Today, with the departure of flight 2604 from Toronto Pearson International Airport, WestJet officially becomes the only Canadian carrier directly connecting Canadians to Belize.
Bob Cummings, WestJet Executive Vice-President, Commercial, said:
“I extend a big thanks to our WestJet team, the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation as well as the Belize Tourism Board for their support in the creation of this significant route. To our guests this morning, we say, “Gud maanin,” and welcome aboard. We look forward to offering both Canadians and Belizeans the chance to experience WestJet’s low fare, high care service over the winter months.”
“This is a very exciting moment for the tourism stakeholders in Belize. After a long planning period with WestJet, we are thrilled that the route has become a reality,” said Karen Bevans, Director of Tourism for the Belize Tourism Board. “This flight comes at the perfect time, as we are approaching the start of our upcoming high season, making travelling to Belize so much easier and more convenient for Canadians. We expect that with such ease in accessibility, tourism arrivals from Canada will increase, thereby contributing positively to the growth in the overnight tourism sector in Belize.”
“This is truly a historic milestone for our nation,” said Honourable Manuel Heredia Jr., Belize’s Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation. “Today’s inaugural flight holds a very significant and unparalleled opportunity for Belize, as it is the first to directly connect Canada and Belize. We certainly foresee an increase in travel to Belize from thousands of Canadians who have been deterred in the past due to inconvenient layovers and connections in the United States. After today, this is no longer the case. Our sincerest gratitude goes out to WestJet for their partnership and belief in a future with Belize.”
Belize is WestJet’s 21(st) destination in the Caribbean and third destination in Central America. During peak winter months the airline has a total of more than 90 flights per week from Toronto to the Caribbean and Central America.
Flights will be operated on WestJet’s Boeing 737 aircraft.