The year-round service will be operated twice weekly, starting 21 August 2024. easyJet previously operated the BUD-LYS route pre-pandemic (2019/2020), with an annual seat capacity of almost 50,000.
Following the relaunch, Budapest Airport anticipates an initial 38,000 annual seats, while high historic load factors suggest demand will drive increasing frequencies, possibly as early as SS25.
In 2019, traffic on the route was predominantly inbound leisure passengers from France (90%+). As the service matured, it gained popularity among Hungarian travelers, increasing their share to 24%, and a similar trend is forecast for 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.
“We are delighted to welcome the resumption of easyJet’s BUD-LYS service,” says Máté Ritter, Head of Airline Development at Budapest Airport. “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, 22,000 two-way transfer passengers were traveling 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, will surely attract Hungarian skiers and make it a popular route in both directions.”
LYS will be easyJet’s fourth route from BUD, joining successful services to London Gatwick (LGW), Basel (BSL), and Geneva (GVA).
