated crane.
The Queens is the most vibrant section of Belfast with the Botanic Garden and lots of museums. The boutique lane on Lisburn Road is always busy and the cozy pubs and cafés are packed with people coming from the Lyric Theatre or the Elmwood Hall.
There are festivals welcoming visitors all through the year. In May, there is the world famous Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival, in autumn there is the Belfast Festival at Queens and in March, the St. Patrick Festival, followed by the Maritime Festival in June. The city’s movie festival, the Cinemagic is held in November.
Bushmill, the very first authorized alcohol distillery is just off the city and tourists can taste excellent beverages in the visitor center of Hilden Brewery."
Source: Budapest Airport
03.03.2008