WestJet Airlines today announced a brand new scheduled non-stop flight from Toronto to Bonaire, in collaboration with Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ), Bonaire Flamingo International Airport (BON) and Tourism Corporation Bonaire. Marking a milestone as the carrier’s first ever flight to the island, the non-stop route will operate once weekly, every Tuesday. Service begins on December 12th, 2023, and will run through mid-April 2024.
Not only is this WestJet Airline’s first flight to Bonaire, but it is also Toronto’s first non-stop lift to the island, providing easy connectivity to the Dutch Caribbean for the Canadian market. “We are very happy to welcome our friends in the North to our beautiful island this winter via this first of its kind route,” said Miles Mercera, CEO at Tourism Corporation Bonaire. “Canada continues to be a vital connection for Bonaire, with Canada ranking among our top 10 performing markets. This historic new connectivity helps answer the demand of tourism interest in the island, which we expect to only increase during the colder months.”
“We are committed to staying up-to-date with our customers' travel wants and needs,” CEO of WestJet Group, Alexis von Hoensbroech, commented. “With this new flight, Canadians can explore more corners of the Caribbean and trade in Toronto’s cold snow for Bonaire’s warm breeze.”
As the first open sale flight to and from Canada, Bonaireans will also be able to book non-stop travel to Toronto. WestJet will introduce a local initiative, specifically for Bonaireans looking to experience Canada, at a discounted rate. “This is certainly a new milestone for us, and we encourage our local community to take the opportunity to travel to Toronto – something that was much more difficult to do before this flight,” said Jolinda Craane, Commissioner of Tourism of Bonaire. “This connection goes both ways, so it is a win-win for both destinations.”
“We’re very happy that WestJet has chosen Bonaire as their only new route this winter. International airlines have very limited new capacity to add because of crew and aircraft shortage, this announcement proves the confidence we all have in Bonaire and the Toronto market. The new weekly non-stop flight will provide our passengers from the Toronto area and beyond a much better connection to Bonaire and provides the hospitality sector on the island the much-needed extra airlift. We’re very happy to start this new Toronto flight with WestJet in December in close cooperation with all our stakeholders,” said Maarten van der Scheer, CEO Flamingo Airport.
