at the U.S. Virgin Islands booth during Routes Americas 2026 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (Photo courtesy Tourism Department)
U.S. Virgin Islands Tourism Department officials held meetings with several major airlines and airport representatives during the three-day Routes Americas Forum, focusing on expanding air service and strengthening existing routes to the territory, the department announced in a press release.
During the forum, officials met with Breeze, Copenhagen Airport, Delta, Southwest, United, Porter Airways, Denver Airport and JetBlue. According to the Tourism Department, discussions focused on maintaining current service to the territory while exploring opportunities to expand air access, particularly to St. Croix.
Commissioner Jennifer Matarangas-King said the event provided an opportunity to speak directly with airline network planners and airport leaders about travel demand and future service, the press release announced.
“Routes Americas gives us a focused opportunity to sit down with the teams shaping airline network decisions and talk through what travelers are looking for, what markets are performing, and where the next opportunities are for the U.S. Virgin Islands,” said Tourism Commissioner Jennifer Matarangas-King.
Matarangas-King said the territory continues working with airlines that currently serve St. Thomas while discussing additional service to St. Croix, the release stated.
“We are continuing to work closely with airline partners that currently operate flights to St. Thomas while exploring opportunities to expand service to St. Croix, where strong demand and yield signal clear potential for additional airlift. Our goal is to keep building smart, sustainable air access that supports our tourism economy and makes it even easier to reach our islands,” she said.
In addition to airline meetings, the U.S. Virgin Islands delegation met with regional tourism leaders and partners, including the Caribbean Tourism Organization and representatives from Jamaica, Anguilla, Barbados, and Turks and Caicos, the release stated.
According to the press release, those discussions focused on shared challenges and opportunities related to air access, travel demand and seasonal tourism patterns across the Caribbean.
Routes Americas is an industry event that brings together airlines, airports and tourism officials for scheduled meetings and networking focused on air service development, the release stated.
The U.S. Virgin Islands will continue follow-up discussions that began during the forum as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen air connectivity to the territory, it stated.
