Tag Archives: San Jose Costa Rica

Alaska Airlines begins flying to Costa Rica

Alaska Airlines (Seattle/Tacoma) inaugurated new service between Los Angeles International Airport and Costa Rica’s two major international airports. The eight weekly flights from Los Angeles (LAX) to San Jose (SJO) and Liberia/Guanacaste (LIR), Costa Rica, started Saturday and Sunday respectively, and is the first international destination Alaska has launched since 1991, when the Seattle-based airline introduced seasonal service to Magadan, Russia.

The new flights will be operated with fuel-efficient, next generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

Alaska Airlines aircraft slide show:

British Airways to launch the London Gatwick – San Jose route

British Airways (London) will launch a new route connecting London (Gatwick) with San Jose, Costa Rica starting on May 4, 2016. The new route will be operated two days a week via Boeing 777-200 ER aircraft according to Airline Route.

British Airways aircraft slide show:

Southwest Airlines to fly to Liberia, Costa Rica, announces new international routes from Houston Hobby

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) extended its bookable flight schedule through January 4, 2016, offering new international service between eight cities and Houston (Hobby) by the end of this year, including the carrier’s 97th destination, Daniel Oduber Quiros International Airport at Liberia in the Guanacaste beach and resort region of northwest Costa Rica, subject to foreign government approval.

Beginning October 15, 2015, Southwest will off new, nonstop service from Houston (Hobby) and:

Cancun, Mexico (twice daily)
Mexico City, Mexico (once daily)
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (once daily)
San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos, Mexico (once daily)
Belize City, Belize* (once daily)
San Jose, Costa Rica* (once daily)

*subject to approval of foreign government

Beginning November 1, 2015, additional daily international flights begin from:

Houston (Hobby) and Liberia/Guanacaste, Costa Rica* (once daily)
Houston (Hobby) and Montego Bay, Jamaica* (once daily)

*subject to approval of foreign government

During the upcoming summer travel season, Southwest will offer up to 159 departures a day from Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport serving 45 destinations nonstop while contractors, designers, and workers enter the homestretch of constructing a $156 million, five-gate international terminal complex, along with associated City of Houston projects for new parking and roadway improvements.

Other International Flights

Also pending the approval of the Mexican government, new once-daily service between Denver and Puerto Vallarta begins November 1, 2015.

Daily service between Orange County/Santa Ana and both Mexican resort areas of Puerto Vallarta and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos will be augmented by a second, seasonal trip on Saturdays beginning November 7.

The same day, Southwest also begins Saturday-only service between Baltimore/Washington and Liberia, Costa Rica, subject to foreign governmental approval.

New Domestic Flights

The flight schedule extension beginning November 1, 2015, includes recurrent and new seasonal flying as well as new, twice daily service between Indianapolis and New York LaGuardia, daily service between Denver and Cleveland, and new flights between Austin and both Seattle/Tacoma and Boston (Logan). New service between Akron/Canton and Las Vegas begins daily operation on November 15, 2015, and on November 22, 2015, Southwest will begin daily flights between Orange County/Santa Ana and both St. Louis and Kansas City.

Houston (Hobby) International Terminal Project

In early 2012, Southwest Airlines approached the City of Houston seeking permission to look into the construction of a five-gate international facility at William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) to offer near-international service. Mayor Annise Parker later offered her support to bring the proposal before the full Houston City Council, which voted to authorize construction of the $156 million facility. The carrier announced its intention to serve an initial complement of international destinations from Houston (Hobby) in December 2014, and on Mar. 7, 2015, the carrier launched seasonal international service on Saturdays between Aruba and Houston (Hobby).

Copyright Photo below: Tony Storck/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-8H4 N8656B (msn 42530) with APB Split Scimitar Winglets approaches the runway at Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport.

Southwest Airlines aircraft slide show (current livery):

Southwest Airlines launches historic routes from Baltimore/Washington and Houston Hobby to Costa Rica and Aruba

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) yesterday (March 7) inaugurated two international routes from Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and William P. Hobby Airport in Houston. Each of the new routes is longer than 2,000 miles each-way and marks historic milestones for the carrier both by connecting Central America to the Southwest network of destinations and by offering its longest-ever nonstop scheduled service from any of Southwest’s Texas Triangle of original cities of Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston.

Southwest Airlines now operates nonstop service between:

San Jose, Costa Rica, and Baltimore/Washington on a once daily basis, and
Aruba and Houston (Hobby) seasonally, once every Saturday through Aug. 8, 2015

At Houston’s Hobby Airport, Southwest Employees celebrated the first Aruba-bound morning departure. Later, Customers on the first inbound international flight deplaned directly into a celebration in the main domestic concourse, following their U.S. Customs and Border Protection Preclearance processed prior to departing the Caribbean island. This is the first-ever international flying offered from Houston Hobby. This October, Southwest is scheduled to complete the construction of a $156 million international terminal project which will give Houstonians and Southwest Customers from across the network access to more international destinations.

Southwest Airlines flight 602 from Baltimore/Washington to San Jose, Costa Rica, brought 143 Customers and the Company’s legendary personality and value to Central America for the first time in the 44-year history of the largest domestic carrier* in the United States. Dozens of people came to Juan Santamaria International Airport outside San Jose at the invitation of the Costa Rica Tourism Board to welcome the historic arrival in the lush country known for its natural beauty and adventure tourism.

For an in-depth review of the first arrival at Houston Hobby from Aruba, read the Airways News feature article: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Derin Allard/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-7AD N798SW (msn 28436) taxies into position at Santa Ana (Orange County).

Southwest Airlines aircraft slide show:

Southwest Airlines files to serve San Jose, Costa Rica from Baltimore/Washington

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) announced today (September 12) that it has filed an application with the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to add its first destination in Central America with daily roundtrip service between Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport (BWI) and Juan Santamaria International Airport (SJO) in San Jose, Costa Rica, beginning on March 7, 2015.

Costa Rica will be the sixth near-international country served by Southwest Airlines from its U.S. gateway cities and the first new destination in the carrier’s network after the integration of wholly owned subsidiary AirTran Airways is completed by the end of this year. Service to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, and Mexico City begins on November 2, as Southwest converts existing AirTran service in those destinations. Southwest began service this summer to Aruba, The Bahamas, Jamaica, and both Cancun and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos, Mexico.

Southwest Airlines began service from Baltimore/Washington in September 1993, with ten flights offering scheduled service through nonstop destinations Chicago (Midway) and Cleveland. Southwest, 21 years later, is the largest carrier at BWI in terms of daily departure and, by March 2015, will fly nonstop to 60 cities with more than 200 departures a day.

In October 2006, Southwest began serving Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) and added service to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) in July 2012. By November, Southwest Airlines will be the second largest carrier at DCA in terms of seats, offering 44 flights a day to 14 destinations: Akron-Canton, Atlanta, Austin, Chicago (Midway), Dallas (Love Field), Ft. Myers/Naples, Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans, St. Louis, and Tampa.

Top Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 737-7H4 N214WN (msn 32486) in the Maryland One scheme arrives in Las Vegas

Southwest Airlines:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Southwest Airlines. The new heart logo is directed too at its employees as it grows internationally and finalizes the AirTran merger.

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