The recently announced Newcastle-Dubai route operated by Emirates was officially launched over the weekend.

Representing the first ever long-haul route from Newcastle Airport, the new Dubai flights allow travellers to easily fly to the Middle East and connect with services to destinations such as Sydney, Hong Kong, Bangkok and more.

Dubai has become an increasingly popular tourist destination in recent years, hosting a number of leisure and business events and conferences.

The non-stop flights depart once a day every day and saw record ticket sales in the run-up to their launch, according to Keith Longstaff of Emirates.

"Never before in the UK has Emirates sold out so quickly on the first two flights of a new service and thousands are already booked from Newcastle to far-flung places throughout the Emirates network," he commented.

Newcastle Airport also offers flights to a number of short-haul locations, including cities such as Barcelona, Berlin, Prague, Paris and Venice.

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