Sunset at the Florida Keys (Image Credit: London Air Travel)
The Florida Keys, as the southernmost point of the US, have long been a popular escape from winter in the Northern hemisphere for those seeking a more bohemian alternative to the crowds and overt self-confidence of Miami Beach. And it has better sunsets.
You can of course drive there, but there is also the option of flying. Many US airlines, through their regional affiliates, fly to Key West International Airport with varying degrees of frequency from their respective hubs. American Airlines from Dallas Fort Worth and Miami; Delta from Atlanta; and United from Chicago O’Hare and Newark.
You’ll also see a number of private plans on the airfield at Key West. Other than that it’s largely Silver Airways flights to the Florida region, an airline we don’t know enough about to comment on – though online reviews don’t instil confidence.
It’s flying between Miami and Key West over the Florida Keys on American Eagle that we’ll cover as it is the most likely route for visitors to Florida.
American serves the route many times a day, typically using Embraer E175 aircraft operated by Republic Airlines under the American Eagle livery.
Norwegian Boeing 787 at London Gatwick (Image Credit: Norwegian)
Norwegian has today, Monday 25 June 2018, announced a new route from London Gatwick to Tampa, Florida. The airline has also announced a number of other long-haul network changes.
London Gatwick – Tampa
Norwegian will fly from London Gatwick to Tampa twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 31 October 2019. Norwegian will be competing against BA which serves Tampa daily.
Flight DI7165 Depart London Gatwick 14:55 – Arrive Tampa 19:35
Flight DI7166 Depart Tampa 21:00 – Arrive London Gatwick 09:55
Norwegian’s routes to Austin and Seattle which both launched only recently will be suspended for the winter season from Sunday 28 October 2018 and should resume from late March 2019.
Las Vegas, which had been suspended for the summer, returns three times weekly for the winter.
Frequency Increases
The following routes will also benefit from increases in frequency:
– Boston from five times weekly to daily
– Buenos Aires from four times weekly to daily
– Fort Lauderdale from three times weekly to daily
– Orlando from three times weekly to four times weekly
Frequency Decreases
The following routes will be reduced in frequency:
– Chicago from daily to four times weekly
– Oakland from four times weekly to three times weekly
New York JFK will also increase to three times daily, as previously announced. The suspension of Austin and Chicago for the winter does suggest Norwegian has hit a ceiling in terms of year round routes to North America from London Gatwick.
All flights continue to be operated by Boeing 787-9 aircraft in a two class configuration, save where Norwegian has wet-leased aircraft as it has done to New York JFK.
Norwegian is of course subject to takeover speculation following International Airlines Group’s purchase of a minority stake in the airline. Should there be a change in ownership in Norwegian in the coming months it is highly likely there will be changes to its network.
Here are confirmed cancellations for flights between London and Florida and The Caribbean on Wednesday 13 September 2017 due to Hurricane Irma by order of airline flight code.
Please see our Hurrican Irma page for more information on the hurricane.
American Airlines
Flight AA38 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight AA39 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
Flight AA56 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight AA57 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
British Airways – London Heathrow
Flight BA206 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA207 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA208 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA209 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
British Airways – London Gatwick
Flight BA2036 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2037 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight BA2038 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2039 London Gatwick to Orlando is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2156 St Kitts and Antigua to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2157 London Gatwick to Antigua and St Kitts is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2166 Tampa to London Gatwick is is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2167 London Gatwick to Tampa is is scheduled to operate.
Norwegian
Flight DY7045 London Gatwick to Fort Lauderdale is scheduled to operate.
Flight DY7046 Fort Lauderdale to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Virgin Atlantic – London Heathrow
Flight VS5 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
Flight VS6 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Virgin Atlantic – London Gatwick
Flight VS15 London Gatwick to Orlando is scheduled to operate.
Flight VS16 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Here are confirmed cancellations for flights between London and Florida and The Caribbean on Tuesday 12 September 2017 due to Hurricane Irma by order of airline flight code.
