Historic data revealed by the Expedia® Summer Travel Outlook show that booking your flights between 21 to 60 days before departure will help you save up to 15% on both national and international trips. 

On the other side, those who purchase their tickets more than 90 days in advance will have to pay up to 15% more for international trips.

Also, traveling during the last two weeks of August can help you save up to $265 in travel costs. Another pro-tip is that flights scheduled to depart after 3:00 pm have 50% more chances of being canceled.  

Finally, fly internationally on Mondays and domestically on Tuesdays to save even more money.

Summer 2024 Travel Trends 

Based on global data collected since last winter, Pinterest and other search engines accurately determined the most important Travel Trends for 2024. Check them out! 

Set-jetting 

According to American Express Travel, 70 percent of Gen Z and Millennial travelers are influenced by destinations featured in films.

Digital Detox

In a massively interconnected era, seems like thousands of people want to go off the grid and enjoy nature as it is.

These tourists are looking for “quiet places” to do a “digital detox” in forests, cabins in the mountains and national parks. 

Mysterious or Enigmatic

A big chunk of summer travelers will be found visiting mysterious ancient ruins, hidden gems, and abandoned or haunted places in “calming nature.”

This demographic is booking their tickets to Machu Picchu, Peru; Edinburgh, Scotland; and similar venues. 

Culture Connoisseur Travel

As per Four Season Magazine, there’s a growing number of travelers planning their holidays around sporting events, festivals, and concerts where singers like Taylor Swift make an appearance. 

Adventure Trips

Another huge number of travelers are eager to engage in adventurous trips that stimulate their minds and bodies, in which they can do scuba diving, photography and hiking.

Preferred countries include the Philippines for its unspoiled nature and Tanzania for its safaris.

Gen Z – Road Trips with Friends 

Saving is the keyword for Gen Z tourists this summer. These young travelers will hit the road with friends without too much planning. 

These kiddos are mostly heading to Jasper, Canada. 

The post Best Time To Book Your Summer 2024 Flights According to Expedia appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

With the capacity to host up to to 260 million passengers annually, the project will feature five parallel runways and 400 aircraft gates. With construction set to begin immediately, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, said, “The initial phase of the project will be completed within a decade.”

Dubai’s ruler and Prime Minister of the UAE announced this “as part of Dubai Aviation Corporation’s strategy” and that he hopes the airport “will be the world’s airport, its port, its urban hub, and its new global center.”

Sitting on the outskirts of Dubai, surrounded by an empty desert the area will soon also house over a million people with plans set to be drawn up for an ‘airport city’. DWC will also be the new hub of UAE’s flagship carrier, low-cost carrier Flydubai and their partner airlines.

Largest airports in the world in 2024

In terms of pure size, not volume of passengers, here are the other biggest airports in the world that round out the top five.

King Fahd International Airport in Dammam, Saudi Arabia (DMM): measuring at 300 square miles, the massive airport actually only sees roughly 10 million passengers annually. 

Denver International Airport (DEN): at 53 square miles, it is double the size of the next largest U.S. airport and embraces outdoor spaces with views of the Rocky Mountains and Colorado plains in the distance.

Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL): with plans to expand to handle up to 100 million passengers per year, currently at 39 square miles the airport is a key hub for airlines in Malaysia’s capital city. 

Istanbul Airport (IST): the relatively new airport opened in 2019 and is hoping to serve the most passengers per year. At 29.5 square miles, the airport is a feat of modern design and focuses on sustainability. 

The post This City Begins Construction Of The Largest Airport In The World appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

On May 3, Tulum International Airport Felipe Carrillo Puerto (TQO) will receive its first passengers from Toronto, and on May 4, from Montreal.

“New route alert! Beginning May 3, 2024, you’ll be able to fly direct to Tulum from Toronto on Fridays and Sundays, and from May 4, 2024, direct from Montreal on Saturdays.” Air Canada said in a press release.

This is part of Air Canada’s diversification strategy for popular destinations, according to Mark Galardo, Executive Vice President, Revenue and Network Planning at Air Canada.

For his part, Miguel Torruco Marqués, Mexico’s Secretary of Tourism, celebrated the start of the new two routes. 

“Without connectivity, there is no tourism, and the [Toronto and Montreal] new routes to the new Tulum International Airport, which is ready to receive five million passengers, will boost the arrival of tourists from our second most important source market for international tourists.”

