Spirit Airlines adds 2 new Caribbean destinations
Spirit Airlines is setting its sights on the Caribbean and Central America with a two-route expansion.
Later this year, the Dania Beach, Florida-based carrier will add service from its hometown hub in Fort Lauderdale to Belize City, Belize, and Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands.
Service to Belize City will commence Nov. 21 on a three-times-weekly basis. Flights will operate on Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays.
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Meanwhile, flights to Grand Cayman take off Dec. 4, also on a three-times-weekly basis on Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Belize City is a new dot on Spirit's route map. It represents the sixth new destination the airline has added so far this year, following Key West, Florida; Macon and Savannah, Georgia; Chattanooga, Tennessee; and Columbia, South Carolina.
These additions will expand Spirit's base at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) to more than 100 peak-day departures to more than 70 destinations by the end of the year.
Belize City is an all-new destination for Spirit, but it's one that was served as recently as April 2020 from FLL, according to Cirium schedules. Southwest Airlines used to operate this route before it was cut due to the pandemic and never restored.
Meanwhile, Spirit last flew between FLL and Owen Roberts International Airport (GCM) in Grand Cayman nearly 20 years ago; it briefly operated flights between the airports from February 2006 to September 2008, according to Cirium.
Since then, both Southwest and JetBlue have operated flights from FLL to Grand Cayman. JetBlue last flew the route in April 2022, while Southwest stopped flying in this market last June.
More: Spirit prepares to cut flights as it furloughs, downgrades pilots
While Spirit itself has been undergoing a massive business transformation as it emerges from bankruptcy, so too are Southwest and JetBlue, two of the other major airline competitors in Fort Lauderdale.
Spirit seemingly senses an opportunity to grow at its hometown airport at the expense of Southwest and JetBlue, and it's doing so with these new leisure-oriented routes. These routes will also appeal to those based in South Florida looking for an alternative option to flying American Airlines from Miami International Airport (MIA).
Of course, with a three-times-weekly schedule operating during the peak winter season, these routes are pretty low-stakes for Spirit, but it'll definitely be interesting to see how they perform.
Spirit's new flights are already available for purchase and start at $85 to Belize City and $65 to Grand Cayman each way.
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