American adds 3 new routes in big Latin America expansion
American Airlines will give winter-weary travelers some warm-weather escapes later this year.
The Fort Worth-based airline announced this week that it would add three new routes across Latin America for the winter season.
The new flights include service between Chicago and two destinations in Mexico: Mexico City and Queretaro. American will also add service between Philadelphia and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
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American's new daily service from its Chicago hub at O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to Mexico City International Airport (MEX) will debut on Oct. 26, while the airline will only operate select flights during the peak holiday season from Dec. 18, 2025, to Jan. 5, 2026, on the new route from Chicago to Queretaro International Airport (QRO).
Meanwhile, the new daily service from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) to Santo Domingo's Las Americas International Airport (SDQ) will commence on Dec. 18.
In addition to the three new routes, the airline is expanding holiday service across Latin American between Dec. 18, 2025, and Jan. 5, 2026. This expansion touches three routes from PHL and eight from Miami International Airport (MIA), which is American's primary gateway hub to points south of the border.
In total, American plans to operate more than 2.3 million round-trip seats throughout Latin America during the December holiday season, which is a hopping one million more seats than its closest competitor.
Not only will these new flights appeal to those looking to escape during winter break, but they'll also likely be popular with VFR (or "visiting friends and relatives") flyers looking to go home for the holidays.
Interestingly, American's expansion in Latin America comes as two of its biggest competitors also announced new flights to the region for the winter season.
This week, Delta announced first-ever flights from Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) to Jorge Chávez International Airport (LIM) in Lima, Peru, taking off on Dec. 4, while United Airlines announced a sizeable expansion across the region.
United is adding one new destination from Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) — Tepic International Airport (TPQ), which serves the Mexican state of Nayarit, on the Pacific coast — as well as two new routes from Denver International Airport (DEN) to MEX and to Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ) in the Dominican Republic.
But despite all the competition, American is still the undisputed leader in service to Latin American. "As the leading U.S. airline in Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, at American we're focused on growing our network, giving our customers access to their favorite destinations in the region — from the tropical paradise of Puerto Rico to the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Mexico City, and beyond. With these new routes and additional flying, next winter we'll operate 10% more seats than the previous year, a testament to our commitment to the region and our customers," said José Freig, American's vice president of international operations, in a statement.
Tickets for the new flights will be available for sale starting July 14 across all of American's channels.
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