TAMPA, Fla — Tampa International Airport is happy to announce a partnership that will make it easier for flyers to get to San Diego, California, and Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
Alaska Airlines will begin nonstop service in the fall between Tampa and San Diego (SAN), while Frontier Airlines is helping expand routes between Tampa to Puerto Rico with nonstop flights to Aguadilla (BQN) in the spring, TPA said in a news release.
The new routes will offer flights to the hundreds of customers who already fly to these destinations but are forced to book flights with a connection. Alaska's new service to San Diego will begin on Oct. 5 and Frontier to Puerto Rico's west coast city, Aguadilla, will begin on May 4, saving flyers several hours each way.
"San Diego is currently TPA's largest unserved nonstop market in terms of demand, with a daily average of 154 passengers traveling each way between the two cities in each direction," the airline reports. "TPA hasn't offered direct flights to San Diego since September 2021."
Known for its beautiful beaches, San Diego will become the fifth city Alaska Airlines serves on the West Coast, joining existing nonstop routes to Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The first flight from San Diego to Tampa will feature a late afternoon flight, "making the route extra business traveler-friendly."
"Tampa International Airport is proud to work with our airline partners to best serve travelers headed to our most popular destinations," Tampa International Airport CEO Joe Lopano said in a statement. "Hundreds of passengers each day fly between TPA and San Diego, so this new nonstop route by Alaska Airlines offers a welcome daily option without requiring a connection.
"At the same time, Frontier’s new nonstop service to Aguadilla will help serve both Puerto Rico and the Tampa Bay Region’s extensive community with ties to the island, which also sees hundreds of passengers traveling in each direction every day."
Once Frontier Airlines begins nonstop flights to Aguadilla, the airline will serve a total of 19 nonstop destinations from TPA.