TUI Airways

[D2007]

Dissapointed TUI have changed the flights to Antalya. I noticed 2 days ago the Friday TUI flight for next June I had booked has changed. Only just got a notification from TUI.

The new times for the flights are horrible and TUI won’t even say who is operating the flight or give a flight number. May change to the Monday flight to stick with TUI.

 

[Jerry]

Dissapointed TUI have changed the flights to Antalya. I noticed 2 days ago the Friday TUI flight for next June I had booked has changed. Only just got a notification from TUI.

The new times for the flights are horrible and TUI won’t even say who is operating the flight or give a flight number. May change to the Monday flight to stick with TUI.

Could be then these flights are shifting to an away based airline possibly one like Freebird Airlines.

 

[D2007]

Could be then these flights are shifting to an away based airline possibly one like Freebird Airlines.

They were swapped to Freebird, I found out through a Facebook group, when I asked TUI they told me they didn’t know. The times they had changed the flights too were horrible and meant we wouldn’t have reached the hotel until around 5am. They had also taken off the Extra Legroom seats which I had booked.

I had read some reviews about Freebird and they were not that good. The flight was also likely to be delayed as the aircraft is doing Antalya > Cardiff > Antalya > Bristol > Antalya with only around an hour at each airport.

I finally received an email from TUI last night saying there had been a change and I could alter the holiday for free. I have changed the flights to the Monday morning flight which is still TUI and have booked Extra Legroom Seats. So hopefully won’t have any more issues.

People moan about TUI, but I have never had any issues with the flights, they have always been on time or at most delayed by 15 mins. It is their customer service and habit of changing times which lets them down. I had more issues with easyJet flights they changed us too last year.

It is just booring at Bristol now as all we get is the 737s, would be nice to see the 787s back.

 

[Jerry]

They were swapped to Freebird, I found out through a Facebook group, when I asked TUI they told me they didn’t know.

Well I'd expect that until its officially confirmed that they can't confirm it. I've never flown Freebird so can't say what they are like.

It is just booring at Bristol now as all we get is the 737s, would be nice to see the 787s back.

I don't see the 787 coming back anytime soon.

 

[D2007]

Well I'd expect that until its officially confirmed that they can't confirm it. I've never flown Freebird so can't say what they are like.

I don't see the 787 coming back anytime soon.

If it is on the app and on your booking on the website, I would say that is confirmed otherwise why change it.

Surely if an airline schedules a flight, which is also on sale for nee bookings they should know who is operating the flight.

 

[Jerry]

If it is on the app and on your booking on the website, I would say that is confirmed otherwise why change it.

Surely if an airline schedules a flight, which is also on sale for nee bookings they should know who is operating the flight.

Interesting because it doesn't come up on the website. Just says Other Carrier.

 

[D2007]

Interesting because it doesn't come up on the website. Just says Other Carrier.

It was saying ‘to be advised’ on my app and booking. I posted on a Facebook group and someone checked and said the Friday Antalya Flight is due to be operated by a Freebird A320.

That is why the inbound flight is before the outbound flight arrives. It lands at Antalya at 02:50, but departs for Bristol from Antalya at around 17:00. They said this also indicates it is a Turkish carrier as the aircraft will finish its day in Turkey rather than the UK.

If you look at the times for the Friday Antalya flight from Cardiff it is similar and the times add up so once it arrives in Antalya from Cardiff it flys back to Bristol.

 

[Matt995]

I posted on a Facebook group and someone checked and said the Friday Antalya Flight is due to be operated by a Freebird A320.

that was me on Facebook!! - TUI do have a habit of change flight times and airlines right up to the summer season. This year the Sunday BHX-DLM flight was due to be an away based Turkish carrier (TUI only use the Turkish airline FreeBird) & was still showing up to May this year, then suddenly the flight changed to a TUI B737 for 6 weeks, and then the route was dropped for the rest of the season!!