Please see our Hurrican Irma page for more information on the hurricane.
American Airlines
Flight AA38 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight AA39 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight AA56 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight AA57 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
British Airways – London Heathrow
Flight BA206 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA207 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight BA208 Miami to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA209 London Heathrow to Miami is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA226 Atlanta to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA227 London Heathrow to Atlanta is scheduled to operate.
British Airways – London Gatwick
Flight BA2036 Orlando to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2037 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight BA2038 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2039 London Gatwick to Orlando is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2156 Tobago and Antigua to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2157 London Gatwick to Antigua and Tobago is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA2166 Tampa to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2167 London Gatwick to Tampa is cancelled.
Norwegian
Flight DY7057 London Gatwick to Orlando is scheduled to operate.
Flight DY7058 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Virgin Atlantic – London Heathrow
Flight VS5 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight VS6 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight VS103 London Heathrow to Atlanta is scheduled to operate.
Flight VS104 Atlanta to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
Virgin Atlantic – London Gatwick
Flight VS27 London Gatwick to Orlando is scheduled to operate.
Flight VS28 Orlando to London Gatwick is scheduled to operate.
Here are details of cancelled and rerouted flights to and from London due to Hurricane Irma on Monday 11 September.
Hurricane Irma – Naples (Credit: MSNBC)
Here are confirmed cancellations for flights between London and Florida, The Caribbean and Atlanta on Monday 11 September 2017 due to Hurricane Irma by order of airline flight code.
Please see our Hurrican Irma page for more information on the hurricane.
American Airlines
Flight AA38 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight AA39 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight AA56 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight AA57 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
British Airways – London Heathrow
Flight BA206 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight BA207 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight BA208 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight BA209 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight BA226 Atlanta to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight BA227 London Heathrow to Atlanta is cancelled.
Flight BA253 London Heathrow to Nassau and Grand Cayman is scheduled to operate.
Flight BA252 Grand Cayman and Nassau to London Heathrow is scheduled to operate.
British Airways – London Gatwick
Flight BA2036 Orlando to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2037 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight BA2038 Orlando to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2039 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight BA2166 Tampa to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2167 London Gatwick to Tampa is cancelled.
Flight BA2168 Fort Lauderdale to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight BA2169 London Gatwick to Fort Lauderdale is cancelled.
Norwegian
Flight DY7045 London Gatwick to Fort Lauderdale is cancelled.
Flight DY7046 Fort Lauderdale to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Virgin Atlantic – London Heathrow
Flight VS5 London Heathrow to Miami is cancelled.
Flight VS6 Miami to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Flight VS103 London Heathrow to Atlanta is cancelled.
Flight VS104 Atlanta to London Heathrow is cancelled.
Virgin Atlantic – London Gatwick
Flight VS15 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight VS16 Orlando to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight VS27 London Gatwick to Orlando is cancelled.
Flight VS28 Orlando to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Flight VS63 London Gatwick to Havana is cancelled.
Flight VS64 Havana to London Gatwick is cancelled.
Here are details of cancelled and rerouted flights to and from London due to Hurricane Irma on Sunday 10 September.
Hurricane Irma (Image Credit: CNN)
Here are confirmed cancellations for flights between London and Florida and The Caribbean on Sunday 10 September 2017 due to Hurricane Irma by order of airline flight code.
There are extensive cancellations to Miami, Orlando and Tampa as these airports have suspended commercial operations.
Here are details of cancelled and rerouted flights to and from London due to Hurricane Irma on Saturday 9 September.
Hurricane Irma (Image Credit: CNN)
Here are confirmed cancellations for flights between London and Florida and The Caribbean on Saturday 9 September 2017 due to Hurricane Irma by order of airline flight code.