By summer 2024, Air Canada will be operating 520 daily flights to 120 destinations in Canada, the US, and the Caribbean, accounting for 66,000 seats, which represents an increase of 5 percent from 2023. 

Air Canada is the latest carrier flying to Tulum non-stop. On March 31, the destination welcomed its first-ever United Airlines flight from Boston, and some days later, another from Chicago. 

As of today, United transports passengers to Tulum from eight American cities.

Other airlines offering non-stop flights to Tulum include Delta, which started operations to this town on March 28 from Atlanta, and American Airlines which offers flights to Tulum from Dallas and Charlotte.

Representing Central America, Copa Airlines has been operating a Panama-Tulum route since February.

On June 13, JetBlue will fly to Tulum from New York (JFK). For its part, Spirit Airlines has announced the start of operations to Tulum from Fort Lauderdale and Orlando in the next few months.

Iberojet in Europe also plans to offer flights to Tulum from Spain and France later this year.

The post Another Major International Airline To Start Flights To Tulum On May 2 appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

In terms of delayed flights, JetBlue was a close second with 30.4% of flights delayed with Spirit Airlines coming in third at 28.5% of flights. In terms of canceled flights, the order stayed the same with JetBlue in second with 2.1% and Spirit Airlines in third at 1.7%. 

The American ultra-low-cost airline operates flights to over 100 locations in the United States along with 31 international destinations. They recently announced a new nonstop flight operating three times a week from Charlotte to Miami, starting at $29.

In terms of the best airlines according to the study, Delta Air Lines had the highest on-time percentage at 82.6%. SkyWest Airlines (a Delta regional airline), had the lowest percent of delayed flights at 16.01% with Alaska Airlines having the lowest percent of canceled flights at 0.81%.

How to avoid delays. Here are some tips for your summer travel:

Book the earliest flight in the day so you are not waiting for the aircraft to arrive from another destination. 

Try your best to avoid layovers and book nonstop flights even if the airfare is a tad more expensive. 

Choose an airline that has multiple flights the day of your flight and if your flight does get booked, the airline will rebook you on their next flight at no charge. 

Look at alternate routes to get to your final destination, For example, if your flight into San Francisco (SFO) gets canceled, look at flights flying into Oakland, or other airports in the Bay Area. 

The post This Is The Worst Performing Airline In The U.S. Ahead Of Summer 2024 appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

Starting July 1,  Viva Aerobus will operate the route Orlando-Merida three times per week. Also, a new route from Merida to Miami will be available from July 2, four days a week.

JetBlue will offer 15 daily flights from New York (JFK) to Tulum’s brand-new airport (TQO) starting June 13. The carrier has also announced plans to launch new routes to the Mexican Pacific coast but it hasn’t provided more details.

A few days ago, Volaris confirmed a new flight between Cancun and McAllen, Texas. This route will operate two times per week starting July 3.

Sunwing Airlines, a Canadian low-cost airline, will launch seven weekly flights to Tulum starting May 2024.

The Spanish carrier Iberojet will also offer direct flights to Tulum from Spain and France in 2024.  

As of today, Air Canada is offering direct flights to Tulum from Toronto and Montreal.

For its part, Copa Airlines has operated the route Panama-Tulum since February.

Although Tulum’s Felipe Carillo Puerto is the fastest-growing airport in the Yucatan peninsula, Merida has also seen a significant increase in connectivity over the last few months.

American tourists constitute the largest number of arrivals with 36 percent of total visitors. As of today, carriers such as American Airlines operate routes from New York, Houston, Atlanta, Charlotte, Miami, Dallas, and Chicago, being Cancun Americans’ premier destination. 

Cancun also plans to expand its offering to more countries in Europe and South America.

For its part, Quintana Roo’s four airports are connecting visitors from 42 cities in the US, 20 in Canada and 18 in Latin America with Yucatan hotspots.

According to a recent report from Inegi, over 6.6 million visitors went through Mexico’s international airports in February alone. 

New Domestic Flights 

International visitors and locals alike will enjoy more air connections between Tulum’s airport (TQO) and the metropolitan zone of Mexico Valley. This comprises the entire Mexico City, 59 Mexican state municipalities, and one Hidalgo state municipality.

