Get in the virtual queue

JUST in case people missed the news, Budget Travel has decided to use an on-line queuing system until December 31.

The company is offering customers an opportunity to win one of 30 Mediterranean holidays.

To avoid any inconvenience to people who have traditionally formed the queue over the Christmas and New Year period, Budget Travel has issued a letter to people who have queued in recent years informing them of its decision to move the queue online.

To join the virtual queue and be in with a chance to win a holiday, people should log on to www.budgettravel.ie, click on the ‘January Sale Queue’ icon and follow the steps to register details on-line.

Registration details include a preferred airport departure, a preferred destination and the number of people travelling.

The computer will randomly select 30 winners from those who have queued on-line and winners will be advised by phone on Tuesday, January 2, the day before the Budget Travel 2007 sale starts.

IRELAND’S online travel agent ebookers.ie is offering three-day specials to New York, Los Angeles and Boston for the first of the 2007 sales. Travel is between January 1 and March 31.

The company has three-night packages to New York, with accommodation in the Hotel Beacon Travel starting from €649.

It won’t cost much more to travel all the way to the west coast, with prices starting from €699 including three nights at the Hotel Quality Otani.

Orlando comes in even cheaper than New York (from €599). See www.ebookers.ie for further details.

AER Arann continues to expand, with new routes from Waterford to Birmingham, Galway to Newcastle and Bristol and Sligo to Manchester. The Waterford to Birmingham service will operate daily excluding Saturday, while the other three services will operate four days per week and fares will start from €45 one way including tax.

This will bring the total number of Aer Arann routes between Ireland and the UK to 24. The airline also recently announced that it will operate seven routes to France during summer 2007 including four services from Lorient to Waterford, Galway, Cork and Kerry, and three services from Nantes to Cork, Bristol and Cardiff.

For more information visit www.aerarann.com or contact reservations on 0818 210 210.

TOPFLIGHT is offering three-day packages to Norway’s oldest ski resort, Lillehammer.

The Irish company will use the three-star Birkeneineren Hotel in the centre of the Olympic Park in the resort.

Direct flights between Dublin and Oslo start from €399 per person (not including taxes or ski packs).

For further information call Topflight on [phone] or check out www.topflight.ie.