March 2026 ... continued from pg 1
Page 14: Andrea McVeigh heads for the Northern Lights in Tromso, Norway
Page 20: Paul Clements explores the historic town of Vienne...
Page 34: Cara Thompson soaks in the coastal charm of Nerja...
Page 49: Sarah Pickering visits the house of Guinness...
in the long-term, replacing the process of manual stamps and electronically recording an individual’s biometric data. Once data is initially collected, only a facial scan or fingerprint scan will be required upon future entry/exit to the Schengen Zone, with the data retained
for up to three
years or until your passport expires.
However, the EES roll- out is still in its early stages, and with a phased rollout throughout European airports, it is expected to result in longer waiting times at border control, especially during peak travel periods. In a bid to reduce longer waiting
times, the UK Government and EU entered into a wide-ranging agreement to allow UK passport holders to utilise eGates throughout Europe. Such cooperation between the UK government and European Union is imperative to benefit both the
holidaymakers and the wider travel and tourism industry. Especially as figures indicate that UK holidaymakers were recorded as the highest demographic of visitors for numerous countries in Europe and further afield. In fact, Spain recorded 19.1 million UK visitors in 2025, marking a 2% increase when compared with 2024. Further afield, the UK reclaimed its position as South Africa’s largest overseas market, with 400,000 UK holiday- makers heading to South Africa in 2025. In February, Prime Minister Keir Starmer
and
China’s President Xi Jinping set in motion a new agreement which will benefit UK passport holders when
visiting China. In the terms of the new agreement, UK passport holders will be able to enter China without applying for a visa, for short-term visits of up to 30 days, until the end of 2026.
Since the announcement,
ABOUT US Publisher
Jonathan Adair
Jonathan@nitravelnews.com Editorial
Sarah Pickering
Sarah@nitravelnews.com Erin English
Erin@nitravelnews.com Cara Thompson
Cara@nitravelnews.com
Business Development Abbie Stothers
Abbie@nitravelnews.com Advertising
Christine McCleery
Christine@nitravelnews.com Danielle Anderson
Danielle@nitravelnews.com Nadine Lawrence
Nadine@nitravelnews.com Events
Emma McAllister
Emma@nitravelnews.com Nicole Wilson
Nicole@nitravelnews.com
Travel News Limited 2B Pavilions Office Park Holywood Co Down BT18 9JQ
Tel: 028 9066 6151
www.nitravelnews.com
If you would like to receive a copy of Northern Ireland Travel News posted direct to you, please contact
Christine@nitravelnews.com FOLLOW US
@nitravelnewsonline @nitravelnews @nitravelnews
Ryanair Adds Extra Flights from Dublin Ahead of Champions Cup Final
RYANAIR has added extra Dublin to Santander flights in anticipation of the Champions Cup Final which takes place at San Mames Stadium, Bilbao on Saturday 23rd May. These extra flights means 1,500 extra seats will be available between Dublin and Santander on Friday 22nd May and Sunday 24th May. Ryanair’s Director of Comms, Jade
Kirwan said, “Ryanair has good news for Rugby fans looking to soak up the atmosphere of the highly anticipated Champions Cup Final taking place in Bilbao on Saturday, 23 May, with the addition of an extra 1,600 seats between Dublin and Santander that Friday, 22 May, and Sunday, 24 May. With Leinster pushing hard for a place in the Final.”
CONGRATULATIONS to our January Edition winner,
Travellers Urged to Be ‘Aware’ of Situation Amidst US Global Entry Suspension
TRAVELLERS have been left frustrated after the Department of Homeland Security suspends the Global Entry Programme. The suspension comes during a partial government shutdown, with staff shortages getting much of the blame.
The DHS made the decision on Saturday 21 February which seen the planned suspension for both the
Global Entry Programme and
the PreCheck Programme. It was then reversed for PreCheck, with the Global Entry Programme suspension remaining in place. The suspension is expected the last throughout the duration of the partial government shutdown.
The popular programme allows pre-approved,
It helps
expedited entry into the U.S at select airports.
low-risk travellers reduce
passport
control lines, includes a TSA PreCheck and speeds up security screening.
Speaking on the planned suspension, Andrea Caulfield-Smith, Managing Director
of Global Business Travel for Advantage Travel Partnership encouraged travellers to be aware of the situation,
“Following the news that the Department of Homeland Security plans to suspend the Global Entry programme, it is vital that those travelling to the United States for business are aware of how this may affect their upcoming travel plans, and the negative financial implications it could have.
The Global Entry system makes overseas travel significantly quicker and easier, and without this, travellers will feel the impact on speed, ease and efficiency, as wait times increase. Travellers will need to incorporate extra time into their travels due to the risk of queues and longer security checks.”
COMPETITION WINNER
Wendy Wu Tours has seen a 35% year-on- year increase in enquiries for China, highlighting the immediate positive impact of this new visa ruling. With such a surge in demand following the ruling, it is clear that holidaymakers value the ease of visa-free travel and such geopolitical agreements can benefit both the outbound and inbound travel industry as a whole. The positive impact of geopolitical visa agreements can be best seen through the success of Dublin Airport’s US preclearance, in which travellers on direct flights to the United States pass
through border pre-clearance prior to take- off and land in the US as a domestic traveller. A move which significantly simplifies and bolsters transatlantic travel amongst the Irish and Northern Irish markets. However, an ESTA is still required for travellers flying to the United States and in a recent update, passengers are being urged to check their ESTA status. Earlier this year, The US Customs and Border Protection has advised that they may cancel ESTA applications where the photo provided as part of the application process is a picture of an individual’s passport page. Travellers are being advised to supply a
live photograph or selfie when completing the application process, to avoid any issues with an ESTA application. Passengers are being advised to check their ESTA application and status before travelling. If your ESTA status has been cancelled, travellers must reapply before travelling to the United States. Despite all this, travellers’ eagerness to explore the world continues to grow year- on-year. With such an ever-growing and developing industry, it seems that that one thing is for certain - the desire to travel is here to stay.
www.nitravelnews.com
CONTENTS | 3
Ellen
Ward who WON 4 Nights in a 4* Hotel in Boston, with return flights from Dublin, courtesy of Travel Solutions.
Competitions just like this can be entered via the newpaper and online at
www.nitravelnews.com every month.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
