The whole East of England region is set to reap the benefits of new long-haul routes from Stansted Airport this year, according to local travel firm Premier Travel.

Premier, which has around 18 branches, says its has already seen an increase in bookings from Stansted following the announcement that airlines Emirates and Primera are to start operating flights from the Essex airport to Asia and North America respectively.

Paul Waters, director at Premier Travel, said: “We have had significant interest from customers who want to fly from Stansted to popular destinations such as Thailand, Singapore and even Australia.”

He added: “2018 is an exciting year for our region; these new long-haul routes have so many benefits for holidaymakers, and open up significant opportunities for businesses in the area.

“We are looking at more capacity out of Stansted, with more people living in East Anglia needing to travel there, which means more demand for local services such as taxis and coach firms.

“Major businesses based in the region will now be able to travel from a local airport, which means we will see more business travellers from the hubs of Cambridge, Peterborough and Norwich flying from Stansted – all positive for growth for the eastern region.”