rom the Emerald Isle to the Emerald City! Aer Lingus today announced a new North American route from Dublin to Seattle - Ireland’s first ever direct service to the Washington State capital. Renowned for its musical repertoire, the sounds of Seattle will be just one direct flight away come May 2018. V

Caffeine and chords

Home to Boeing, Microsoft, Amazon and… Starbucks, Seattle boasts a vibrant technology sector with strong business links to Ireland. Beyond business, the city is known for bringing grunge rock to the fore, having spawned many musical heroes including Jimi Hendrix, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Death Cab for Cutie, Band of Horses and Fleet Foxes. Second only to New York City, Seattle has the most live music performances in the U.S.

Seattle’s café culture is also an attraction in itself, with the ‘Original Starbucks’ taking residence at Pike Place market since 1971. Seattle is a hub for coffee roasting and the city is reported to have 10 times more coffee stores per 100,000 residents than the U.S. overall.

Largest ever transatlantic network

Since joining IAG in 2015, Aer Lingus has launched six new direct transatlantic services to Los Angeles, Newark, Hartford, Miami, Philadelphia and now Seattle, marking the largest ever transatlantic expansion in the airline’s history. The Airbus A330 offering both business and economy class services, will operate four times weekly from May 18th, 2018 on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

As a result of this record transatlantic growth, 600 new jobs have been created at Aer Lingus. Last month saw the launch of a pilot recruitment drive to hire 200 pilots over the next three years and almost 3,000 applications were received for the first wave of 100 positions in October.

North Atlantic Gateway Strategy

From Seattle, Aer Lingus will offer 24 seamless connections, via the Dublin Gateway, to UK and European cities such as London, Paris, Rome, Brussels, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. British travellers will enjoy connections via Dublin to Seattle from cities such as Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Guests travelling to North America with Aer Lingus can enjoy the complimentary 23kg baggage allowance (Smart Fare), complimentary on-board meals, 120-hours of the very best in-flight entertainment and U.S. Customs and Border pre-clearance at Dublin and Shannon airport. Speaking at the launch of Aer Lingus’ Dublin to Seattle route, Stephen Kavanagh, CEO said:

“We are delighted to announce Seattle as our latest transatlantic route for summer 2018. We believe this service will offer great value choices to our guests and further enhance Ireland’s trade and business links with the U.S. Since joining International Airlines Group some two years ago we have grown and strengthened our Dublin Gateway to North America and we look forward to continuing this development in the years to come.”

Fares to Seattle start from €259 each-way including taxes and charges, when booked as a return trip.