LOOKING for your next getaway? Well, there has never been a better opportunity than to find it at Belfast International Airport.

This summer the Airport has more destinations available that ever before - served by both charter and scheduled operators. Europe continues to be a popular choice with all the major sunspots covered by tour operators Thomas Cook and TUI travel as well as easyJet, Aer Lingus and Jet2.com.

With the merger of the four big names in travel, My Travel and Thomas Cook becoming Thomas Cook Travel and First Choice and Thomson becoming TUI travel, local holidaymakers can now jet off to Antalya in Turkey, Zante in Greece and Las Vegas in the USA.

Thomas Cook Airlines will have two Airbus A320 aircraft based at Belfast, which each carry 180 passengers. Over the summer period, the airline is expecting to transport, in total, nearly 17,000 travellers to their holiday destinations and operating to 24 destinations in total, including ever-popular holiday spots such as Alicante, Corfu and Ibiza, as well as up and coming cities such as Bourgas in Bulgaria.

And the story doesn't end there. The unique exchange rate dynamic in UK terms has meant that Belfast International is one of a select number of UK departure airports experiencing an upturn in holiday traffic for Summer 2008 over Summer 2007.

Belfast has the the dual attraction of Sterling currency stretching comparatively further for Northern Ireland residents departing Belfast rather than Dublin, and the strength of Euro valuation meaning that Belfast International Airport is also a more inviting economic option for travellers living in accessible areas of the Republic of Ireland.

Bmi are offering a new weekly service to the Verona Lakes and Mountains on behalf of Topflight and Thomson this summer. The additional service reflects Topflight's commitment to the Northern Irish market with a huge summer charter programme to Europe - as well as winter sun business which is continuing to grow with weekly charter flights to both Austria and Italy.

Uel Hoey, Business Development Director at Belfast International, said: "The developments within the local industry present exciting opportunities for local holidaymakers and we will be working towards increasing the choice of holiday destinations and frequency of service available in future for the local market - to ensure that Northern Ireland travellers need look no further afield than their local airport for all their holiday needs."