It will soon no longer be possible to land, outside the winter season, in Santo Domingo and Punta Cana aboard an Air France branded aircraft.
The French airline is preparing to announce the end of its air service to the Dominican Republic from March 26, 2023. According to the TourMaG site, which revealed the information, Air France would have already informed certain tour operators of its wish to close this service over the spring/summer period.
The reason given according to the specialized site?
The price of kerosene, the very high cost of which would no longer make it possible to make the trips made between France and the island of Hispaniola, located in the Greater Antilles archipelago, profitable.
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A “seasonalization” of the service between France and the Dominican Republic
Contacted by
Le Figaro
, Air France confirmed the forthcoming "seasonalization" of the line for spring and summer: "
Air France confirms that its connections from Paris-Charles de Gaulle to Santo Domingo and Punta Cana (Dominican Republic ), hitherto provided all year round, will become seasonal from the end of the 2022-2023 winter season.
The last flights will be scheduled respectively for March 23 and 25, 2023, for a resumption at the end of October, for the 2023-2024 winter season.
On the other hand, she did not wish to express herself on the reason for this judgment.
According to the airline, the flight schedules are established according to the demand of its customers and are subject to
"regular adjustments".
In 2021, more than 150,000 people flew to the Dominican Republic with Air France.
There are a few alternatives for getting there in summer:
For Santiago de los Caballeros (Cibao international airport):
you will have to take an
Iberia
flight with a stopover from Orly airport to the airport.
United Airlines
operates a rotation from Charles de Gaulle airport (also with a stopover) and from Beauvais airport,
Ryanair
with one to two stopovers.
To land in Punta Cana
: you will have to take
Air Caraïbes
and its direct flights from Orly as well as
Swiss Air Lines
,
Lufthansa
or
Air Canada
from Roissy, but with a stopover.
Finally, the
capital of Santo Domingo and its international airport, Las Américas
, remain accessible via
Iberia
with a stopover in Madrid (or Miami) from Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport.
Tourism on the island, flourishing at the moment, should in any case suffer from this decision.
According to the tourist office of the Dominican Republic in France, the country welcomed 5 million foreign tourists on its soil in 2021. A figure already beaten in 2022 less than three months from the end of the year: since January, 5.3 million people flocked to the gates of this destination.
It is particularly appreciated by the French, attracted by its tropical climate, its pristine beaches and its wild nature.
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