FREE REPO FOR PRESS: Cork Airport, Cork, Ireland. 11th December, 2025. Pictured at Cork Airport at the announcement of two new destinations to Nice and Santiago De Compostela were; Aer Lingus Ground Operations staff Christine Conroy, MD, Cork Airport Niall MacCarthy, Business Development Manager Aer Lingus, Ivan Beacom, Head of Global Leisure Sales, Aer Lingus Jenny Rafter and Aer Lingus ground operations staff, Liza Chervova. – Picture: David Creedon
FREE REPO FOR PRESS: Cork Airport, Cork, Ireland. 11th December, 2025. Pictured at Cork Airport at the announcement of two new destinations to Nice and Santiago De Compostela were; MD Cork Airport, Niall MacCarthy, Business Development Manager Aer Lingus, Ivan Beacom and communications manager Barry Holland. – Picture:
- New Aer Lingus services will provide a direct connection between Cork, the Cote d’Azur and Galicia region next summer.
- Aer Lingus will extend their popular seasonal Cork – Prague route from a winter-only to a year-round service next year.
- Aer Lingus’ 2026 Summer Schedule includes popular sun services to Malaga, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Faro, Palma de Mallorca, Bilbao, Bordeaux, together with services to London Heathrow and Aer Lingus Regional services to Bristol and Glasgow.
Cork Airport — December 11, 2025 — Cork Airport, Europe’s Best Regional Airport, is today celebrating the addition of two new Aer Lingus European routes to Nice and Santiago de Compostela. Commencing on May 6 and June 1 respectively, the two new routes are complemented by the extension of Aer Lingus’ route to Prague from a winter-only service to a year-round service. The addition of Nice and Prague today bring to six*, the number of new Aer Lingus routes that have been announced within the last 12 months. As part of the Irish flag carrier’s 2026 Summer schedule, Aer Lingus will operate its popular summer sun services to Málaga, Faro, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Palma de Mallorca, Bilbao and Bordeaux, along with daily services to London Heathrow and Aer Lingus Regional services to Bristol and Glasgow.
Nice
The jewel of the Côte d’Azur, Nice is nestled on the French Mediterranean coastline. Visitors can stroll along the famous Promenade des Anglais, the most iconic stretch of seafront in Nice, lined with palm trees and overlooking the clear, blue waters of the Baie des Anges. The colourful, winding, narrow streets and alleyways of the old town (Vieux Nice) are a big attraction for visitors, while art lovers can visit the Marc Chagall National Museum and the Matisse Museum, celebrating two of France’s most iconic artists. Summer in Nice offers attractive temperatures, ranging from 20°C – 27°C and visitors can sample local delicacies like socca (a golden, crisp pancake made from chickpea flour), pissaladière (a savoury tart topped with caramelised onions and anchovies), tourte de blettes (a pie filled with chard, raisins, and pine nuts) or the world-famous salad Niçoise. Flying into Nice, visitors can opt to travel a little further along the Côte d’Azur to the cities of Cannes, Antibes or even venture on a day trip to the principality of Monaco. Aer Lingus will fly twice weekly from Cork to Nice next summer, with flights operating on Wednesday and Saturday. The service will operate from May 6, 2026, through September 30, 2026.
Santiago de Compostela
A city steeped in spirituality and culture, Santiago de Compostela is best known as the final stop on the world-renowned Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. Its UNESCO-listed Old Town is a maze of cobbled streets leading to the awe-inspiring Cathedral of Santiago, constructed between the 11th and 13th centuries. Beyond the city’s religious significance, Santiago is home to lively tapas bars, traditional Galician cuisine including the famous tarta de Santiago (almond cake) and a unique folk music culture. Santiago is the gateway to the wider Galicia region, with historic links dating back to both the Celt and Roman civilisations. The bustling port cities of A Coruña and Vigo are a convenient train journey away, while Cape Finisterre (or “Fisterra”), which was known to the Romans as the “end of the world”, boasts some of the most remarkable coastal scenery on mainland Europe. Aer Lingus will fly twice weekly from Cork to Santiago de Compostela next summer, with flights operating on Monday and Thursday. The service will operate from June 1, 2026, through October 22, 2026.
Prague
Having started on October 23 last, Aer Lingus’ popular Prague service will extend to a year-round service with twice-weekly flights, on Monday and Thursday. The service will operate through October 22, 2026.
