Saudi-based budget carrier flynas has announced plans to launch non-stop flights from the kingdom to the Seychelles islands starting from next month. It will fly directly from Jeddah thrice a week, with fast connections to or from Riyadh and Dammam.
Saudi-based budget carrier flynas has announced plans to launch flights from the kingdom to the Seychelles islands starting from July 1.
As per the schedule, flynas will fly directly from Jeddah thrice a week to Mahé, with fast connections to or from Riyadh and Dammam.
Operating on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, the 5 hours and 40 minute flight will be operated on brand new A320 Neo aircraft with a capacity of 174 seats, said the statement from the Saudi low-cost airline.
The new flights, which will make travelling to Seychelles easier for Saudi residents, was initiated in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Tourism, alongside the Seychelles Tourism Board and the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority, it stated.
On the new flights, Seychelles Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism Sylvestre Radegonde said: "With the arrival of flynas on our shores, the Ministry of Tourism is looking forward to seeing an increase in the number of visitors from the Saudi region."
"The three weekly flights to Seychelles from Jeddah represent another great opportunity for our destination, as not only will Seychelles be accessible directly to Saudi Arabian nationals but also the expatriates living in the kingdom," he added.
According to him, Saudi Arabia is the largest outbound market in the Middle East and with many in the kingdom looking to go overseas after the opening of borders, Seychelles is ready to play host.
"Accessible as never before, and with no visas required from any nationality, Seychelles, land of diversity and discovery is a great place to spend quality time and to reconnect with nature," he added.
Welcoming the flights, Seychelles Tourism Board CEO Sherin Francis said: "Our country is pushing forward with increasing the destination’s reach and to attract new visitors worldwide. We are excited that flynas and Saudi Arabia have finally opened up the Saudi Arabia-Seychelles route."
"We anticipate that this new route will greatly enhance the visibility of our destination in Saudi Arabia and its neighbouring regions. We believe that this will help build travel confidence towards the Seychelles islands, not having to connect through other countries also makes it easier and more convenient," remarked Francis.
"We are very happy to open our shores to all travellers travelling from and via Saudi Arabia to Seychelles. It is an amazing opportunity for us to welcome them to Seychelles and to provide them with an excellent time with many beautiful experiences," she added.
Ahmed Fathallah, STB representative in the Middle East, said: "We are delighted to share this news with everyone. For a while now, the lack of direct flights has been a determining factor for travellers in the Kingdom who want to experience Seychelles."
"These non-stop flights will not only help the travellers but also our trade partners in the travel industry, as this will make it easy for them to direct their valued clients to the sunny islands of Seychelles," he added.-TradeArabia News Service