QCOSTARICA – With two weekly direct flights starting on November 2 to the Juan Santamaria (San Jose) airport, Air France will start operating in Costa Rica.
From Paris, flights will be on Wednesdays and Saturdays, leaving the Charles de Gaulle (CDG) at 1:45pm (Paris time) and arriving at in San Jose (SJO) at 6:10pm (Costa Rica time) the same day.
To France, the flight will leave the San Jose airport at 8:40pm and will arrive at the Charles de Gaulle at 1:50pm the next day.
The plane, a Boeing 777-300, will be the largest arriving in the country, with capacity for 468 seats, 14 in Business, 32 in Premium Economy and 422 in Economy.
According to the Air France official website, a flight leaving Costa Rica on November 2 and returning on November 16 is around US$948 in economy; US$1.895 in premium economy; and, US$2.837 in business.
Mauricio Ventura, president of ICT – the Costa Rica tourism board – and Minister of Tourism, explained that the first approach occurred last month at the ITB in Berlin, the world’s leading tourism industry fair. Last week the negotiations were finalized.
“It’s so complex for an European airline deciding to fly to Central America and even more so if there are already connections; however, at the ICT and with airport managers and airline advisors airlines, we worked hard to ensure that our country enjoys a reputation level of airlines,” said Ventura.
Frédéric Gagey, president and CEO of Air France, said that the two weekly flights will increase tourism to Central Europe.
In 2015, almost 90% of French who entered Costa Rica did so by air, for a total of 47,227 arrivals, a growth of 9.6% compared to 2014.
The ICT highlights that the French who visit Costa Rica have high levels of education, are lovers of sustainable tourism and nature; and their average spending is US$107 daily and stay 17 nights.
Other airlines flying direct between Costa Rica and Europe are Iberia to Madrid, and British Airways to London (starting April 27, 2016).
