Aer Lingus has timed its first major promotion of 2026 to coincide with end-of-month pay-packets, unveiling a ‘Pay-Day Sale’ that knocks up to €40 off return tickets and checked-bag fees on more than 25 European routes. The discount window opened this morning (26 January) and runs until 23:59 on 30 January for travel between 23 February and 31 May. Sample lead-in prices include Dublin–Barcelona from €69 one-way and Cork–Paris from €64.
The carrier says the offer responds to research by 3Gem Media indicating that 36 % of Irish adults intend to book a holiday this month, with 72 % keen to learn a new skill—dubbed ‘skill-cations’—while abroad. Leisure travellers are the obvious target, but travel-buyers overseeing short-notice client trips will welcome cheaper ad-hoc inventory on high-frequency business routes such as Dublin–Amsterdam and Dublin–Berlin.
From a global-mobility perspective, the sale offers an opportunity to trim project-travel budgets and to secure inexpensive positioning flights for assignees connecting through European hubs. Companies operating Graduate or Early-Career programmes can also subsidise exploratory trips for new hires still house-hunting on the continent.
![Aer Lingus launches ‘Pay-Day Sale’ with up to €40 off European fares]()
For travellers who plan to bolt on meetings outside the EU or need onward connections for long-term assignments, VisaHQ can take the sting out of the paperwork. The online visa specialist lets Irish passport-holders check entry rules, submit applications and track progress for destinations worldwide, all in one dashboard—see https://www.visahq.com/ireland/ for details. This can save mobility teams time and hassle while they capitalise on Aer Lingus’s limited-time fares.
Passengers should note that the sale sits alongside the airline’s flexible change policy, which allows fee-free date changes on European tickets up to two hours before departure, although fare difference applies. Travel managers should still cross-check total trip costs, as many heavily discounted buckets exclude seat selection and rely on carry-on-only fares once the bag discount is factored in.
Aer Lingus says capacity will rise 8 % year-on-year this spring thanks to the delivery of two additional A321LR aircraft. That lift should translate into more award availability on the airline’s corporate loyalty programme, Aer Club Business, which may sway procurement teams currently splitting volumes with low-cost rivals.
The carrier says the offer responds to research by 3Gem Media indicating that 36 % of Irish adults intend to book a holiday this month, with 72 % keen to learn a new skill—dubbed ‘skill-cations’—while abroad. Leisure travellers are the obvious target, but travel-buyers overseeing short-notice client trips will welcome cheaper ad-hoc inventory on high-frequency business routes such as Dublin–Amsterdam and Dublin–Berlin.
From a global-mobility perspective, the sale offers an opportunity to trim project-travel budgets and to secure inexpensive positioning flights for assignees connecting through European hubs. Companies operating Graduate or Early-Career programmes can also subsidise exploratory trips for new hires still house-hunting on the continent.
For travellers who plan to bolt on meetings outside the EU or need onward connections for long-term assignments, VisaHQ can take the sting out of the paperwork. The online visa specialist lets Irish passport-holders check entry rules, submit applications and track progress for destinations worldwide, all in one dashboard—see https://www.visahq.com/ireland/ for details. This can save mobility teams time and hassle while they capitalise on Aer Lingus’s limited-time fares.
Passengers should note that the sale sits alongside the airline’s flexible change policy, which allows fee-free date changes on European tickets up to two hours before departure, although fare difference applies. Travel managers should still cross-check total trip costs, as many heavily discounted buckets exclude seat selection and rely on carry-on-only fares once the bag discount is factored in.
Aer Lingus says capacity will rise 8 % year-on-year this spring thanks to the delivery of two additional A321LR aircraft. That lift should translate into more award availability on the airline’s corporate loyalty programme, Aer Club Business, which may sway procurement teams currently splitting volumes with low-cost rivals.
