Tourism Breaking News
Following Emirates’ successful launch to Madagascar in September 2024, the airline will introduce additional flights to the island nation, boosting its schedule from four to six-weekly services, starting 2 April 2025. The move reinforces the airline’s commitment to support Madagascar’s tourism ambitions to accommodate more leisure visitors and promote the island destination to global audiences. The boost in operations, in response to strong demand for its passenger services between the capital city and Dubai, was announced at a press conference held by Madagascar’s Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Tourism, and Emirates in Antananarivo.
Since flights commenced last year, Emirates has witnessed tremendous demand for its passenger services, both inbound and outbound, between Antananarivo and Dubai. With the current four weekly flights operating at near full capacity, the significant uplift to the number of seats offered on the route will support Madagascar’s efforts to increase visitor arrivals into the country, while also providing more choice and convenience for travellers to plan trips to and from the popular Indian Ocean destination.
Announcing the expansion of Emirates’ services to the island at the press conference, Essa Sulaiman Ahmad, Emirates’ Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations for West Asia and Indian Ocean said: “We are pleased to boost our services to Madagascar by offering two additional flights per week in line with soaring demand for travel since the start of operations. Our growing flight schedule to the island means better connectivity, more choice and convenient options for travellers. Enhancing services will also strengthen the economic ties between Madagascar and the UAE, by supporting more inbound and outbound leisure and business travel to the island and bolstering trade lanes with additional cargo capacity. As tourism to Madagascar flourishes, local businesses thrive, generating a ripple effect that benefits the local communities. We would like to thank the authorities, the Ministry of Transport and Ministry of Tourism for their support, and we look forward to strengthening our connections and supporting the nation’s development as it looks towards the future.”
To meet seasonal demand, Emirates recently increased its services for a temporary period, from four to five weekly flights and the new frequency represents a significant boost to its operations and capacity on the route.
“We have been diligently supporting the country’s tourism agenda by promoting the destination across our network, which is evident from the healthy bookings, and we will make every effort to continue raising awareness around the vibrant island’s unique charm and stunning natural landscapes to support sustainable traffic growth,” added Ahmad.
The expanded schedule between Dubai and Antananarivo, linked via Mahe, will operate on all days except Mondays.
