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Hello, and welcome to Smart With Points! I'm Jack, and if you've ever dreamed of sipping rosé in Saint-Tropez, eating your weight in Michelin-starred pintxos in San Sebastián, or lounging on Sardinian beaches without having to change planes twice, well, have I got news for you today. British Airways has just announced three brand new European routes for summer twenty twenty-six, and they're all operated by BA Cityflyer, which means yes, there's a business class cabin on every single flight. So grab your metaphorical passport, and let's dive into what's on offer.
British Airways has just unveiled three new European destinations for summer twenty twenty-six, and these are all about the leisure market. We're talking glamorous beach destinations and foodie hotspots. The three new routes are: London City to Toulon Saint-Tropez, London Stansted to Olbia in Sardinia, and Glasgow to San Sebastián in Spain. All three are seasonal summer services operated on Embraer one-ninety aircraft, and crucially, all include a Club Europe business class cabin.
Let's start with the most exciting announcement – London City to Toulon Saint-Tropez. This is a brand new destination for British Airways. Not just for BA Cityflyer, but for the entire BA network. This is significant because Toulon Airport is just thirty miles from Saint-Tropez, making it the closest airport to this iconic French Riviera destination.
The route will operate twice weekly from London City Airport, running from the twenty-third of May through to the first of September twenty twenty-six. You've got flights on Tuesdays and Saturdays, with fares starting from one hundred and twenty-seven pounds each way.
Now, if you're not familiar with London City Airport, let me tell you why this is such a winner. If you're in central or east London, you can realistically get from kerbside to airside in under fifteen minutes. Central London is just twenty-two minutes away via the Elizabeth Line. Compare that to the schlep out to Heathrow, and you can see the appeal.
Flight times look pretty reasonable too. The Saturday departure leaves at seven in the morning and arrives at ten local time, giving you most of the day on the Côte d'Azur. The Tuesday service departs at three-fifty in the afternoon. Toulon Saint-Tropez becomes BA Cityflyer's fourth French destination, joining Nice, Bergerac, and Chambéry.
Next up, we've got London Stansted to Olbia in Sardinia. Now, Sardinia has been experiencing a tourism boom. The press release notes that overnight stays hit a record eighteen point nine million in twenty twenty-four, which is up thirty-eight percent from twenty twenty-three. So BA is clearly responding to demand here.
The new Stansted route will operate from the twenty-third of May through to the twenty-seventh of September twenty twenty-six, twice weekly on Saturdays and Sundays. Fares start from one hundred and twenty-seven pounds each way.
This complements existing BA services to Olbia from London City and Heathrow. When you combine all these services, BA Cityflyer will fly to Olbia up to five times per week from London City and twice per week from Stansted during summer twenty twenty-six.
Stansted is an interesting choice here. It's generally cheaper to park at and easier to navigate than Heathrow, and it serves a different catchment area in the East of England and north London. If you're in that part of the country, this could be much more convenient than trekking across to Heathrow or into the City.
And finally, we have Glasgow to San Sebastián. This one's for the Scottish foodies out there. San Sebastián is famous for its world-class cuisine. It has one of the highest concentrations of Michelin stars per capita in the world, and it's got beautiful beaches to boot.
BA Cityflyer already flies to San Sebastián from London City and Edinburgh, and now Glasgow gets direct access too. The route runs from the eighteenth of July to the eighth of September twenty twenty-six, so this is a pure peak-summer service. It operates twice weekly on Tuesdays and Saturdays, with fares starting from one hundred and thirteen pounds each way.
Combined with Edinburgh and London City, BA Cityflyer will offer up to seven weekly frequencies to San Sebastián across its network in summer twenty twenty-six. At one hundred and thirteen pounds each way, this is the cheapest of the three new routes, though remember these are starting prices and will vary based on demand and timing.
So what about Avios? Well, none of these routes are long enough to offer exceptional Avios redemption value, but they're all bookable with Avios through BA's reward pricing. For short-haul European flights like these, you're typically looking at around nine thousand two hundred and fifty to thirteen thousand seven hundred and fifty Avios each way in economy during off-peak periods.
The real question is whether Avios represents good value compared to cash prices. With fares starting at one hundred and thirteen to one hundred and twenty-seven pounds each way, you'll want to run the numbers yourself. That said, if you're flush with Avios and these destinations are on your radar, keep an eye on BA's periodic sales where they discount Avios redemptions by up to fifty percent.
One nice feature of BA Cityflyer is that all flights include a Club Europe business class cabin. On the Embraer one-nineties, this means the front rows with a blocked middle seat, giving you more personal space. You'll also get additional baggage allowance, priority boarding, and the full Club Europe meal and drinks service. For a short hop to the South of France or Spain, it's a pleasant way to start a holiday, especially if you can snag an upgrade or find a reasonable Avios redemption price.
If you're working towards or maintaining BA status, these short hops won't earn you many tier points, but every little helps, and Club Europe earns at a higher rate than economy.
So here's my take on all of this. I'm genuinely pleased to see BA expanding its European leisure network. The Toulon Saint-Tropez route is the most interesting of the three. It's a brand new destination for BA and offers access to one of Europe's most glamorous coastlines from the convenience of London City Airport.
The Sardinia expansion makes sense given the island's growing popularity, and giving Scottish travellers direct access to San Sebastián is a nice touch. These routes follow BA's recent announcement of new services to Montenegro and Guernsey for summer twenty twenty-six, so clearly the airline is betting on leisure travel continuing to boom.
For points collectors, these routes aren't going to be sweet spots in terms of redemption value, but they add useful optionality to the BA network. And if you're planning a summer twenty twenty-six trip to any of these destinations, being able to earn and redeem Avios, plus access airport lounges with the right status or card, is always a bonus.
All three routes are available to book now on ba.com. Let me give you a quick rundown of the flight schedules.
For London City to Toulon Saint-Tropez, on Tuesdays the flight departs London City at fifteen-fifty, arriving at eighteen-fifty local time, and returns at nineteen-thirty-five, arriving back in London at twenty-forty. On Saturdays, it departs London City at seven in the morning, arrives at ten, and returns at ten-forty-five, arriving back at eleven-fifty.
For London Stansted to Olbia, on Saturdays the flight departs Stansted at fourteen-fifteen, arriving at seventeen-forty-five, and there are two return options: one departing Olbia at eleven-fifty-five, arriving at thirteen-forty, and an evening return at eighteen-thirty-five, arriving at twenty-twenty. On Sundays, it departs Stansted at eight-fifty, arriving at twelve-thirty.
And for Glasgow to San Sebastián, on Tuesdays the flight departs Glasgow at fifteen-fifteen, arriving at eighteen-forty, and returns at nineteen-twenty-five, arriving back at twenty-fifty-five. On Saturdays, it departs Glasgow at seven-thirty-five, arrives at eleven, and returns at eleven-forty-five, arriving back at thirteen-fifteen.
So there you have it – three new routes to add to your summer twenty twenty-six travel wishlist. Whether you're after French Riviera glamour, Sardinian beaches, or Basque Country cuisine, BA Cityflyer has you covered.
That's all for today's episode. Thanks so much for listening to Smart With Points. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe on all major podcast platforms, or head over to our website at smartwithpoints.co.uk to stay up to date with all the latest miles and points news. Safe travels, and I'll catch you on the next one.
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