New flights to Marrakech and Egypt

Budget airline easyJet has officially opened three new routes from Stansted to Marrakech, Sofia and Sharm El Sheikh.

The company said the new destinations will add an extra 100,000 seats a year from the Essex-based airport, with nearly 3,000 passengers expected to take off over the half-term period for holidays in the three destinations.

Hugh Aitken, easyJet commercial manager, said: "This latest expansion sees us adding two mid-haul routes, to Marrakech in Morocco and Egypt's Sharm El Sheikh from Stansted for the first time.

"We're giving our customers from this region an easy and affordable way to explore the delights of two beautiful and culture rich cities in Northern Africa and the capital city of Bulgaria."

The new routes launch at a time when many people will be heading off for family holidays while the children are off school, with Egypt and Marrakech likely to quench their thirst for adventure and history.

The airline has been flying from Stansted since the late 1990s and has carried almost 14 million passengers from the airport to destinations such as Bodrum and, Alicante and Prague.