“Starting May 2, Aeromexico will be operating two daily flights from AIFA to Tulum International Airport. This new route will streamline access to the Mexican Caribbean in this new tourism era,” said Quintana Roo’s governor, Mara Lezama.

Those who want to engage in travel across Yucatan, Quintana Roo and Campeche can book flights from Cancun to Cozumel, Merida or Chetumal; Cozumel to Chichén, Itzá or; Merida to Tabasco, from one to five times per week.

Merida is another city seeing exponential growth since December 2023, when multiple flights from the country’s central region were launched.

The post This Mexican Region Is Seeing Huge Expansion Of International Flights In 2024 appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated TQO on December 1, 2023 and since then it has been operating domestic flights within Mexico. Starting in April, operations will change to allow for multiple nonstop flights from US airports. 

Designed to handle more than 5.5 million travelers per year, the airport was built to withstand heavy inbound tourist traffic. The airlines starting direct flights in March include:

Other international carriers such as Air Canada (from Toronto and Montreal), Discover Airlines (from Frankfurt) and Copa Airlines (Panama) are planning to start operations to Tulum over the next few months. Mexico is reportedly in talks with Switzerland and Spain to also start operations to Tulum. 

Tulum has global popularity for travelers due to its beautiful beaches, impressive Mayan ruins and relaxed bohemian atmosphere. From the relaxed, mystical vibes to their out-of-this-world cenotes, travelers are flocking to the beachside town. 

Its white-sand beaches and numerous archaeological sites draw visitors who typically travel to Cancun. Throw in jungle adventures and barefoot seafood shacks, waterfront yoga sessions at sunrise and kaleidoscopic sea life and the beautiful cobalt blue water and you’ll realize it is quite close to paradise. 

Tulum is also just a 35-minute drive to the popular Riviera Maya region, which had the most available and occupied rooms in Mexico in 2023.

The post Tulum Airport To Receive Its First Flights From 8 U.S. Cities This Week appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

For some context, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated Tulum’s first international airport (TQO), on December 1, 2023. Since then, the airport has been operating domestic flights through VivaAerobus and Aeromexico.

This brand-new transportation hub was designed to handle more than 5.5 million travelers per year.

For those ready to book their flights to this Caribbean resort, here is some important information to keep handy.

Direct U.S. Flights Starting This Month

American travelers may be wondering what cities they will be able to fly from to visit the intriguing Mayan ruins and out-of-this-world cenotes of Tulum. Here you have the list. 

Starting March 28, American Airlines will start operating outbound flights from Charlotte, Miami and Dallas-Fort Worth twice a day.

Delta Air Lines will also offer one daily flight from Atlanta starting March 28.

Starting March 31, United will start offering a daily nonstop flights to Tulum from Newark, Los Angeles, Houston and Chicago O’Hare. This carrier will also be offering more flights to other Mexican destinations, such as Cancun, Puerto Vallarta and San Jose del Cabo.

Spirt was another American airline planning to start operations from Orlando and Fort Lauderdale on March 28 but the company postponed it.

JetBlue has confirmed it will be offering trips from New York’s John F. Kennedy starting in June. The exact date is yet to be announced.

Other International Flights To Tulum Starting in 2024

Other flights from Canada, Europe, and Central America are also scheduled to start operations soon.

Air Canada will offer outbound flights to Tulum from Toronto and Montreal starting May 3. 

Discover Airlines has announced it will offer two weekly flights from Frankfurt to Tulum starting December 12, 2024. This is the first European airline offering nonstop flights to Tulum.

Mexico is reportedly in talks with Switzerland and Spain to start operations to Tulum.

With Copa Airlines, Panama is another destination planning to start operations to Tulum over the next few months. 

Controversy on Tulum Airport Transport Fares 

Tulum International Airport has been increasingly recognized for being eco-friendly and low-carbon footprint designed.

It has also made the news for facing the majestic Mexican jungle. 

What you probably don’t know is that it is not exactly located in Tulum. And here is where the problem begins. 

The airport is situated 20 miles southwest of Tulum, which is about an hour’s drive to the town, or 81 miles away from Cancun, which is a bit more than a two-hour drive.

Once you exit the airport, you will need to choose one of the means of transportation available to get you to Tulum or nearby towns.

Visitors can opt for taking taxis, the ADO bus, or renting a private car.

