The Routes Americas 2024 Awards are set to honor excellence in airport and destination marketing, featuring 13 airports, five destinations, and five airlines as this year’s finalists.
The awards encompass six categories, including the Destination Award which acknowledges the assistance destinations offer to their airline partners, and the Airline Award which highlights the collaborative efforts crucial for successful and profitable routes.
Three awards are also on offer for airports, categorized by passenger volume—Under 5 Million, 5-20 Million, and Over 20 Million. Additionally, an Overall Winner will be chosen from the list of winners.
The finalists in the Airport and Destination categories have been evaluated by a panel of airline judges, while the Airline category has been scored by an editorial panel. The winners will be announced on March 20 at Routes Americas 2024, taking place in Bogota, Colombia.
More News And Analysis From Routes Americas 2024
Destination And Airline Finalists
Destination
Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.
Although Barbados was one of the last Caribbean islands to remove COVID restrictions, a focus on rebuilding and increasing air service has seen the largest increase in frequencies, capacity and gateways from the Americas region in the country’s history. New services have included United Airlines’ routes from Newark and Washington Dulles and Delta Air Lines’ plans to add flights from Atlanta. Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc.’s strategy includes prioritizing building demand over existing hubs and targeting LCCs seeking to expand their international reach.
Bonaire Tourism Board
Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Bonaire surpassed pre-pandemic tourism numbers in 2023, welcoming a record 169,706 stayover visitors during the year. The tourism board says its innovative campaigns and strong relationships with airlines continues to foster sustainable growth in the industry. Air service success has included WestJet’s operations from Toronto; frequency additions from Newark by United Airlines; Delta Air Lines offering more flights from Atlanta; and American Airlines introducing new service out of Miami.
Cartagena Tourist Board
Strategies employed by Cartagena Tourist Board, such as campaigns with airlines and travel agency platforms, have yielded tangible results, including the addition of new direct routes and increased frequencies of existing flights. Notably, in 2023 alone, Cartagena welcomed 14 direct routes, including those operated by major carriers like Delta Air LInes, Edelweiss Air, and JetSmart. Moreover, the city's efforts to attract travelers through targeted digital marketing campaigns have garnered significant engagement and clicks, further enhancing its visibility as a tourist destination.
Curacao Tourist Board
Curacao Tourist Board's route development strategy hinges on detailed market analysis, ensuring alignment with visitor demand and industry trends. By forecasting the supply and demand dynamics of hotel and resort rooms, its capacity planning model optimizes product offerings, facilitating successful partnerships with airlines. The Curacao Tourist Board has also established an airlift committee consisting of various stakeholders, helping to increase tourism’s contribution to the economic growth of the island. Curacao saw a 19% increase in stayover arrivals in 2023, totaling 582,400 visitors, and has a target of 670,000 for 2024.
Destination Canada
Destination Canada characterized 2023 as a year of trial and error, learnings and achievement as the country set new benchmarks in air service development success. The results achieved last year were a testament to a multi-year engagement strategy with several stakeholders that helped to achieve a five-fold increase in inbound seats, growth in every region of Canada, and growth in all priority international markets. A total of 27 new routes were supported by Destination Canada to help make the country more accessible to visitors from around the world.
Airline
Air Canada
Alongside Air Canada’s fleet expansion investment, the airline's network development strategy revolves around a comprehensive and adaptive approach to market demands. In 2023, new U.S. routes included flights from Vancouver to Houston and Washington, while international services were added from Montreal to destinations including Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Toulouse. It has direct flights to 188 destinations across five continents, operating an average of 1,106 daily flights, and carrying over 45 million passengers in 2023. Collaborations extend beyond routine partnerships, encompassing joint marketing campaigns, route development, and sustainability initiatives.
American Airlines
American Airlines operates more than 6,000 daily departures to 350 destinations worldwide, aided by the network planning team’s strong partnerships with airports and tourism boards globally. In 2023, American significantly expanded its presence in the Mexico, Caribbean, and Latin America region, increasing round-trip seats by over 2.3 million compared to 2019. By the end of 2024, the airline will offer more than 30 new routes and nine new destinations in this region compared to 2019. New routes include flights to Bahamas; Ocho Rios, Jamaica; Tijuana and Tulum and Veracruz, Mexico.
Copa Airlines
Panama-based Copa Airlines expects to increase the number of passengers carried to more than 17.5 million in 2024, marking a rise of 21% compared with 2019 levels. The increase will be facilitated by an annual investment of $1.7 billion to expand the carrier’s Boeing 737 MAX fleet, in order to operate new routes and increase frequencies. Copa had 96 aircraft at the end of 2023 and it is expected that its fleet will rise to 107 aircraft by the end of 2024 and 120 by 2025. Three new destinations are being added during the first half of this year— Florianópolis, Brazil; Raleigh-Durham, U.S.; and Tulum, Mexico,
Gol Linhas Aéreas
Gol Linhas Aéreas prioritizes data-driven decision-making in route selection, utilizing extensive market research, cross-referencing of databases, and customer insights. The carrier’s single fleet strategy and hub-and-spoke network enhance cost competitiveness and adaptability in the dynamic Latin American market. One of the airline’s most recent initiatives involved a partnership with Navegantes Airport and stakeholders to facilitate the launch of a seasonal route to Buenos Aires, benefiting both Brazilian and Argentine tourist industries.
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