Caribbean Visitor Boom Drives Expanding Flight Schedules

by Brian Major
Last updated: 7:00 PM ET, Sun August 20, 2023

Less than one year ago, Caribbean tourism stakeholders wondered if high airfares might scuttle the region’s tourism rebound.

Yet rather than decline, Caribbean flight schedules have expanded significantly since then, as major carriers and regional airlines continue to add seats to accommodate the booming demand.

Expanding Caribbean air routes align with larger market trends. Global demand for air travel grew throughout the first half of 2023, according to the June 2023 Air Passenger Market Analysis issued by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Total air traffic in June 2023 increased 31 percent compared to the same month one year earlier.

Already this year, tourism officials in regional destinations including Barbados, Curacao, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica and Puerto Rico have announced new flights from major carriers. In addition, several regional carriers have launched routes connecting lesser-visited islands with regional hubs.

A primary Caribbean carrier, JetBlue continued expanding its Caribbean flight schedule this year, announcing new weekly Grenada flights from Boston that started in June.

In July, the carrier launched year-round flights between Puerto Rico’s Luis Munoz Marín International Airport and North Carolina’s Raleigh-Durham International Airport. JetBlue also introduced flights between Aguadilla, Puerto Rico’s Rafael Hernandez International Airport and Tampa International Airport in July.

What's more, JetBlue is expanding its Barbados service this fall, launching a second weekly flight from Boston Logan International Airport to Grantley Adams International Airport beginning November 1. The new Wednesday departures will join the airline’s existing Boston-Barbados flights departing Saturdays.

JetBlue earlier this year expanded its Barbados service from New York, extending its second daily John F. Kennedy International (JFK) departure from September through February 2024.

“This increased capacity has the potential to add significant capacity out of the Tri-State area in what promises the busy winter season,” said Eusi Skeete, U.S. director at Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI).

Finally, JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes said recently 40 percent of Dominican Republic-departing flights to the United States are operated by JetBlue, and the company is seeking to expand its operations there.

Expanding Options

United Airlines is also adding new Barbados departures this year. United Airlines will launch year-round service from Newark Liberty International Airport and Dulles International Airport beginning in September, said Skeete.

United previously offered only seasonal flights between November and April from the New Jersey and Washington airports. Barbados “[continues] to see a distinct rise in visitors from the New Jersey, D.C., Maryland and Virginia areas,” said Skeete.

United has additionally expanded its service to Jamaica, which like Barbados has reported increased post-pandemic visitor arrivals. United will launch weekly nonstop flights to Jamaica’s Sangster International Airport from Denver International Airport beginning November 4, said Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) officials.

The new flights “[support] the strong rebound of Jamaica’s tourism sector as our visitor arrivals numbers are returning to growth over 2019 levels,” said Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s minister of tourism.

Dutch Treat

New flights are also scheduled for some southern Caribbean destinations. United Airlines will add two additional weekly departures between Newark International Airport and Bonaire’s Flamingo International Airport “to meet the continued demand of U.S. travelers wanting to visit the [Curaçao],” said Tourism Corporation Bonaire (TCB) officials.

United currently offers weekly flights to Bonaire from Newark and Houston International Airport. The expanded flights “[Are] a testament to our growing reputation among U.S. travelers,” said Miles Mercera, TCB’s CEO. “We are looking forward to welcoming visitors to beautiful Bonaire."

Meanwhile in September, Delta Air Lines will launch the carrier’s first flights to Curaçao since 2007. The carrier will offer weekly service to Curacao International Airport from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) beginning December 16.

American Airlines officials are also citing “growing demand” as behind their move to expand the carrier’s Curaçao flights from weekly to daily nonstop flights from Douglas International Airport between December 3 and April 3, 2024.

Caribbean Connections

Many of the new flights are part of expanded intra-Caribbean service, which by extension provide additional options for all travelers in the region.

National carrier Cayman Airways will expand its regional operations with the launch of direct flights between the Cayman Islands’ Owen Roberts International Airport and Barbados’ Grantley Adams International Airport this fall.

The new flights are “part of our broader route diversification strategy aimed at expanding global connectivity and maximizing” the government-owned airline’s fleet, said Kenneth Bryan, the Cayman Islands’ minister of tourism.

The twice-weekly flights will begin October 18, pending regulatory approvals. Bryan said Cayman Airways is “looking to add” service to two additional U.S. destinations by the end of the year.

Earlier this year, interCaribbean Airways added new aircraft and launched an expanded flight schedule servicing Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The Dominican Republic late last year launched Arajet Airlines, a low-cost national airline flying to Costa Rica, Colombia and Jamaica.