Alaska Airlines’ California expansion lands in Monterey
Next up in Alaska Airlines expansion to California is a new route Monterey, which will get nonstop flights to the carrier's Seattle hub.
Alaska will launch daily service between Seattle (SEA) and Monterey (MRY) on June 18, the airline said Wednesday. The flight will operate daily on an Embraer 175 jets with 76 seats. The carrier has served Monterey from San Diego since 2012.
The new route is the latest in Alaska's deepening of its network between the Pacific Northwest and California. Beginning this month and continuing through June, the carrier will add 11 new routes in the market. Among those are Boise (BOI)-Los Angeles (LAX); Portland, Oregon (PDX)-San Luis Obispo (SBP); and Redmond/Bend (RDM)-San Francisco (SFO).
Sign up for the free daily TPG newsletter for more airline news!
The growth comes as Alaska trims its network to the Midwest from California, particularly out of its San Diego (SAN) focus city.
"There are so many places within the West where we're really good," Alaska chief financial officer Brandon Pedersen said about the new West Coast routes in September. "We've got point-of-sale on both sides [of these West Coast markets], strong loyalty – that's a much higher profit potential use of the airplane."
In the first half of 2020, Alaska's capacity will be up more than 7% year-over-year between California and Idaho, Oregon and Washington, according to Cirium schedule data. At the same time, capacity between California and the Midwest will be down nearly 42%.
Alaska will be the first airline to fly nonstop between Seattle and Monterey since at least 2004, according to Cirium schedules.
Related: Why Alaska Airlines is returning to its routes in the West
TPG featured card
at Capital One's secure site
Terms & restrictions apply. See rates & fees.
| 5X miles | Earn 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel |
| 2X miles | Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day |
Pros
- Stellar welcome offer of 75,000 miles after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Plus, a $250 Capital One Travel credit to use in your first cardholder year upon account opening.
- You'll earn 2 miles per dollar on every purchase, which means you won't have to worry about memorizing bonus categories
- Rewards are versatile and can be redeemed for a statement credit or transferred to Capital One’s transfer partners
Cons
- Highest bonus-earning categories only on travel booked via Capital One Travel
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Enjoy $250 to use on Capital One Travel in your first cardholder year, plus earn 75,000 bonus miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months from account opening - that’s equal to $1,000 in travel
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, every day
- Earn 5X miles on hotels, vacation rentals and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel
- Miles won't expire for the life of the account and there's no limit to how many you can earn
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®
- Use your miles to get reimbursed for any travel purchase—or redeem by booking a trip through Capital One Travel
- Enjoy a $50 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Lifestyle Collection
- Transfer your miles to your choice of 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Top rated mobile app