Due to the recent announcement of some intriguing new routes to Hawaii by two U.S. airlines, it appears that you should start planning your winter beach holiday right away.
New Hawaii routes were announced by Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines on Friday, but these aren't your ordinary trips to Aloha State.
Alaska's New Paine Field to Hawaii Route
Paine Field (PAE) in Washington and Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL) in Honolulu will be connected by the first new Hawaii route. Alaska Airlines, a local carrier, will fly it using a Boeing 737.
Beginning on November 17, this new daily, year-round service will be available in time for the start of the winter holiday season. Tickets start at just $149 or 12,500 Mileage Plan miles each way and are already on sale on Alaska's website.
The first (and only) Hawaii service from Paine Field will be Alaska's new Seattle to Honolulu route.
To provide residents living north of downtown Seattle with an option, Paine Field first resumed commercial operations in March 2019. Paine Field had been off-limits to commercial travel before that.
Up to March 2019, Snohomish County residents who wanted to leave the area by plane had to go roughly 40 miles south to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA).
Only Alaska and United Airlines have locations at Paine Field among major American airlines. Alaska, meanwhile, has enjoyed a monopoly at the airport ever since United stopped operating PAE flights during the pandemic.
After opening for business in 1939, Paine Field was later used for military purposes during World War II. The 1980s saw the beginning of serious attempts to bring the airport back into use for commercial purposes. Those initiatives did not begin to materialize until 2015, with the formation of a new public-private partnership.
Other than Alaska Airlines aircraft, Paine Field is surrounded by a large number of Boeing aircraft. That's because many of Boeing's aircraft are produced there, and those aircraft take off from PAE on their initial flights.
It's interesting to note that Bellingham International Airport (BLI), which is situated about 75 miles north of Paine Field, used to be the base for Alaska's flights to Hawaii. These flights were canceled in April 2019 and have not been reinstated.
Alaska may believe that the catchment region of Paine Field will support the new Hawaii service more effectively than Bellingham's did in 2019.
Delta's new flight from Minneapolis to Maui
The other new Hawaii route will be introduced by Delta. This one operates flights from Kahului Airport (OGG) in Maui to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), where it has a hub. The new 3,917-mile route will go into service on December 16 and run daily through March 31, 2024, on a winter-seasonal basis.
A three-cabin Boeing 767-300ER with 171 normal economy seats, 29 extra-legroom Comfort+ seats, and 26 Delta One lie-flat pod will fly this long-distance domestic service.
This MSP-to-Maui route will complement Delta's already-daily service between MSP and Honolulu. It will provide residents of the Twin Cities with more constant warm-weather locations. Additionally, it will provide a new route to Maui to Delta's Hawaii network for passengers wishing to connect through MSP.
On June 10, tickets for Delta's new flight will go on sale. After Thrifty Traveler broke the news, Delta informed us of the new route.
The new Delta route is intriguing since it expands on already-existing flights to Honolulu, which is sometimes referred to as Hawaii's primary gateway. To finance two daily flights to Hawaii from the Twin Cities, Delta appears to believe that there is sufficient demand from both locals and travelers connecting through Minneapolis.
One thing is certain: There are now more possibilities to escape the cold this winter with a beach vacation in Hawaii. Time will tell how these new routes perform, but one thing is certain.
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