The UK's popular East Midlands Airport has set out its stall for UK travellers looking for an easy start to their holiday this autumn and winter. Like other UK regional airports in recent years, East Midlands Airport has seen substantial growth and development. This is in a great degree due to the development of new routes by low cost carriers to new destinations. But it is also due to the demands of discerning travellers, who realise increasingly that no package holiday should begin with an exhausting and expensive trip to the so-called "hub" airports in the south or north-west of England.



As the credit crunch begins to bite, such considerations of cost as well as convenience will intensify the need for travellers to look at all aspects of their budget. Hence they will be selecting destinations based on available routes from their local airport to save fuel on driving to a far-away airport, or hotels costs for an overnight stay before departure.

Additionally, the price of fuel is already causing airlines such as Ryanair (who have seen exponential growth in the past decade) to cut back on selected routes. How this will affect customer choice and the ability of some destinations to continue to attract UK visitors is yet to be seen, but experience shows that destinations without a traditional following will be hard-pressed to keep customer loyalty when low-cost travel facilities start to dry up in coming seasons.

Thus in the case of East Midlands Airport, popular but less mainstream locations are being heavily promoted, alongside traditional summer and winter holiday destinations. These include Ryanair routes such as Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands and Faro in Portugal - both popular for traveller traditionally seeking extended summer sun where the weather tends to stay good through to early October. And in the case of Faro in particular - where days of less favourable weather can be compensated by excellent cultural attractions.

Also promoted heavily are trips to Prague from October. The Czech Republic's capital city has been enjoying a massive boost in UK travel - not necessarily simply due to the growth in stag weekends, but also due to the easy accessibility from regional airports at prices which allow travellers to afford to grab several weekend breaks each year in addition to their main holidays. Destinations such as Prague are likely to continue to attract business for this reason.

Another destination which has always attracted a big UK following is Bulgaria. Again, hardly mainstream like Spain or Greece for Summer holidays, or Austria and France for ski breaks, the destination nevertheless has a loyalty amongst the discerning, who have long since discovered the excellent value for money to be had in this destination in the South East of Europe, with its blue flag beaches, sunny weather and high quality hotels. For the winter, of course, Bulgaria also features its three skiing resorts of Bansko, Borovets and Pamporovo. These are perfect for beginner and intermediate skiers, with Bansko and Borovets being most suitable for advanced skiers. All three resorts have a wide choice of excellent hotels and apartments and excellent apres ski including restaurants, bars and nightclubs. Hence, travellers looking for a ski destination served locally at East Midlands Airport are well served.

Thus East Midlands, along with other UK regional airports, are pushing hard to keep variety, value and choice alive at times when the challenges for holidaymakers and businesses alike are plain to see.