The Icelandic airline, based in Reykjavik, announced the launch of two new routes in October. Services will be carried out with Airbus A320neo and Airbus A321neo aircraft configured for 174/180 and 214 passengers respectively.
Madeira and Marrakesh, in Portugal and Morocco, will be PLAY’s two acquisitions from Keflavik Airport in Iceland’s capital city.
According to its website, PLAY will offer a weekly flight between Reykjavik and Madeira, which will be performed every Tuesday beginning October 15th. Meanwhile, services to Marrakesh will start on October 17th, and will have two per week
Funchal Cristiano Ronaldo Airport (Madeira) will be the company’s third destination in Portugal after Lisbon and Porto. For its part, Marrakesh represents a very important development, as it is PLAY’s first destination in Africa of its entire connecting network. The carrier is currently focused on Europe and North America, with Europe being its dominant market.
As can be seen through our database, Reykjavik does not have regular operations to Madeira and Marrakesh, and neither has non-stop flights to Africa.
PLAY, for now, will be the only airline on these two routes, as well as the only one in the Iceland – Africa market.
Madeira · effective October 15th
Tuesday
Marrakech · effective October 17th
Thursday and Sunday
Why Madeira and Marrakesh?
PLAY’s mission is to offer competitive prices in all the markets where it operates, and to continue increasing its connectivity with America and Europe, and now also Africa.
Over the last few months, Madeira gained a strong interest, with the inauguration of several connections from different European cities. This is the case of PLAY, which finds an important flow of traffic to the Portuguese island, as well as in the direction to Iceland.
In the case of Marrakesh, it is a huge step for PLAY, as it will become the first Icelandic carrier to fly to Africa. Following the agreement with the Moroccan National Tourist Office, the airline confirms the start of operations to Morocco.
The rich history and culture of Morocco are a major attraction for airlines all around the world. Recently, in addition to PLAY, companies from the U.S. and Canada have announced the beginning of their services to Menara Airport this year.
At present, PLAY has 21 destinations to/from Reykjavik, of which 16 are in Europe.
PLAY’s next additions (in accordance to its website)
Austria
Belgium
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Germany
Italy
Lithuania
Morocco
Poland
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
Some connections return for the summer as they are seasonal.
The airline has 10 aircraft in its fleet (6 Airbus A320neo, 3 Airbus A321neo and 1 Airbus A321NX).
| Aircraft | Registration | Config | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPA | Y174 | Active |
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPB | Y174 | Active |
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPC | Y174 | Active |
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPD | Y180 | Active |
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPE | Y180 | Active |
| Airbus A320neo | TF-PPF | Y180 | Active |
| Airbus A321neo | TF-AEW | Y214 | Active |
| Airbus A321neo | TF-PLA | Y214 | Active |
| Airbus A321neo | TF-PLB | Y214 | Active |
| Airbus A321NX | TF-PLC | Y214 | Active |
Regarding the Americas, PLAY offers passengers the option to prolong their layover into a multi-day stopover for no additional cost for those who want to visit Iceland before continuing their trip across the Atlantic. PLAY´s destinations in North America are Baltimore, Boston, New York and Washington DC in the United States and Toronto in Canada.
Cover photo: Birgir Steinar Birgisson – JetPhotos (Iceland).
