New flights and a fancy lounge: How travel is changing in South Florida
South Florida air travel is growing, with Miami and Fort Lauderdale airports adding new international routes and enhancing facilities to meet rising demand.
Airlines such as Icelandair and El Al are expanding connections, introducing non-stop flights to destinations like Reykjavik and Tel Aviv. Building upgrades at Miami International Airport include the planned expansion of terminal spaces and the addition of lounges like Avianca's.
Meanwhile, travelers must prepare for the federal implementation of the REAL ID Act in May 2025, a policy shift aimed at enhancing security protocols for domestic flights.
Take a look at these developments.
The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories below were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.
La Oficina de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza de Estados Unidos (CBP) anunció un próximo cambio de tarifas para algunos de sus Programas de Viajero Confiable (TTP) más populares como Global Entry. By Carl Juste
NO. 1: TRAVELING IN THE U.S. WILL CHANGE IN 2025: YOU CAN'T FLY FROM MIAMI WITHOUT THIS DOCUMENT
If you don't have it yet, you need to get it soon, because there is a deadline. | Published January 15, 2025 | Read Full Story by Maykel Gonzalez
Several homes and farms in Akureyri overlook the blue Eyjafjordur fjord, the longest in Iceland and popular for whale-watching.
NO. 2: ONE OF THE WORLD'S COLDEST SPOTS JUST MADE A BET ON HOT MIAMI. AIRPORT ADDS NEW FLIGHTS
Here are the details to make travel plans. | Published February 1, 2025 | Read Full Story by Vinod Sreeharsha
The holiday decorations near U.S. Customs at Miami International Airport on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. By D.A. Varela
NO. 3: WHAT DOES RECORD-BREAKING GROWTH AT MIA MEAN FOR YOU? MORE TRAVELERS, CARGO — AND CHANGES
What to know about Miami International Airport's status as a global hub. | Published February 24, 2025 | Read Full Story by Vinod Sreeharsha
Arajet 737-8 takes off, June 10, 2024
NO. 4: AIRLINES ARE PLANNING NEW FLIGHTS AT MIAMI AND FORT LAUDERDALE AIRPORTS. TAKE A LOOK
Here are details on destinations. | Published March 8, 2025 | Read Full Story by Miami Herald Archives
Avianca opens a new lounge at the J Terminal in Miami, Florida. The lounge features a playroom, business center, food bar, and large windows, aimed at enhancing the travel experience for passengers at Miami International Airport. By Carl Juste
NO. 5: COLOMBIAN AIRLINE AVIANCA OPENS NEW LOUNGE AT MIAMI AIRPORT. TAKE A LOOK
Come learn details and see images of new lounge at MIA | Published March 19, 2025 | Read Full Story by Vinod Sreeharsha
This report was produced with the help of AI tools, which summarized previous stories reported and written by McClatchy journalists. It was edited by journalists in our News division.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Miami Herald
JetBlue is adding new flights in Fort Lauderdale. See destinations and details
About a month after pulling the plug on its last remaining flights from Miami International Airport, JetBlue Airways is ramping up business in Broward. The airline plans to add service this year between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and four new cities: Norfolk, Virginia, Tampa, Atlanta and Austin. The Long Island City-based carrier will also increase frequency between FLL and Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Raleigh-Durham. And the airline will make its premium Mint service more available on flights from Fort Lauderdale, the company announced Wednesday. Seats on all flights can be booked now. They start taking off as early as Oct. 26. The changes indicate that South Florida remains a lucrative market. They come after JetBlue resumed service in July between FLL and Philadelphia and Guayaquil, Ecuador. The airline said all the additions are in response to customer demand. But in June, the airline said it would stop flying from Miami International Airport starting Sept. 3. 'Fort Lauderdale has long been a key market for JetBlue, and we're excited to keep growing with the region,' Dave Jehn, vice president of network planning and airline partnerships, said in a statement. The moves also show a one-time low-cost carrier departing from that identity, looking to compete with the larger airlines that depend on business travelers. That's a growing trend across the airline industry. Broward-based Spirit Airlines this month introduced extra leg room and took out the middle row in several rows on many of its flights. It also renamed its cabins in June. MORE: Heading to Key West but don't want to drive? Spirit starting FLL flights JetBlue will offer its premium Mint service on the new flights between FLL and Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Phoenix. By this year's winter, every JetBlue flight between FLL and those three cities will offer Mint, with lie-flat seating, improved dining and personalized service. 