Southwest Doubles Down on Post-Hurricane Caribbean

After the Caribbean was ravaged during hurricane season, Southwest Airlines started serving the Turks and Caicos Islands Sunday.

Southwest will now operate daily service between Florida’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Providenciales International Airport in the Turks and Caicos Islands, bringing the carrier’s total number of countries served to 11.

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In addition, Southwest is also offering new service between Fort Lauderdale and both San Jose, Costa Rica; and Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

The commitment from Southwest to the Fort Lauderdale airport continues as the airline has partnered with Broward County to expand Terminal 1 with additional gates, security screening, concessions and border processing capacity. Southwest launched additional international service from Fort Lauderdale in June 2017.

“We're investing in the Caribbean with an optimistic outlook on travel and tourism as our Hearts remain with those still facing significant challenges,” Southwest senior vice president Steve Goldberg said in a statement. “While a courageous recovery continues, the best thing many can do now is simply take a vacation, make a business trip, and contribute to a greater awareness that the Caribbean is back in business.”

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Southwest is also pushing hard to add service to the Caribbean, with new international service on Saturdays coming in August 2018 between Houston and Grand Cayman. Service between Cancun and both Pittsburgh and Raleigh-Durham will operate nonstop on Saturdays beginning June 9, 2018.

For travelers looking to visit Puerto Rico, Southwest will be increasing service to the island with daily flights between San Juan and Chicago Midway, as well as daily seasonal service between San Juan and Houston Hobby.

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