WestJet’s direct flight to Belize from Calgary, Canada begins

Welcome to Belize!

On November 3rd, 2017, the excitement of WestJet’s new direct flight from Calgary to Belize was felt at the inaugural ceremony held at the Phillip Goldson International Airport in Belize. The new non-stop weekly service is part of WestJet’s seasonal schedule for winter 2017 to 2018.

Attendees included representatives of the Belize Hotel Association, Senior staff of the Belize Airport Concession Company, the Canadian Consulate to Belize, the Belize Tourism Board team and others. Mr. Lynn Young, Honorary Consul of Canada and Hon. Manuel Heredia, the Minister of Tourism & Civil Aviation, delivered short addresses during the ceremony.

The new flight, “will help with the different areas such as Vancouver and the others that were unable to get a direct connection into Toronto, so this makes it much more convenient for a large market in Canada and to open up the opportunities for Belize even more. We expect that the size of the Canadian market will only continue to increase and hopefully we can expect at least 10% of our arrivals with the addition of this flight. As we heard the Honorary Consul mention more and more students are now approaching him about the Canadian market or schools in Canada and that population has grown. And we expect that to happen even more because this gives more accessibility, cheaper cost, so it does create more opportunity for our Belizean people.” – noted, Mrs. Karen Bevans, Director of Tourism.

Back in 2016, WestJet inaugurated its first flight from Toronto to Belize. According to the Belize Tourism Board this new flight confirms Belize’s growth and affirms it as a “must-visit destination in Central America and the Caribbean.” We have adventures for everyone, unique cuisine, friendly people and diversity of culture to make your experience a once in a lifetime getaway. BUT after visiting us, you certainly won’t want to make it a ‘one-time’ experience!

Quoting the words of Hon. Manuel Heredia, “The importance of the Canadian market for Belize can certainly not be overstated in terms of the overall economic impact it has on Belize's Tourism Industry. He pointed out that “Canadian arrivals to Belize accounted for 6% of total overnight arrivals in Belize in 2016. That percentage share is expected to rise this year with the increased traffic from the direct flights from Canada to Belize introduced in the latter part of last year and, of course, with the start of this new flight.”

We are all looking forward to hosting more of our Canadian friends at the San Ignacio Resort Hotel!

It’s winter time– if you’re looking for the warmth of not only the sun in Belize but of our Belizean hospitality, we welcome you! Take advantage of our November Special or Early Bird Special and enjoy a very merry Belize vacation.