Mumbai07 Sep 22 1 Traveller Economy
Showing International Flight from Madrid
About Madrid
Madrid is one of the hottest holiday destinations in Spain and no, and we are not talking about the weather here. It's not as popular as Barcelona, but it is definitely a city that you must visit. Spain is one of the cheapest holiday destinations in Europe compared to other countries and is worth every penny spent. Madrid is an architectural marvel and is also known for its rich culture. You will occasionally run into an old Spanish Grandma or another local who is all excited to help you with directions or hand you a list of the best attractions to visit in the city. There are high chances of you befriending a lot of locals and staying in touch with them later on through social media. Not to mention, the city is musically inclined, and you will find yourself attending quite a few music festivals here. Of course, Madrid is also popular for its food, and you will want to visit the city again just for the gastronomic experience.
Best Time to Visit Madrid
Summer is one of the most popular times for tourists to plan a vacation to Madrid. However, a lot of local shops are shut during this time since the owners also take a vacation. If you don't mind the scorching heat, this is the best time to fly to Madrid. The temperature ranges from 15 to 31 degree Celsius in summer. You might also want to book your hotel in Madrid well in advance if you are planning to visit the city in summer. You can attend quite a few festivals and events during summers like the International Gay Pride, Mad Cool Festival, Feria del Libro and Veranos de la Villa. Tourists also prefer taking a taxi to get around the city instead of walking around to avoid the heat.
September to November is the autumn season in Madrid and quite pleasant, too. The temperature ranges from 6 to 26 degree Celsius, and this is also when most locals return from their vacations. The shops remain open, and you get to enjoy the highlights of the city at its best. You can also attend the Autumn Festival that happens in October and November. December to February are the coldest months in Madrid. The temperature ranges from 2 to 12 degree Celsius, January being the coldest month. This is also the best time to book a hotel in Madrid or get cheap flight tickets to Madrid since it is not a high season.
Spring season is from March to May and is a pleasant time to head to Madrid. It is right before the high season, so the locals are preparing to welcome a lot of tourists. The hotel prices are low this season and flight tickets are also pretty cheap. The temperature ranges from 5 to 21 degree Celsius and a lot of tourist spots are also open. The best part is that you get to hog the city to yourself since it is not very crowded.
Places to Visit in Madrid
Plaza Mayor, originally called Plaza del Arrabal, is a major tourist attraction in Madrid. You will find yourself admiring the architecture of the place and take lots of pictures. Royal Palace of Madrid is yet another tourist spot that has a lot of historical importance. It was built right where the Moorish Castle was destroyed in 1734 after a tragic fire broke out. It is one of the most important tourist spots in the city. You can also visit the National Museum of History, called the Museo Nacional Del Prado. It houses some of the best masterpieces by renowned artists like Van Dyck, Goya, El Greco, Rembrandt and so on. You will find paintings that date back to the 11th and 18th century. The Temple of Debod was a gift to the city by former Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser. Catch the best of artist Francisco Goya's paintings at the Royal Chapel of St Anthony of La Florida. The church also has the remains of the artist who was buried in front of the altar.
Teatro Real, or the Royal Theatre, is considered to be one of the best opera houses in all of Europe. It has a seating capacity of 1745 people, and you can even get a guide to take you through the theatre. You can also visit the Royal Site of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, a monument that took approximately 20 years to construct. Watch some of the most beautiful fountains at the Plaza de Cibeles. It is also home to the bank of Spain, Linares Palace and Buenavista Palace. Madrid also has a happening nightlife scene. You can head to Barrio de La Latina for some delectable tapas, go dancing and have some amazing beer. However, if crowded places are a deal-breaker for you, you might want to steer clear of visiting the place on weekends.
Things to do in Madrid
You can go on a guided tour of the city. Reserve a day for museums, another day for art tours and a few days to sit back, relax and party. Madrid's nightlife scene is quite exciting. Make sure you visit museums like Museo del Prado, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Museo Sorolla and Museo Reina Sofia. It would be advisable to hire a guide for your museum tour. You'll get to know a lot more interesting facts about the city. You will find yourself appreciating the architecture, and you will be amazed at everything that you see in the museums. If you want to spend your evening relaxing at El Retiro, one of the most beautiful parks in Madrid. You can either plan a picnic on the grass or go boating around the lake in the park. If you are at Plaza Mayor, make sure you try the squid roll here. You will find a lot of restaurants here that serve delicious squid rolls. It is one of the most popular dishes to try here. You can head to Gran Via for a shopping spree and to La Latina for some tapas. Madrid is also easily accessible to other cities in Spain, and you can also cover other major cities in Spain like Barcelona, Seville, Granada, Ibiza and more. Madrid is a place you can visit with your family or your friends. You can also pack your bags and head for a solo trip to Madrid.
