The low-cost airline Wingo announced on Wednesday (June 12) that it will begin starting on September 3, a flight between San José, Costa Rica (SJO) and Bogotá, Colombia (BOG), as part of an expansion of international destinations.
The new flight would operate on Tuesdays and Saturdays and ticket prices range start US$130 round trip, with all taxes included, the airline said in a statement.
The price of the ticket includes 16 kg of luggage distributed in two suitcases.
Despite the announcement, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) – Costa Rica’s Civil Aviation – confirmed to the Q that the company has yet to request the permits to operate the route.
Wingo is a low-cost airline within an airline brand owned by Copa Holdings, through its operating subsidiaries Copa Airlines and Copa Airlines Colombia, and currently operates several domestic flights in Colombia, as well as flights from Colombia to destinations such as Aruba, Cancun, Havana, Punta Cana, Quito, Mexico City and Panama.
Weeks ago the airline announced three new destinations from Colombia: Curacao, Santo Domingo and Guayaquil.
“Today, with the addition of San José, we consolidated ourselves as the low-cost airline with the largest international operation in the region. Additionally, our team continues to explore new destinations to continue driving growth in Latin America,” said Juan Sebastián Molano, Communications Manager of Wingo, on the possibility of opening new flights to and from Costa Rica.
The company is part of Copa Holding
Return to Costa Rica
Wingo had a fleeting operation in Costa Rica between December 2016 and October 2017.
On December 1, 2016, the company opened its flights from Costa Rica to Panama and Guatemala with rates starting at US$115 and US$105, respectively. The expectation of the airline was to compete in the low-cost segment in Central America with prices that would increase the demand for flights.
The numbers weren’t positive and on October 21, 2017, Wingo announced the suspension of operations in Costa Rica.
The decision to return to Costa Rica, in 2019, is justified by the wide tourist offer available in the country.
“Costa Rica as a tourist destination has gained great importance, not only in Latin America but worldwide. Additionally, we have also witnessed the repositioning of Colombia as a focus of tourism and for this, we identified an enormous potential in both markets,” commented Molano.
