Two US Airlines Are Pulling Service to Cuba

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When the US and Cuba struck an agreement to allow nonstop flights between the two countries a year ago, the floodgates opened as multiple US airlines requested dozens of routes to the island nation. It was clear, even at the time, that the supply of flights could very well outstrip the demand, something that's now proven to be the case, as both American Airlines and JetBlue have cut back service over the last few months.

Now, two carriers have taken things even further, announcing the suspension of all service from the US to Cuba. Silver Airways, which had planned nine routes in total to various Cuban cities, will instead discontinue all flights as of April 22. Additionally, Frontier will end its service from Miami to Havana on June 4. Both carriers cited overcapacity as reasons for their decision, with Frontier also alluding to a lack of demand.

While other airlines continue operating to Cuba, flying to the Caribbean nation remains challenging. US citizens are technically required to meet one of the 12 criteria in order to be eligible for travel, which makes booking flights more difficult — some routes were originally unavailable on third-party booking platforms, which also didn't help.

In the last few years, The Points Guy made two trips to Cuba — one to Havana and a second primarily to Trinidad — and loved visiting the country. However, some Americans have been unprepared for the complexity of using internet service in the Communist nation and other factors like the high cost of converting US dollars to Cuban currency. It also remains unclear as to whether the new White House will continue the former administration's policy on travel to Cuba. The President has ordered a review of all executive orders on the subject of Cuba and may choose to reverse some of his predecessor's decisions.

H/T: Miami Herald