Food and Restaurants in Madrid
Traditional Madrid food consists of meat, bread and cheese. It's best tasted in tapas, samples of small plates of Spanish dishes. They come free with the drinks that you order at the bars. Mercado de San Miguel, a popular market that is located right outside Plaza Mayor, offers tapas along with cocktails, dessert, coffee and produce stalls. You can head over to El Tigre if you want to try some complimentary tapas along with your favourite cocktail. The restaurant serves a large plate of tapas, and even though the place is quite loud, you will enjoy your time here. You can also try paella (which is rice with fish), croquetas (fried breadcrumb rolls dish that is filled with mashed potatoes, meat and cheese), Espanola (potato omelette that you will fall in love with) and gazpacho, which is cold soup. You cannot leave Madrid without trying the famous jamón Iberico, one of the most expensive hams in the world. You will also find a lot of Indian, Asian, Chinese and Latin American cuisine in Madrid. Kathmandu Tandoori House Nepali serves the best Indian and Nepali cuisine. You can head to Antonio of Italia a Tavola for authentic Italian food. If you want to try street food that's also healthy, you can try Azotea Forus Barcelo and to Empanadas Malvon Retiro for Argentinean cuisine. Gramabar is a popular spot for everyone who is in the mood for American, Caribbean and Venezuelan cuisine.
How to reach Madrid (Transportation)
Madrid International Airport is called Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport and is situated in the Barajas district. It is about 12 km away from the city centre. The flight connectivity to Madrid from India is excellent. Turkish Airlines, EgyptAir, Lufthansa, Air France are some of the airlines that fly to Madrid quite frequently with layovers at Istanbul, Cairo, Munich and Paris; these are the most popular routes to Madrid by air. If you book in advance, there are high chances that you get cheap flight tickets to Madrid. You will also come across decent flight deals to Madrid online. Madrid Airport is well-equipped with WiFi, lounges and also has a sleeping room in case you want to reach the airport early and wait for your flight. There are lots of taxi and bus services from the airport to your hotel. If you are on a Europe trip and Madrid is on your itinerary, you can also take the Eurail that connects to France and Italy as well. Though you can reach Madrid by rail and road from any other European country, taking a flight to Madrid is one of the most convenient ways to travel.
About Luxair
Luxair is the official flag carrier of the European country Luxembourg. The airline has its headquarters at Luxembourg Airport in Findel, close to Luxembourg City. The airline operates scheduled services to several domestic routes within the European Union as well as international routes connecting to North Africa, the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Additional charter services are also present and available which can be availed during peak seasons. Luxair is the sole passenger-carrying airline that offers regular non-charter services too. Founded in 1961, Luxair airline came from Luxembourg Airlines, which was established in 1948. With a view to linking Luxembourg to other European cities with the growing demand for the same, the airline was formed. By 1962, Luxembourg Airlines was rebranded as Luxair with flights commencing operations. The first flight from Luxembourg was to Paris. The Luxembourg - Paris route by Luxair was flown with a Fokker 27 Friendship. Between 1964 - 11969, Luxair expanded its fleet to accommodate three Lockheed L-164A Starliner aircraft. The same was received as a co-operative agreement between Luxair and Trek Airways was signed. This enabled a direct connection to Johannesburg from Luxembourg.
The Lockheed L-1649A Starliner was painted in Luxair's livery and also registered in Luxembourg. Luxair's fleet size increased considerably as they had three Fokker F27 Friendships and one Vickers Viscount, by 1967. A non-fatal accident with the Vickers Viscount led the airline to eliminate the aircraft from its fleet, and it was replaced with a jetliner, a Sud Aviation Caravelle. The airline received its first Boeing aircraft, a 737-200, in 1977. Gradually, Luxair started introducing more jet aircraft to its fleet with the inclusion of Boeing 747Sps, Boeing 737-400s and Boeing 737-500s aircraft. In 2003, Luxair purchased two new Boeing 737-700s with a view to replacing the older Boeing aircraft in their fleet. The new aircraft eventually delivered in 2004. In 2003, the airline announced that they would be rebranding their logo and a new one was launched later the same year. With a view to transforming its entire fleet to an all-jet fleet, the airline managed to finally replace all the aircraft with Fokker 50 aircraft as the last one to be withdrawn from the services in 2005. With the consistent spike in the price of oil, operations of the jet fleet became challenging for Luxair.
Hence, to avoid turning Luxair into a loss-making venture, the airline decided to reinstate some turboprop aircraft to its fleet. They confirmed a deal with Bombardier Aerospace to acquire three of their Dash 8-Q400s in 2006. All the aircraft were delivered by 2007 while two additional aircraft were ordered later. In 2008, Luxair announced that they would be placing an order for their first Boeing 737-800. The said aircraft would be replacing the last Boeing 737-500 in the airline's fleet. The airline received its first accolade in 2009 when Luxair was awarded as the Most Punctual Scheduled Operator at the London City Airport, as per the CAA statistics. In 2011, Luxair managed to carry about 1,302, 771 passengers. By 2013 and 2014, the airline added two new Boeing 737-800s with the refreshing Boeing Sky Interior, which became part of the fleet and enabled the airline to retire the last of its Boeing 737-500 from service. In 2015, Lufthansa, which holds a 13 per cent share in Luxair, announced that they wished to sell the stake in the airline that it had held for such a long period of time. The sale finally took place, and Lufthansa gave away all of its shares in Luxair to the state of Luxembourg. Following the bankruptcy of Air Berlin, Luxair announced that they would start flights on the international route with flights flying from Saarbrücken Airport in Saarland to Berlin Tegel Airport.