'Mint is a reimagined premium experience that offers a different level of comfort, privacy and hospitality,' Jehn said. The new flights are a boost for FLL. In 2024, JetBlue accounted for 6.4 million passengers at the airport, second only to Spirit and about 19% of all travelers there. Through the end of June, 2025, JetBlue has had 3.2 million passengers at FLL, an 8.2% decline from last year, but still in second place. The airline is counting that more flights will increase those numbers. This summer, JetBlue i has an average of 72 daily departures to 31 destinations non-stop. In December, that will rise to 95 daily departures to 37 cities. New flights from FLL ▪ Norfolk, Virginia New service; starts Dec. 4, 2025; 5 flight per week ▪ Tampa New service; starts Dec 4, 2025; 1 daily flight ▪ Atlanta Return of service; starts Dec. 4, 2025, 1 daily flight ▪ Austin Return of service; starts Nov. 20, 2025; 2 daily flights ▪ Las Vegas Adding 1 daily flight to existing service; bringing total to 3 daily flights; starts Oct. 26, 2025 ▪ Los Angeles Adding 1 daily fight to existing service; bringing total to 6 daily flights; starts Nov. 21, 2025 ▪ Phoenix Adding 1 daily flight to existing service; bringing total to 2 daily flights; starts Oct. 26, 2025, winter seasonal ▪ Raleigh-Durham Adding 1 daily flight to existing service; bringing total to 2 daily flights; starts Oct. 26, 2025 ▪ Richmond, Virginia Adding 1 daily flight to existing service; bringing total to 2 daily flights; starts Oct. 26, 2025
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Miami Herald
Airport lounges and added flights: See takeaways on what's new at MIA and FLL
South Florida Airport lounges and added flights: See takeaways on what's new at MIA and FLL The following articles focus on expansions and improvements at Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. They cover new flight routes, stress-reducing strategies and enhanced lounge experiences. See the stories below. No image found Eli Velez, Miami-based first officer on American Airlines, left, talks to Daniel Espinal, center, and Kyler Silva, in the cock pit during an airport readiness drill with Easterseals South Florida kids to prepare them for experiencing air travel on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, at Miami International Airport. Many of the kids have autism or other disabilities that can make airports stressful, so this tour showed them what it was like. By Alie Skowronski NO. 1: DOES PLANE TRAVEL STRESS OUT YOUR FAMILY? MIAMI AIRPORT SUGGESTS TAKING THESE STEPS What to know about sensitive traveling. | Published July 26, 2024 | Read Full Story by Michelle Marchante Arajet 737-8 takes off, June 10, 2024 NO. 2: AIRLINES ARE PLANNING NEW FLIGHTS AT MIAMI AND FORT LAUDERDALE AIRPORTS. TAKE A LOOK Here are details on destinations. | Published March 8, 2025 | Read Full Story by Miami Herald Archives No image found A general view of a new parking garage under construction at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, on Tuesday, November 12, 2024. By SAM NAVARRO NO. 3: MIAMI'S AIRPORT IS UNDERGOING A $9 BILLION MAKEOVER. HERE ARE 5 TAKEAWAYS What to know about the improvements. | Published July 7, 2025 | Read Full Story by Miami Herald Archives, with AI summarization No image found People stand in a rebooking line at the American Airlines terminal in Miami International Airport Friday, April 1, 2022. Airport officials say stormy weather Thursday and Friday caused flight cancellations and backups. By Dianne Hammond NO. 4: MORE AIRLINE LOUNGES ARE COMING TO THE MIAMI AIRPORT. HERE ARE 5 TAKEAWAYS See a summary of the plans | Published July 8, 2025 | Read Full Story by Miami Herald Archives, with AI summarization The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.
New York Times
3 days ago
- New York Times
For the Privileged Few, Airport Food Hits a New Height of Luxury
Few places feel as engineered to remind you of your social standing as the airport. Each of its protocols, from check-in to security to boarding, imposes a hierarchy. Are you Executive Platinum? Premier? Do you have T.S.A. PreCheck? Global Entry? The peak of that pecking order has long been the airport lounge, which allows elite passengers a cushioned escape from the tumult of the terminal. Now, even as airline stocks have tumbled and ticket demand slows, American airlines and credit-card companies are reaching for an ever-higher level of luxury and exclusivity — particularly when it comes to food. At the year-old Delta One Lounge at Kennedy International Airport, it's common to hear an employee ask passengers, 'Would you like an ounce of caviar before your flight?' At the lounge, which includes a full-service brasserie with leather banquettes and gold finishes, the menu of complimentary offerings features sirloin steak with red wine jus and salmon sashimi with blood orange ponzu. (The caviar will run you an extra $85, or 8,500 miles.) Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
