The announcement of the debut of a low cost airline on the London-Hamburg route is expected to spark a fares war from existing carriers.
Germanwings will launch twice-daily flights between London Gatwick and Hamburg on October 31, and is offering return fares from £68 including taxes and charges.
British Airways and Lufthansa also operate flights to Hamburg from Heathrow but until the announcement from Germanwings, the two full service airlines had been unchallenged by other carriers.
Hamburg is one of Europe's busiest ports and is less than two hours by train from Berlin and an hour from Hanover, making it a good starting point for a trip in Germany.
In addition to London flights and an existing Stuttgart flight, Germanwings will operate services to Istanbul, Krakow, Toulouse, Warsaw, Zagreb, Munich, Oslo, and Stockholm from October 31, going head-to-head with Lufthansa to the latter three destinations and to Stuttgart.
Other airlines operating out of Hamburg include Air Berlin, which flies to Manchester five times a week among other European destinations, in addition to Deutsche BA and Hapag Lloyd Express. Ryanair flies from Stansted and Glasgow Prestwick to Hamburg Luebeck, which is 30 miles from the city. The other airlines operate out of Hamburg's main airport, Fuhlsbuettel, which is eight miles from the city centre.
Report by Ginny McGrath
