NEW YORK, Aug. 7, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Customer-friendly JetBlue Airways (Nasdaq:JBLU) today announces plans to launch its first intra-Caribbean service with daily nonstop service between San Juan, Puerto Rico and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic beginning December 18, 2008, subject to government approval. Fares on the route will range from US $89 - $275(a) each way.
JetBlue will also offer increased service from the United States mainland to the Caribbean over the winter holiday season with nonstop service between Boston and Santo Domingo, also subject to government approval, and add more flights on existing routes from New York to Puerto Plata, Santiago and Santo Domingo and from Boston to San Juan.
"Demand for JetBlue's high value Caribbean service continues to exceed our expectations," said Jim Fuoco, the airline's manager of route planning. "This winter we're pleased to redeploy capacity into some of our strongest markets for the holiday season and also add new service between Santo Domingo and San Juan, one of our customers' most-requested routes. JetBlue is proud to be the leading value airline in the Caribbean, with as many as 50 daily flights to the region this winter."
San Juan - Santo Domingo
JetBlue's first international service from San Juan -- and its first-ever intra-Caribbean route -- takes to the skies on December 18 when one daily roundtrip to Santo Domingo begins (b). Award-winning JetBlue will serve the route with its 100-seat EMBRAER 190 jet, which offers Customers spacious all-leather seating in a 2 x 2 configuration (no middle seats!), lots of legroom, and unlimited free snacks and beverages.
===================================================================== San Juan, Puerto Rico (SJU) to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (SDQ) to (SDQ) San Juan, Puerto Rico ===================================================================== Depart - Arrive Depart - Arrive ===================================================================== 5:45 p.m. - 6:45 p.m. 3:55 p.m. - 4:50 p.m. =====================================================================
Tickets may be purchased online at www.jetblue.com, by calling 1-809-200-9898, or by stopping by JetBlue's ticket office in Santo Domingo at Plaza Las Americas, Ave. Winston Churchill, Esquina, Paseo de los Locutores, 2nd Nivel Suite Y-B. The ticket office is open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday. The office is closed Sundays and holidays.
Other Dominican Republic capacity increases
This winter JetBlue will offer its first-ever nonstop service between Boston and Santo Domingo, with a once-daily "holiday shuttle" in December and January. In addition, the airline intends to bolster its frequent service between New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and the Dominican Republic by adding a fourth daily departure to Santiago, a third daily departure to Santo Domingo, and a second daily departure to Puerto Plata over the holiday season.
"The Dominican Republic is dedicated to supporting all of JetBlue's efforts to provide the Caribbean with additional air service," said Dominican Republic Vice Minister of Tourism Magaly Toribio. "JetBlue's new flights from Boston and San Juan to our capital city, Santo Domingo, will help meet the growing demand of visitors and enhance our collective economies," she said.
San Juan capacity increases
In addition to its new route to Santo Domingo, JetBlue will also offer Puerto Rico travelers increased service to Boston's Logan International Airport this winter. The airline will add a second daily flight between Boston and San Juan during the peak holiday season. And as previously announced, JetBlue will increase service to San Juan from both New York and Orlando beginning in September.
"We applaud JetBlue for deepening its engagement in the Caribbean at a time when preserving and expanding air access in the region is of utmost concern to all our islands," said Terestella Gonzalez Denton, Executive Director, Puerto Rico Tourism Company. "It is very rewarding to see that our work with the airline has resulted in the addition of a second daily flight from Boston, which is a very important market for us, to San Juan. We are committed to ensuring the profitability of this flight to make it a permanent fixture for JetBlue. Further, the addition of the San Juan-Santo Domingo route is a testament to the Caribbean's potential as a source of revenue for the airline industry and sets an example for the industry that should continue to invest in the region."
JetBlue will this winter be the second-largest U.S. airline to the Atlantic/Caribbean region with as many as 50 daily flights. The airline offers service from a variety of U.S. gateways to Aruba; Bermuda; Cancun; Nassau; St. Maarten; Aguadilla, Ponce, and San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Puerto Plata, Santiago and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
About JetBlue Airways
New York-based JetBlue Airways has created a new airline category based on value, service and style. Known for its award-winning service and free TV as much as its low fares, JetBlue is now pleased to offer customers Lots of Legroom and super-spacious Even More Legroom seats. JetBlue introduced complimentary in-flight e-mail and instant messaging services on aircraft "BetaBlue," a first among U.S. domestic airlines. JetBlue is also America's first and only airline to offer its own Customer Bill of Rights, with meaningful and specific compensation for customers inconvenienced by service disruptions within JetBlue's control. Visit www.jetblue.com/promise for details. JetBlue serves 53 cities with 600 daily flights. With JetBlue, all seats are assigned, all travel is ticketless, all fares are one-way, and an overnight stay is never required. For information or reservations call 1-800-JETBLUE (1-800-538-2583; 1-888-751-2241 from the Dominican Republic) or visit www.jetblue.com.
The JetBlue logo is available at http://www.primenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=795
(a) All fares are subject to change without notice. Fares are only available for flights booked at jetblue.com. Travel costs $15 more per person if purchased by telephone or at an airport or city ticket office. Fares require up to a 7-day advance purchase. Travel must be booked by August 14, 2008, 11:59 PM MT. Travel must take place between December 18, 2008 and January 31, 2009. Travel must be completed by January 31, 2009. Travel must take place on Tuesday, Wednesday, and/or Saturday. Fares may not be available on all days or on all flights. Fares are most often found on midweek travel dates. All fares must be purchased at time of reservation, and are one-way, nonrefundable, and nontransferable. Cancellations and changes can be made prior to scheduled departure for $100 per person at 1-800-JETBLUE (1-809-200-9898 if located in the Dominican Republic) or at jetblue.com, with applicable fare adjustment. Cancellations are for a JetBlue travel credit only, which is valid for one year. If a reservation is not changed or canceled prior to scheduled departure, all money associated with the reservation is forfeited. Fares do not include Passenger Facility Charges of up to $9 each way, September 11th Security Fees of up to $5 each way and a Federal Segment Tax of $3.50 per domestic segment. A segment is a takeoff and landing. International fares also do not include government fees and taxes of up to $76.20 each way. Puerto Rico fares also do not include a U.S. Departure Tax of $15.40 each way. All taxes and fees must be paid at the time of purchase. JetBlue reserves the right to deny boarding to passengers without proper documentation. A second bag fee of $20 applies. DIRECTV(r) service is not available on flights outside the continental U.S. Other restrictions apply.
(b) New service from Boston and San Juan to Santo Domingo is subject to government approval.
(c) Fare comparison based on San Juan to Santo Domingo filed fares as of August 5, 2008.
This press release contains statements of a forward-looking nature which represent our management's beliefs and assumptions concerning future events. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions, and are based on information currently available to us. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements due to many factors, including, without limitation, our extremely competitive industry; increases in fuel prices, maintenance costs and interest rates; our ability to implement our growth strategy, including the ability to operate reliably the EMBRAER 190 aircraft and our new terminal at JFK; our significant fixed obligations; our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel and maintain our culture as we grow; our reliance on high daily aircraft utilization; our dependence on the New York metropolitan market and the effect of increased congestion in this market; our reliance on automated systems and technology; our being subject to potential unionization; our reliance on a limited number of suppliers; changes in or additional government regulation; changes in our industry due to other airlines' financial condition; and external geopolitical events and conditions. Further information concerning these and other factors is contained in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including but not limited to, the Company's 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.