As of today, AeroMéxico, one of the primary airline carriers in Mexico, will offer direct flights from Mexico City to JuanSantamaríaInternationalAirport in Alajuela, north of San José.
This is the second announcement in the last few weeks of a direct flights to and from San José to a major North American city. In late February, American Airlines announced it will begin direct flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York to San José on April 6.
According to Tourism Ministry Allen Flores, the number of tourists flying between Mexico and Costa Rica has almost doubled over the past 10 years. Saying that nearly 56,000 Mexican tourists visited Costa Rica in 2008, Flores said he expects the offering of a third airline route will give rise to more competitive fares and will bolster tourism between the two countries.
“We hope this will create a strong flow of tourism between Mexico and Costa Rica and generate new business opportunities for both countries,” he said.
Flights from San José to Mexico City leave daily at 7 a.m. Flights from Mexico City arrive in San José daily at 10:30 p.m.
Establishing direct flights with AeroMéxico to Mexico City also opens access to some of the largest Asian cities. AeroMéxico offers direct flights from Mexico City to Shanghai, China and Tokyo, Japan.
As for American Airlines, flight 611 will depart from JFK every day except Fridays and Sundays. The aircraft will be a Boeing 757 with 16 seats in business class and 166 seats in the coach cabin.
–Adam Williams
