With 5 New Routes To Caribbean Beach Destinations, Viva Builds Domestic Leisure Travel Dominance

Today, Colombian low-cost carrier Viva confirmed the launch of five new domestic routes connecting the popular Caribbean vacation destinations of Cartagena and San Andrés island (above photo) with the Colombian cities of Pereira, Barranquilla, and Bucaramanga, bringing its current domestic route total to 30.

With the five new routes that the company will offer, starting today, the airline expects to transport over a quarter million travelers during the first year of operations and generate what it calls a ‘Viva Effect’ in the reduction of market rates up to one 50% on some routes, allowing Colombians and international visitors to connect even more throughout the country.

“With the start of operations of these five new routes, we added 13 Viva destinations within Colombia, we strengthened our itineraries and expanded our network of domestic connections. We are building a solid base in the country, and we are reaffirming ourselves as the ‘king of the beaches’ in our seat offering, and we are giving more opportunities to travelers from intermediate cities to enjoy more places in Colombia,” said Alexander Cipagauta, Director of Airports and the Viva Operations Control Center.

The Pereira-San Andrés and Barranquilla-San Andrés routes will have three weekly flights each and begin today, October 31. Tomorrow, November 1, the San Andrés-Cartagena connection will begin, with five flights a week, and on November 3, the Cartagena-Bucaramanga route will be activated, with three weekly frequencies. Travelers will be able to fly the new direct San Andrés-Bucaramanga route, starting on December 16, with two flights a week.

Launch dates, new domestic routes 2021:

• San Andrés – Pereira: October 31st.
• San Andrés – Barranquilla: October 31st.
• San Andrés – Cartagena: November 1.
• Bucaramanga – Cartagena: November 3.
• Bucaramanga – San Andrés: December 16.

Weekly frequencies:

• San Andrés – Pereira: 3 weekly flights (Thursday, Saturday and Sunday).
• San Andrés – Barranquilla: 3 weekly flights (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday).
• San Andrés – Cartagena: 5 weekly flights (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday).
• Cartagena – Bucaramanga: 3 weekly flights (Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday).
• San Andrés – Bucaramanga: 2 weekly flights (Thursday and Saturday)

Expected “Viva Effect”—Reduction in same-route market-wide fares:

• 47% and 53% between Bucaramanga and San Andrés.
• 40% and 42% between Bucaramanga and Cartagena.
• 47% and 53% between San Andrés and Pereira.
• 0% and 2% between San Andrés and Barranquilla.
• 2% and 15% between San Andrés and Cartagena.

Target number of passengers to transport the first year:

• 30,000 passengers between Bucaramanga and San Andrés.
• 45,000 passengers between Bucaramanga and Cartagena.
• 45,000 passengers between San Andrés and Pereira.
• 45,000 passengers between San Andrés and Barranquilla.
• 95,000 passengers between San Andrés and Cartagena.
• Total passengers: 260,000.