The problem is, according to the president of the Tulum Hotel Association, David Ortiz, that transferring from the airport to Tulum town is more expensive than doing a similar route in Paris, France. 

The origin of this madness lies in the fact that the airport administration is charging taxi and bus drivers more than $48 to only enter the premises to pick up a passenger. 

By contrast, Cancun airport only charges drivers $1.72 for each service.

But, is it that bad? How much are you expected to pay to transfer from the airport to Tulum or other neighboring towns?

Unfortunately, it is. Be mentally prepared to pay more than $107 for a private car or even $263 for a private SUV.

Going to Playa del Carme will set you back $216 for a private car and a staggering $499 for an SUV.

To get to the closest destination, Akumal, it will cost you between $117 and $291.

If you plan to visit Bacalar, get ready to pay out up to $593! Which is, according to reports, more expensive than the airline ticket itself.

Fortunately, you still have two options to avoid these high fees.

The first one is taking the ADO bus which charges you $10. The drawback is that it only offers three rides per day.

The second, and probably the best option is renting a car. It can cost you around $27 per day. Just make sure to book it before landing.

The post These 3 U.S. Airlines To Start Direct Flights To Tulum This Month appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

Not surprisingly, when the leaves start to fall from the trees and the weather starts to cool down, tourists focus their thoughts further south towards warmer weather and sunny coastal beaches.

Traditionally that leads travelers dreaming of a tropical vacation getaway to Mexico, and early indications show that Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean should be anticipating a busy travel season this year.

United Airlines Search Data

According to a statement from United Airlines, four of the top five most searched destinations on United.com for travel from November 1 to March 31 are located in the United States. These destinations include warmer weather favorites like Miami, Orlando, Honolulu and Las Vegas.

Only one of the top five searched destinations for the fall and winter holiday season was international. What international hotspot cracked the top five searches for flights on United.com? Cancun, of course.

Popularity Increasing for the Mexican Caribbean 

There are number of exciting developments happening in Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean that are getting visitors excited about a fall and winter holiday vacation getaway to the area.

The Maya Train project has travelers excited about visiting the region because it will provide additional convenient access to parts of the Mexican Caribbean that have been a challenge to reach without a bus or taxi ride to get there.

Cancun is at one of the major crossroads of the Maya Train project as it will connect areas such as the emerging hotspot of Merida with destinations in the Mexican Caribbean south of Cancun such as Chetumal, Bacalar, Puerto Morelos and even Tulum.

Speaking of Tulum, it is about to become a major destination in the area with the opening of the brand-new Tulum International Airport next month.

Now, travelers should not get too excited about this alternative to Cancun International Airport quite yet. It will only be available for domestic flights when it opens in December and will require international visitors to make a connection to get to Tulum, most likely in Mexico City.

However, Delta Airlines announced on October 13 that it will be the first airline from the United States to have direct non-stop flights. They will start from Atlanta on March 28, 2024. 

Ultra low cost carrier Spirit Airlines later in the month also announced daily service to Tulum from both Orlando (MCO) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL) starting on March 28, 2024. 

Other airlines have announced increased numbers of flights between the United States and Cancun International Airport as well for the upcoming peak fall and winter travel season.

Tips For Travelers

The old travel adage to book early is the key recommendation for this year. 

Travelers looking to visit Cancun and the Mexican Caribbean in the next couple of months hopefully have already booked their flights and reserved their preferred resort or hotel.

For those that have not yet made their vacation getaway plans, the costs have already started to climb and the availability of the best times for flights as well as rooms at the preferred resorts and hotels are becoming limited.

Visitors should not expect there to be many deals as the holiday season approaches. This will especially be the case with some of the top resorts and hotels that line some of the best beaches in Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Isla Mujeres and Tulum.

However, there may be some last-minute deals for vacation rental properties in Tulum due to the large number of available rentals in that area.

The post This Is No. 1 Searched Winter International Destination By United Airlines Customers appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

According to travel experts at Going, there were 33% more travelers between the United States and Mexico last month than before the pandemic. Flights to Mexico have remained scarce in recent years, despite consistent demand.

“That surge in popularity has made finding cheap flights to Mexico tougher, at least on some routes and dates,” said Andrew Hickey, Senior Manager of Public Relations at Going. “But there’s good news: We may be awash in cheap Mexico flights soon.”

