2024 brings in a direct flight from the USA to the ALGARVE
From May 24, 2024, United Airlines will be the first and only American airline to fly directly to Faro Airport from New York/ Newark. This new route is scheduled operate 4 times per week (on a Boeing 757-200 aircraft which has 176 seats) With this new feature, all national airports will have a direct connection to the United States of America.
*United, which currently serves more destinations in Portugal than all other US airlines, has an existing year-round service between New York/Newark-Lisbon, as well as seasonal routes between Washington/Dulles-Lisbon, New York/Newark-Porto and New York/Newark-Ponta Delgada, Azores.
This new New York/ Newark- Faro route, will make it much easier for US visitors to travel to Algarve which has become an increasingly popular holiday and retirement destination for US citizens
“This is a very relevant milestone, which opens a new page of opportunities for Algarve tourism. The curiosity of the North American market in relation to the Algarve has grown exponentially and this new route, with such a significant number of connections, proves the full potential of our destination says André Gomes, President of Algarve Tourism.
According to ANA- Faro Airport, between January and August 2023, overnight stays by tourists from the USA in tourist accommodations in Portugal registered an increase of around 39.6%, guests increased by 41.5% and tourist revenue increased by 37.7%. The number of disembarked passengers registered an increase of 23.8% and purchases made by the number of operations on bank cards originating in the USA in the ATM network in Portugal increased by 39.0%, compared to the previous same period.
The Association for Algarve Hotels and Tourism (AHETA), has also praised the new flights, stating that “Connection to the USA has been an objective of ours, not only as an entity representing companies in the hotel sector, in tourist entertainment and in tourist real estate, but also as a member of the board of ATA – Algarve Tourism Association”
This result is an outstanding example of the joint work of all players in the Tourism sector, with special emphasis on Faro Airport, Turismo de Portugal and ATA`(Turismo do Algarve), which have seen their efforts rewarded with this announcement .