Fleet size of Luxair
As of 2019, Luxair's fleet size stands at 19 aircraft, majorly from the Boeing family with a few Dash 8s. Currently, the airline has four Boeing 737-700s, four Boeing 737-800s and 11 de Havilland Dash 8-400. The three have a passenger capacity of 141, 186 and 76 respectively. Luxair started its operations with a turboprop aircraft. However, intending to enhance its fleet and turn it into an all-Boeing one the airline started purchasing and leasing Boeing aircraft. They even had a Boeing aircraft reserved for its operations to Johannesburg. However, with the economic crisis caused by the excessive rise in the price of fuel in the 2000s, the airline had to reconsider its approach. With an only jet fleet, the high fuel prices would make the venture unprofitable. Hence, they opted to bring in turboprops again in the fleet. As noticed, the airline has a few dedicated Boeing aircraft that fly to specific destinations. As for the other short-haul or tourist destinations in Europe, the airline uses de Havilland Dash 8-400s.
In the past, the airline boasted a slew of Boeing and even an Airbus aircraft. Some of the former aircraft that formed the Luxair fleet includes Airbus A300B4-203 Boeing 737-200, Boeing 747SP, Boeing 767-300ER, Sud Aviation Caravelle 6R, Embraer ERJ-145, Fokker 50, Vickers Viscount, Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia and more.
Luxair's history, the airline, has only had one fatal accident which took place right before the airline reaches the airport for landing. An incoming flight from Germany crashed in a field, just ahead of the airport. The accident cost lives as the airline lost two crew members, 12 passengers, including celebrated artist, Michael Majerus.
Baggage Allowance
Luxair's baggage allowance depends on the cabin class and the type of ticket the passenger holds. As per regular standards, the economy class passengers receive 23 kg free checked baggage. Passengers travelling from business class have a checked baggage limit of 32 kg. In fact, the airline also allows the passengers to carry two pieces of baggage instead of one. Along with the baggage, the airline also allows passengers to carry a small bag along with the checked baggage. Depending on whether the passenger is a miles member, the benefits further enhance in terms of baggage allowance. The dimensions for the baggage is quite important, and the airline is strict about the same. Passengers need to check that the dimension of the baggage should be within 158 cm.
For economy class, the airline allows one carry-on baggage and one regular accessory bag such as a handbag or a laptop bag or a briefcase. The carry-on baggage weight should be no more than 8 kg for economy class passengers. As for business class passengers, the airline allows up to 8 kg but with two bags as opposed to the one baggage allowance in the economy class. Further, the dimension for the carry-on baggage should also not exceed 56 cm x 36 cm x 23 cm.
In-flight services
Luxair has enhanced its fleet to accommodate better aircraft for enhanced in-flight services. Passengers can enjoy in-flight meals, rest easy on their recliner chairs and enjoy the generous legroom. Luxair's other in-flight services also include entertainment systems and magazines that can be asked for onboard.
Popular routes and top cities in Luxair
Luxair is predominantly an airline that majorly caters to a slew of European countries. However, even here, the airline does have some restrictions with respect to the West and East European destinations. Unlike other airlines in the European Union, Luxair does not have dedicated flights to destinations in East Europe. For Luxair, the biggest market in Paris and Berlin. The airline enjoys a plethora of passenger traffic from individuals who need to fly or who need to return from these destinations. The airline currently has a bunch of destinations it flies to, including Vienna, Copenhagen, Nice, Paris, Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Saarbrücken, Dublin, Bari, Milan, Rome, Lisbon, Barcelona, Las Palmas, Madrid, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca, Geneva and London.
Interestingly, Luxair came into existence mainly catering to the tourism market in Europe. Hence much of the destinations that the airline connects to are mostly open on a seasonal basis. Accordingly, the airline has also accommodated flights and charter services that would fly to the tourist destinations during their peak season. The seasonal cities and destinations are Burgas, Varna, Boa Vista, Sal, Split, Dubrovnik, Ajaccio, Calvi, Kos, Rhodes, Corfu, Naples, Venice, Catania, Agadir, Marrakech, Djerba, Menorca, Ibiza, Almeria and more.
The airline has specific codeshare agreements with a few airlines. These include Air France, Hahn Air, Scandinavian Airlines, Alitalia, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, TAP Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines and Austrian Airlines.
Why travel by Luxair?
Luxair is an ideal choice for travellers who wish to visit tourist destinations across Europe. The continent often sees people who wish to explore as many countries as possible during their visit. Hence, the best way to go about it would be to book a Luxair flight and receive some great traveller's benefits too.
The airline has upgraded its website to cater to the new age traveller. There are web check-in provisions as well as updates on the flight status as well as flight schedules. Plus, the baggage allowance details and in-flight services are also explained on their page.
