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Now that most of the Caribbean has reopened, the Dominican Republic (DR) looks forward to welcoming visitors. In response to rising demand, low-cost airlines are launching altogether five new flights in the high season in the island nation from the USA and Canadamaking it much easier for North Americans to escape the cold winter months.
The DR had always been a beach hotspot in the years leading up to the health crisis, but in the post-pandemic era it really took off and made a name for itself after seeing a record number of tourist arrivals. simply put, it’s hotter than ever and we can expect further increases in flight frequencies.
So far, this is all we know about the new flight routes:
Frontier, Swoop and Air Century are adding DR flights this winter
Both the US Frontier and Canadian Swoop were the main beneficiaries of an agreement between the DR’s Civil Aeronautics Board, abbreviated as JAC in Spanish, and five other airlines that allowed new flights to be opened to the island. In addition to the popular North American operators, Condor, Neos and Air Century captured part of the market.
In total, The deal has given the green light for 13 new international routes to the Dominican Republicscheduled to launch between November 2022 and January 2023. Of course, we will focus primarily on Frontier and Swoop as they will serve the North American market exclusively, although Dominican Republic-based Air Century has also been allocated US flights.
Let’s start with Frontier
Frontier already offers an airlift between a number of cities and Punta Cana, the DR’s premier beach destination, namely:
- Chicago (Chicago O’Hare)
- Cleveland (Cleveland-Hopkins International)
- Miami International
- Orlando International
- Philadelphia International
In addition, seasonal flights to Punta Cana depart from Atlanta (Hartsfield-Jackson), St. Louis Lambert International and outside of the continental United States Puerto Rico. After establishing a strong presence on the easternmost tip of the island, The airline’s top executives are now eyeing Santo Domingothe rapidly developing capital.
More specifically, they have asked the DR authorities to change their “operating license” that would allow them to extend service to Santo Domingo, adding: a whole new track out Tampa International (TPA). In addition, the Florida hub could receive its own flights to Punta Cana if Frontier’s application is approved.
These routes will launch on November 5, 2022 once the Airbus A320neo with 186 seats goes into the air. They’re Frontier’s latest big announcement in terms of winter travel, as the company has so far appeared to be focused on domestic routes – Phoenix, for example, will offer 10 new flights to other US hubs.
Air Century is looking for a place in the American market
While certainly not as popular, at least in the American market, DR’s Air Century is introducing seven new international flights from the island – two of them being it Tampa and Miami tied. Pretty soon, Tampa residents will be able to choose whether their airline of choice will be American or Dominican.
It remains to be seen whether a new tariff war will begin, but one thing is certain: customers will emerge victorious one way or the other. Regarding Miami, Air Century plans to start flights from the Southern California city to the aforementioned Punta Cana and Santo Domingo locations – Exact schedules and frequency have yet to be determined.
Flights from Hamilton to Punta Cana will start soon
Finally, Canada’s Swoop has reason to celebrate after being approved to fly the Hamilton International (YHM)-Punta Cana Route. Official details include:
- Operations begin between January 11 and April 26, 2023
- Flight frequency is once a week, every Wednesday
- Tickets could be as cheap as 199 CAN$ one way at the lowest tariff level
As for the third item, no price estimates have been released yet, but we can assume they won’t be much more expensive than what we’ve seen for Toronto-Punta Cana or CAN$199 on select dates. It is Swoop’s only other DR product and a route on which the airline a 737-800 with a seating capacity of 174 – 162 economy and 12 companies.
This gives us an indication of where we are headed with future Hamilton flights.
The five new routes
In summary, the new five routes to the Dominican Republic from the US and Canada are:
- Tampa-Santo Domingo (Border)
- Tampa-Punta Cana (Border, Air Century)
- Miami Santo Domingo (Air Century)
- Miami-Punta Cana (Air Century)
- Hamilton, Canada-Punta Cana (Swoop)
Elsewhere in Germany, Düsseldorf International is getting its own La Romana flights, complementing an existing service to Puerto Plata and Punta Cana; Italy’s Neos, on the other hand, flies from Rome Fiumicino and Verona International to the DR – again to La Romana, Europe’s most popular entry point to the Caribbean jewel.
The JAC has also confirmed availability for a whopping 61 new international routes, proving that the Dominican Republic is rapidly growing as a travel destination. From now on, no airlines have claimed them.
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This article originally appeared on Travel Off Path. For the latest news related to your next trip, please visit: Traveloffpath.com
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