After two years of cooperation between civil aviation authorities, Mexico’s safety rating was reset to the highest level by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) just last month.

This implies that Mexico can start adding new routes to the United States. In fact, some airlines have already announced plans to do so, including Monterrey-based low-cost carrier Viva Aerobus. Viva Aerobus is to begin operating new routes to Mexico from Austin, Denver, Miami, New York City, San Francisco and Orlando starting in 2024.

Aeromexico and Delta Air Lines, members of the SkyTeam alliance, have revealed plans for 17 additional flights beginning Jan. 1, 2024. These flights will include connections to Felipe Ángeles International Airport (NLU), which is Mexico City’s second busiest airport and has recently opened up opportunities for airlines to expand their operations.

Furthermore, the inauguration of the Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport (TQO) in Tulum is expected to take place before the year’s end. The introduction of nonstop flights by Spirit and Delta starting on March 28, 2024, will result in an upsurge in visitors to the popular resort, thanks to the expanded flight choices.

“The cities that will see the cheapest flights to Mexico have one thing in common: there will be multiple carriers flying to the same destination,” said Katy Nastro, spokesperson for Going. “The number one driver for cheap flights is competition, so as more routes get added by more carriers, we will likely start to see which cities come out on top for cheaper flights to Mexico.”

The post Flight Prices Between U.S. And Mexico To Be Cheaper In 2024, Say Experts appeared first on Traveling Lifestyle.

While the airport will officially open to passengers in December, it will only be open for domestic arrivals. Travelers to the Mexican Caribbean can transit through an airport in Mexico to connect to Tulum International Airport.

March of 2024 is the target date for direct international flights to the airport in Tulum and airlines from the United States are already making plans to start service to the newest airport in the Mexican Caribbean.

The Spirit of Tulum

The first international airline to announce service to the new Tulum International Airport (TQO) was Delta Airlines. 

The airline announced nonstop direct service this month from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL) to Tulum International Airport starting March 28.

However, another United States airline just threw its hat in the ring to provide nonstop direct flights to Tulum according to local media in the area – Spirit Airlines.

Exact details were not available on the company website, however, media outlets in Cancun were reporting that the airline plans to start flights to Tulum International Airport from its Florida hubs at Orlando International Airport (MCO) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL).

According to published reports, Tourism Secretary Bernardo Cueto Riestra was the local official who announced the agreement reached between Spirit Airlines and the airport.

Spirit Expands in Mexico

Spirit Airlines, one of the largest ultra-low-cost-carrier airlines in the United States, is a natural fit for Tulum International Airport as its is focused on leisure travelers and already has flight operations in Mexico.

It currently has flights to three beach resort destinations in Mexico – Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas and nearby Cancun.

It should be interesting to see if the airline continues flights to Cancun after the addition of flights to Tulum International Airport.

Instead of being part of the intense competition for passengers at Cancun International Airport, it may decide strategically to focus its efforts on Tulum instead.

Demand Increases in Tulum

While Spirit Airlines may make the choice to focus on Tulum instead of Cancun, the demand for flights to the new airport in December is already turning heads of airline officials.

Focused only on domestic flights at this point, tourists have flocked to the 14 weekly Aeromexico flights at the new Tulum International Airport.

In fact, only limited availability for flights to Tulum are currently available for the Mexican Caribbean peak travel season around Christmas and New Years Eve.

For example, Aeromexico flight prices for December 29 and 30 from Mexico City to Tulum were priced starting at about $167 ($3033 Mexican Pesos) per person for the very basic fare with a carry-on bag and personal item. 

There were additional charges for checked-in bags and other amenities.

Tips For Travelers

The demand for Tulum International Airport flights is showing the interest of travelers to visit the Mexican Caribbean area south of Cancun.

Prices will remain high, and flights will be limited to Aeromexico and VivaAerobus, until additional domestic airlines and flights are added.

Travelers looking to fly to the area are best off waiting until the opening of international flights, which will include options from Delta Air Lines and Spirit Airlines, in March of next year.

The additional airlines will help stabilize the market and provide more competition for Tulum visitors.

Travelers should also expect more announcements from United States airlines as they get approved for international flights at the Tulum International Airport starting next year.

The question that is yet to be seen is what will happen to the existing flight at Cancun International Airport. Will some of those be transitioned to the new Tulum International Airport or will airlines support travelers at both locations?

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