Virgin Atlantic adds Riyadh and Accra to summer 2025 schedule
Virgin Atlantic has announced two new destinations as part of its summer 2025 schedule, with the launch of services to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and the return to Accra, Ghana.
From March 2025, the airline will operate a daily service on board the A330neo to King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; inkeeping with the Saudi Vision 2030’s vision for growth. In 2023, annual trade between the two nations was worth an estimated £17.1 billion, something that is forecast to rise to £30 billion by 2030 – with air travel to grow 24% between 2019 and 2035.
Virgin Atlantic estimates the new route will have a “predominately Saudi Arabian point of sale,” which alongside serving business travellers, will benefit passengers vising family or friends; a market that has “seen a fivefold increase in Saudis living in the UK between 2000 and 2018”.
Additionally, daily flights to the Ghanaian capital of Accra will return from May, marking the first services the carrier has operated to the region since 2013. Flying into Kotoka International Airport, the 787 Dreamliner will provide “much needed competition on the rote, which currently lacks a choice of routes between the two countries,” stated Virgin Atlantic. Around 10% of customers flying Accra are expected to connect through the airline’s New York JFK service.
