HOLIDAYMAKERS will be able to board direct flights the holiday isle of Menorca from May.

Southampton Airport has announced that it will be introducing flights to Menorca with TUI starting from May 26.

Menorca, the third biggest of the Balearic Islands after Majorca and Ibiza, is known for its beaches, marinas and coves and its prehistoric stone monuments.

Managing director of Southampton Airport, Dave Lees, said ‘It’s fantastic to announce another new route for summer 2018, one of our priorities is to offer passengers a variety of choice for their summer holidays.

"The south coast can now reach all three Balearic Islands direct from Southampton Airport. We hope to see even more people flying out of their local airport for their summer holidays next year.’

Karen Switzer, director of Aviation Planning for TUI UK & Ireland, said: “We’re excited that one of our first steps as TUI, a truly global brand, is to offer greater choice for our customers in the Hampshire area. Introducing the new route from Southampton is a key part of our strategy to offer all our customers as much choice as possible to give them the holiday experience that best suits their individual needs.

Holidaymakers in the local area will now have wider access than ever before to our diverse collection of destinations and hotel concepts.”

Flights, which are available until September 8, 2018, are bookable now on Tui's website.

Travel firm Thomson has now been completely rebranded as Tui in the UK.

On Tuesday the firm's Southampton shop was relaunched under it's new name with the Sheriff of Southampton Stephen Barnes-Andrews cutting the ribbon.

TUI Superstore in Southampton has just been awarded Store of the Year for the Region.

German owned Tui is the biggest travel company in the world.