In response to Hurricane Irma, here are the published rebooking policies by airline. Given the very fluid situation and unknown extent of disruption both the dates of flights eligible for proactive rebooking may change and the date up to which you can rebook may change (as they have already done) in the coming days.
Please note that if you have booked a tour package via a travel agent, the options below may not apply and you should contact your travel agent directly.
It is also worth noting that if you are due to fly via Miami on BA or Virgin to another destination in the Americas it is worth exploring an alternative routing via the hubs of their partner airlines.
BA has extensive codeshares with Iberia from Madrid and American Airlines from hubs such as Dallas Forth Worth and New York JFK. Virgin also has extensive codeshares with Delta from hubs such as Atlanta and New York JFK.
If your flight is cancelled you will be entitled to a full refund and reimbursement of reasonable incidental expenses. If your flight is operating but you choose to rebook to an alternative date/destination any consequential costs may not be met by the airline.
It’s also worth noting that many smaller hotels / guest houses in Florida have already closed for business until next week. Larger properties have also waived change / cancellation fees.
As at 22:00 BST on Thursday 7 September 2017, there are no less than three hurricanes on the Atlantic ocean. These are hurricanes Irma, Jose & Katia. There have been, and will continue to be, cancellations of flights to the Caribbean and Florida. Some flights have also be retimed and rerouted.
There are extensive cancellations to Miami International Airport over the weekend with long-haul flights cancelled and US domestic airlines also suspending operations from Friday evening through to Sunday at the earliest.The airport’s Twitter feed contains up to date guidance for passengers due to travel through the airport.
Airlines have also introduced flexible rebooking policies for passengers due to travel to the region in the coming days.
Hurricane information from public bodies and media
The Miami Herald is also free to access during the hurricane.
Rebooking Policies
Here are the published rebooking policies by airline. Please note that if you have booked a tour package via a travel agent, the options below may not apply and you should contact your travel agent directly.
It is also worth noting that if you are due to fly via Miami on BA or Virgin to another destination in the Americas it is worth exploring an alternative routing via the hubs of their partner airlines.
BA has extensive codeshares with Iberia from Madrid and American Airlines from hubs such as Dallas Forth Worth and New York JFK. Virgin also has extensive codeshares with Delta from hubs such as Atlanta and New York JFK.
If your flight is cancelled you will be entitled to a full refund and reimbursement of reasonable incidental expenses. If your flight is operating but you choose to rebook to an alternative date/destination any consequential costs may not be met by the airline.
It’s also worth noting that many smaller hotels / guest houses in Florida have already closed for business until next week. Larger properties have also waived change / cancellation fees.
It is also BA’s fourth destination in Florida after Miami, Orlando and Tampa.
Flights will operate three times weekly (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) with additional flight on Sunday in the peak summer season (16 July – 3 September 2017).
Flights will be operated using a three class Boeing 777-200 aircraft with Club World business class, World Traveller Plus premium economy, and World Traveller economy.
BA is not for the first airline to fly to Fort Lauderdale from Gatwick as Norwegian have been flying the route for some time. Indeed, this is the second time BA has launched a new route to head-to-head with Norwegian at Gatwick, after reinstating flights from Gatwick to New York JFK.
This route will popular with tourists to South Florida and those taking cruises from the area.
It is also a potentially better gateway than Miami airport and should promise a smoother experience in US Customs & Immigration.
That said, BA’s Airbus A380 operated flights from London Heathrow to Miami will offer the option of First Class, newer World Traveller Plus and World Traveller seating, a more advanced in flight entertainment system and a more pleasant cabin environment. It will of course be possible to “mix and match” flights between different airports. Flights will also be codeshared with Aer Lingus, American Airlines, Finnair and Iberia.
Flight BA2169 Depart London Gatwick 09:25 – Arrive Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport 13:45 (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from 16 July – 3 September 2017)
Flight BA2168 Depart Fort Lauderdale 17:00 – Arrive London Gatwick 06:30 (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday from 16 July – 3 September 2017)
