Helicopter transfer from Nice airport a whole lot easy-er

EasyJet and Monacair, the company founded by Stefano Casiraghi in 1988, have linked up to provide much easier access to and from the Principality, the two companies announced January 23. The partnership means that passengers using the leading airline at Nice-Côte d’Azur Airport and Monaco’s scheduled helicopter shuttle service can be whisked to the Principality in just six minutes.

EasyJet passengers in transit via Nice for Monaco often face major difficulties and delays in reaching the Principality by road. Now they can go directly to the Monacair counter on arrival, where they are picked up and taken to the tarmac to board one of the fleet’s six Airbus helicopters.

Monacair, which offers an airport shuttle every fifteen minutes across seven days, provides a free transfer service between the heliport and any address in the Principality, upon arrival and departure from Monaco.

“Since Monacair became the official operator of this regular line in January 2016, we are stepping up initiatives to facilitate registration, reduce connection times and develop innovative solutions to meet our clients’ need for speed,” Gilbert Schweitzer, Chairman of the Monacair Group, told Monaco Life. “Monacair and easyJet, the precursors of synergy between aircraft and helicopters, are giving our shared passengers the opportunity to benefit from the dynamics of our two airlines.”

The Monaco-Nice journey can also save a great deal of time, as passengers without hold baggage on scheduled easyJet flights can arrive at the heliport in Monaco 50 minutes before the departure of their easyJet flight from Nice. For departures from Monaco, and on arrival in Nice, passengers leaving the helicopter are transferred directly to the boarding gate of their easyJet flight. Holders of the easyJet+ card can embark as a priority.

EasyJet carries three million passengers to and from Nice-Côte d’Azur airport every year, with more than 220 flights a week in and out of Nice, and 25 percent of its passengers are business travellers. In both Nice and Monaco, passengers benefit from comfortable lounges at the heliport.

Réginald Otten, easyJet’s Regional Sales Manager in France commented to Monaco Life, “EasyJet has been a facilitator of travel to and from Nice for 20 years. This partnership is part of that logic while guaranteeing simplicity and saving time. Frequent travellers, including business passengers who are fond of high value-added services, will find in this offer a natural extension of their journey from Paris, London, Geneva.”

Air France adds Tel Aviv and Athens
In other airport news, Air France is to add two new seasonal destinations this summer from Terminal 2 at Nice-Côte d’Azur Airport: Athens and Tel Aviv. From July 22, the national carrier will operate four flights to Israel, on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, leaving shortly after 7 am each morning, except on Saturday, when the flight departs Nice at 11:15 am. The last flight of the season will be on September 9.

Flights to Athens will operate on Tuesday and Thursday, leaving at 8:40 am and 8:15 am respectively. The last flight of the summer will be on August 31. Airbus

A320s will operate on both routes, with a seat capacity of 178. (Feature image: Facebook Monacair)

Article first published January 25, 2017.

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