The Belize Tourism Board welcomed its discount carrier Spirit Airlines to Belize today. The inaugural flight from Fort Lauderdale international airport arrived to drumming and dancing, and free cocktails.
While Spirit Airlines has been making headlines for the financial pressures blighting its future, the expansion to Belize is seen as an encouraging sing locally.
Here are the highlights from that inaugural event.
Katharine Beamer, Charge d Affaires, United States Embassy
"Well we are delighted to welcome Spirit Airlines to Belize. I wanted to congratulate the government of Belize specifically minister Mahler and the Belize Tourism Board on this achievement. We are delighted to have more connections between the United States and Belize and I understand this airline in
particular will be offering non stop service to Fort Lauderdale 3 times a week and we are just excited to bring more Belizeans to the United States for tourism and shopping and more Americans to Belize to enjoy this beautiful country. We are also really just dedicated to growing and deepening the partnerships between Belizean and Americans alike, so we are just excited to be here today."
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism and Diaspora Relations
"Well I have said this from day one that airlift into Belize is the lifeblood of the tourism industry, akin to hotel development. And the more capacity we add in terms of our airlift into the country, the more people come in., Our job now is to ensure that we work closely with Spirit Airlines to ensure that these flights are filled."
"So this is our 23rd city, which is important for us adding diversity in the product offering as well as the people coming into Belize. But these things often times take a long long time, sometimes it takes shorter times but you have to continue knocking on doors, you have to continue the dialogue and continue to show your business why Belize as a leisure destination would be an important fit for an airline like Spirit. Spirit Airlines are considered an ultra low-cost carrier so what it does for us is keep the legacy carriers honest in terms of pricing so it makes it more affordable for people to come to Belize."
The flight is scheduled to operate three times a week and is operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft.