TUI are masters of changing schedules, it wouldnt surprise me if your Monday flight changes times several times bewteen now and when you fly!!

 

[D2007]

that was me on Facebook!! - TUI do have a habit of change flight times and airlines right up to the summer season. This year the Sunday BHX-DLM flight was due to be an away based Turkish carrier (TUI only use the Turkish airline FreeBird) & was still showing up to May this year, then suddenly the flight changed to a TUI B737 for 6 weeks, and then the route was dropped for the rest of the season!!

TUI are masters of changing schedules, it wouldnt surprise me if your Monday flight changes times several times bewteen now and when you fly!!

Thanks for your help with that!

Fingers crossed the flights don’t change again, but looking at the seat map when booking seats it already looks well loaded.

This year we flew on the Tuesday Antalya flight and the times didn’t change from when I booked it last September, so hopefully it will stay the same.

They are masters at changing times and aircraft. This year is the first time nothing changed. In the past we have had a 787 changed to a 757 then cancelled due to Covid, a 787 swapped to a 737, then last year they cancelled the Thursday Dalaman flight and put us on a flight the same day with a third party airline from Gatwick! Needless to say I amended that one and ended up going on the Tuesday from Bristol on an easyJet flight. Had to stay in a different hotel though as they wanted an extra £300 each to stay in the one I originally booked!

 

[Marko1]

Summer 26 has been released and nothing to get excited about. Verona increases to 2 weekly and there’s a restoration of frequencies that have been dropped for summer 25 . No new routes and no return of long haul - gone for good ??

 

[Jerry]

no return of long haul - gone for good ??

It does seem like it doesn't it.

This is what TUI Summer 2026 looks like for Bristol
75 weekly departures and 28 destinations

Palma de Mallorca 8 weekly
Paphos 4 weekly
Dalaman 4 weekly
Corfu 4 weekly
Kos 4 weekly
Antalya 3 weekly
Rhodes 3 weekly
Larnaca 3 weekly
Heraklion 3 weekly
Zante 3 weekly
Ibiza 3 weekly
Skiathos 2 weekly
Verona 2 weekly
Kefalonia 2 weekly
Hurghada 2 weekly
Sharm el Sheikh 2 weekly
Bourgas 2 weekly
Sal 2 weekly
Dubrovnik 2 weekly
Marrakech 2 weekly
Lanzarote 2 weekly
Malaga 2 weekly
Fuerteventura 2 weekly
Gran Canaria 2 weekly
Menorca 2 weekly
Reus 2 weekly
Tenerife South 2 weekly
Thessaloniki 1 weekly

 

[Matt995]

TUI don't have enough aircraft now to operate long haul from the regions, and just maybe they actually make more money on short haul flying?

 

[Matt995]

TUI will be basing 5 737 Maxs at Bristol for this summer, think thats down 1 aircraft on last year?

 

[Aviador]

TUI will be basing 5 737 Maxs at Bristol for this summer, think thats down 1 aircraft on last year?

Feeling the pinch by Jet2 perhaps?

 

[Marko1]

I think it might have ended up as five last year - might have had a sixth for a day or two tops. Looks to increase again slightly in 2026 but things change . Frequencies on a lot of destinations have been cut this summer for example Heraklion 4 last year down to two this summer

 

[Severn]

TUI will be basing 5 737 Maxs at Bristol for this summer, think thats down 1 aircraft on last year?

Correct, one aircraft down on 2024, however only 4x less weekly departures in 2025 vs 2024.

In 2024, the sixth based aircraft was mainly used as a spare. It only operated 2x flights on a Monday, 1x on a Wednesday and 1x on a Sunday - the rest of the time it was parked up.

 

[D2007]

Does anyone know if the trial of inflight meals on TUI Short Haul flights is on flights from Bristol? The option is there on Manage my Booking, but doesn’t work. Have tried asking TUI in different ways and they all say something different and I don’t think they know what they are talking about.