On July 8, Island Travel & Tours Ltd will begin a new non-stop service between Orlando, Florida, and Havana, Cuba, with two flights a week, one each on Wednesdays and Sundays.

In June of last year, Richard Sealy, Barbados’ minister of tourism and international transport, told Travel Agent the island was close to securing new Delta and JetBlue Airways flights. A few weeks later, the Delta flights from Atlanta and New York to Barbados came to fruition.

Intra-Caribbean air service received a significant boost this week with the announcement of new direct airline service between Cancun, Mexico and San Juan, Puerto Rico aboard Mexican carrier Volaris.

The new flight will travel between John F. Kennedy International Airport and Havana Jose Marti International Airport each Friday at noon, with a return flight from Havana to JFK every Friday at 4:30 p.m. This makes JetBlue the first carrier to announce additional flights to Cuba from New York since restrictions were lifted.

Alaska Airlines will chart new territory this fall when it adds new service between Los Angeles and Costa Rica's two major international airports, further strengthening its southern California focus city.