JetBlue Airways has become the latest airline to announce service to Tulum’s new airport, following similar announcements from Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and United Airlines. JetBlue is waiting a bit longer than other carriers to launch these flights, though, and seems to be taking a more conservative approach.
In this post:
JetBlue will fly from New York to Tulum
As of June 13, 2024, JetBlue will be launching daily, year-round, nonstop flights between New York (JFK) and Tulum (TQO). These flights are now on sale, and will operate with the following schedule:
B62879 New York to Tulum departing 7:55AM arriving 11:15AM
B62880 Tulum to New York departing 12:45PM arriving 5:55PM
JetBlue will use an Airbus A320 for the 1,631-mile route, which is blocked at 4hr20min southbound and 4hr10min northbound.
JetBlue is taking a more measured approach than other carriers with launching Tulum service:
- JetBlue will only launch flights in June 2024, while all four other US airlines will launch flights as of late March 2024, when the airport opens to international flights
- JetBlue will only offer service from one airport, and interestingly is skipping offering service from Fort Lauderdale, despite that being a hub for the airline
I do find it strange to see the airline launching flights in June, since summer is the start of the slower season in Tulum, as it’s very much a winter and spring destination.
Details of Tulum’s new international airport
The new Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport in Tulum has been a long time coming. Bidding for construction of the airport started well over a decade ago, in 2011. However, nothing happened for many years, and when Andrés Manuel López Obrador became president of Mexico in 2018, the project wasn’t a priority.
However, with Tulum’s increasing popularity (especially since the start of the pandemic) and capacity limitations at Cancun Airport, the project has once again been emphasized. Construction started in 2022, and the airport has even opened as of December 2023. That’s a mighty fast airport construction project!
As it currently stands, domestic operations at the airport have already started, with Aeromexico and Viva Aerobus being the two first airlines to serve the airport. Over the coming months, the airport will be set up so that it can handle international operations as well.
Bottom line
Tulum’s Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport has already commenced domestic operations, and will open to international flights as of the spring of 2024. JetBlue has just become the fifth US airline to announce service to Tulum, with a daily flight from New York as of June 2024.
It’s not surprising to see the amount of interest from airlines in flying to Tulum, though I’m curious to see how this evolves over time, especially in the off season. Are airlines being overly optimistic with their scheduling? One thing is for sure — Tulum is about to get even more mainstream, if that’s possible. I hope the airport has sufficient immigration officers on hand, or else arrivals here could be a nightmare during peak periods.
What do you make of JetBlue’s plans to fly to Tulum?
Now B6? But I thought there was *ONE* carrier "uniquely positioned" to serve that new destination.
From an antitrust perspective, this makes sense as to why Jetblue is only adding from JFK. They do not want to be additive in markets that Spirit serves (Orlando and Fort Lauderdale)
While so much service has been added to Tulum airport, its unclear how much publicity there is around the airport if consumers know to book tix there vs Cancun.
Exactly. The trial is (IINM) pending an imminent verdict/ruling, and if they lose, an application to fly from Florida can be swiftly added.