by Brian Major
Last updated: 12:00 AM ET, Wed July 2, 2014
PHOTO: Delta Airlines will expand flights to Belize beginning in December.(Photo by Brian Major)
This summer's expansion of airlift to some of the Caribbean's top tourist destinations is continuing. The latest addition will occur in Belize, where Delta Airlines will launch new flights to the country departing from Atlanta beginning in December, according to a Belize Tourism Board statement.
Delta will increase its Atlanta-Belize flights from eight each week to 12, representing an additional 596 seats per week during the country's high tourist season. Delta will also resume weekly non-stop flights between Los Angeles and Belize on Nov. 7, 2014. The date is which is seven weeks earlier than last year's launch of seasonal service from Los Angeles and represents an additional 160 seats per week.
In addition, United Airlines will launch weekly, direct Chicago-to-Belize flights from December of this year to May of 2015. United currently flies to Belize from Houston and Newark Liberty.
The new flights follow strong tourism gains for the country. Belize recorded 101,981 land-based, overnight visitors between January and March of 2014, a 9.7 percent increase over 2013, according to Caribbean Tourism Organization statistics. Last year's total of 294,176 overnight travelers represented a six percent increase over the previous year. "With these new developments in airlifts, the Belize Tourism Board expects an increase in the tourism numbers to Belize for the upcoming high season," said board officials.
In addition to Belize, Jamaica this week announced additional new service from Atlanta, Baltimore and Orlando aboard Southwest Airlines and the Saint Lucia Tourist Board announced Delta will launch weekly direct flights to the country from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport beginning in December.
Starting December 4, Delta will also launch twice-weekly, non-stop service to Barbados from New York and Atlanta.
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