Welcoming the exciting Aer Lingus summer schedule announcement, Head of Aviation Business Development & Communications at Cork Airport, Tara Finn said: “Christmas has come early for us here at Cork Airport as we announce two new routes for summer 2026 with our friends at Aer Lingus. Nice and Santiago de Compostela are two fantastic cities, and both open up the options for visitors to explore the wider regions surrounding them – whether that is the Côte d’Azur or Galicia. Prague is an amazing Christmas market and summer destination and wonderful to see it going year-round. We are delighted to see Aer Lingus expanding and freshening their offering from Cork. They have a loyal customer base who will only travel Aer Lingus and insist on Cork, and these new routes will delight that loyal base and more.”
Susanne Carberry, Chief Customer Officer at Aer Lingus, added: “Aer Lingus customers in Cork and southern Ireland now have even more destinations to choose from as Nice and Santiago de Compostela join our European network. Both destinations are rich in culture, cuisine, and offer charm in abundance. With Prague also moving to a year-round service, we’re ensuring our customers have even greater flexibility and choice next summer.”
ENDS
For more information, contact:
Barry Holland
Communications Manager, Cork Airport
(087) 353 9917
Kathleen Walshe
Communications Specialist, Cork Airport
kathleen.walshe@corkairport.com
(087) 938 9769
Kelli O’Malley
Head of Communications, Aer Lingus
(087) 347 2993
Aoife Bannon
Communications, Aer Lingus
aoife.bannon@aerlingus.com
Notes to Editor:
* Bilbao, Bordeaux, Prague and Geneva were added this year.
| Depart Cork | Arrive Nice | Operates | Valid | |
| EI824 | 0740 | 1105 | Wed, Sat | May 6 – Sept. 30 |
| Depart Nice | Arrive Cork | Operates | Valid | |
| EI825 | 1145 | 1325 | Wed, Sat | May 6 – Sept. 30 |
| Depart Cork | Arrive Santiago | Operates | Valid | |
| EI852 | 1225 | 1520 | Mon, Thu | Jun. 1 – Oct. 22 |
| Depart Santiago | Arrive Cork | Operates | Valid | |
| EI853 | 1600 | 1655 | Mon, Thu | Jun. 1 – Oct. 22 |
| Depart Cork | Arrive Prague | Operates | Valid | |
| EI832 | 1735 | 2110 | Mon, Thu | Mar. 30 – Oct. 22 |
| Depart Prague | Arrive Cork | Operates | Valid | |
| EI833 | 2145 | 2340 | Mon, Thu | Mar. 30 – Oct. 22 |
Fares to Nice and Santiago de Compostela are available from €69.99 and €59.99 respectively, one-way including taxes and charges. For more information and to book flights, visit aerlingus.com.
Photography
Photography by David Creedon. Free reproduction. Captions embedded.
About Cork Airport
Cork Airport – the fastest-growing airport in the state – is the best-connected international airport serving the South of Ireland and was voted “Best Regional Airport in Europe” by Airport Council International (ACI) Europe in 2025. In 2024, Cork Airport welcomed 3.1 million passengers (+10% vs. 2023), flying on over 50 routes to the UK and continental Europe and is forecasting 13% growth again in 2025, to bring its passenger numbers to over 3.4 million.
Cork Airport offers a very pleasant passenger experience, complemented by modern facilities and friendly teams delivering high passenger satisfaction levels, excellent customer service and punctual departures for airlines.
Cork Airport is progressing its €200 million Capital Development programme, to put in place the necessary infrastructure to support its growth to beyond 5 million passengers per annum in the next number of years.
In addition, Cork Airport is leading the way on sustainability and was named as the “Best Performing Commercial Semi-State Body” for energy reduction for two years running, as assessed by SEAI (Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland).
About Aer Lingus
Aer Lingus is the Irish flag carrier, founded in 1936. Aer Lingus operates over 100 routes from Dublin, Cork, Shannon and Knock to Europe, the UK and North America. Reaffirming its commitment to North America, the airline will operate 24 transatlantic routes in 2025 from Dublin, Shannon and Manchester, UK to North America and the Caribbean.
Aer Lingus is a 4-star airline, awarded by Skytrax, the international air transport rating organisation. Aer Lingus is a member of International Airlines Group (IAG), one of the world’s largest airline groups. As part of IAG, Aer Lingus has pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and has committed to powering 10% of its flights using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by 2030.
