Flights to Jersey

There are flights to Jersey all year round from most of the main UK airports - for most people it's the quickest and easiest way to get to Jersey. Flights to Channel Islands from the UK are considered domestic flights.

During the summer months there are extra flights from even more UK and European airports.

Airlines with flights to Jersey all-year-round include:

• Flybe - flying from Birmingham, Southampton, Gatwick, Exeter, Guernsey, Edinburgh, Bristol
• British Airways - flying from Gatwick and Manchester
• Air Southwest - flying from Plymouth and Bristol
• Thomsonfly - flying from Coventry
• Atlantic Express - flying from London Stanstead
• Blue Islands - flying from the Isle of Man, Guernsey and Bournemouth
• Aurigny - flying from Bristol, Gatwick, Stanstead and Manchester
• Bmibaby - flying from Nottingham East Midlands, Birmingham and Manchester
• VLM - flying from London City
• BMI - flying from Heathrow starting March 2007
• Twin Jet - flying from Paris Orly West and Cherbourg

Additional routes with flights to Jersey during the summer include:

• Bmibaby - flying from Cardiff
• Flybe - flying from Belfast City, Glasgow, Liverpool, London Southend, Newcastle and Norwich
• Aer Lingus - flying from Dublin

Tips

It's worth checking out all the airlines that offer flights to Jersey from any airports you can get to, as prices can vary a lot. Some airlines have email newsletters that are worth signing up for. They let you know about special offers on flights, although you often have to book very quickly to get them.

One or two airlines sometimes offer flights to the Channel Islands at little more than the cost of the airport taxes. If your travel dates are flexible it can be well worth looking out for these offers.

To get good prices during school holidays and half-terms, you will need to book well in advance - but be warned - booking too far in advance and then seeing the airline make a special offer for flights on the same dates at a fraction of the price can be infuriating! Try and sign up for the email newsletter or check the airline website every few days for a while to see if they advertise offers on the route.

Don't forget to add the cost of getting to the airport, and especially airport parking. These can make all the difference between a cheap flight to Jersey and an expensive one! Consider travelling to the airport by coach, train or even taxi if the parking is expensive.

Check-in and flight times

For most flights to Jersey from the UK, you are recommended to check in at least an hour before the flight. Look carefully at the airline's checking-in rules and do allow plenty of time to get there. Some of the airlines offering cheap flights have very strict check-in times. If you are a few minutes late they may not let you check-in. You will be left with no option but to buy a new flight or forget about making your trip. Flights to Jersey take an hour or less from most UK airports. Some are so short that there may not be time for the refreshments trolley to reach everyone, especially if there is any turbulence. Duty-frees are sold on most flights to Jersey.

Arriving in Jersey

There is a single runway at Jersey Airport, and the direction of approach depends on the wind. If your flight approaches from the East you may spot Gorey Castle to the right and you'll fly right across the Island before landing. If you come in from the West you will approach over St Ouen's Bay (pronounced St Won).

You will have a short walk down the steps of the plane and across the tarmac into the building as there are none of the covered walkways found at some airports. However, unlike some larger airports, none of the gates are too far from the baggage reclaim, and the direction to walk is clearly signed.

Inside the Airport

As you enter the baggage reclaim area, don't be surprised if you walk past a police dog and handler - the dog is trained to detect illegal substances being brought in to the Island.

It's worth looking out for the free Jersey Tourism guide books on the stand on your left.

The baggage reclaim area has three luggage carousels. Generally the wait for luggage isn't too long, although during the school holidays when many flights are arriving you may have to wait a while.

The toilets in the baggage reclaim area often have a queue - so it might be worth looking for the toilets in the corridor that you first arrive in. There is a set near the duty free shop, and another at the far end of the corridor near gate 10. There are also payphones in this corridor and in the baggage reclaim area - and you are allowed to use your mobile once in the building.

Smoking is not allowed anywhere in the airport building - in fact smoking in any enclosed public space is now illegal in Jersey.

Once you leave the baggage reclaim area you walk through a set of doors into the arrivals hall. If someone is meeting you, expect to find them just here.

The main exit to the car park, bus stop and taxi rank is immediately ahead of you, as are the desks of the hire car companies.

To the right is a small coffee shop which sells papers, including the local daily paper, the Jersey Evening Post. If you continue beyond the coffee shop you will come to the bar and the airport shop.

Turn left after the shop to find the restaurant and a small florist shop on your left, the information desk on your right, and ticket desks for the main airlines.

Buses from the Airport

There is a reasonably good bus service from the airport to St Helier. From June to September, daytime buses are about every 20 minutes, and evening buses are reasonably frequent. The rest of the year round the buses are about every half-hour during the day, and there can be long waits in the evenings and on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

The bus route from the airport is the number 15, which travels past the shopping centre and sports facilities at Les Quennevais (pronounced Lay Ken-er-vay) and then down the hill to the pictuesque village and harbour of St Aubin (pronounced St O-bin). The bus route then follows the coast road West towards St Helier and finishes at the bus station (The Weighbridge).

The bus station is just a few minutes walk from the centre of town, and there is a taxi rank next to the station. The bus company have an information office at the bus station where you can buy a current timetable. You can check the current bus timetable here. To work out which bus you could catch from your flight, you usually need to allow at least half an hour from your landing time to get through baggage reclaim - more at busy periods.

One or two airlines frequently arrive ahead of schedule by as much as 20 minutes. My guess is that they state a longer flight time than is needed so that even if they take off a little late, their flights to Jersey will still have an excellent punctuality record as they can arrive on time despite a late departure!

Flights to Jersey are sometimes affected by fog. Visit the Jersey Airport website to see if today's flights to Jersey are arriving on time.

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