United Airlines Adds New Direct Flights to Coastal Vacation Destinations Starting Memorial Day Weekend

March 25, 2021

Airline News

As more travelers begin to plan long-awaited getaways with family and friends, United Airlines is kicking off summer vacation season with a robust May schedule that includes the addition of 26 new nonstop routes between Midwest cities such as Cleveland, Cincinnati and Milwaukee and popular vacation destinations such as Hilton Head, S.C.; Pensacola, Fla.; and Portland, Maine. The airline also plans to resume more than 20 domestic routes and will start new service between Orange County, Calif., and Honolulu.

Internationally, in May United will fly more than 100% of its pre-pandemic schedule to Latin America compared to what it operated in 2019, including more flights to Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America and South America. The airline also plans to resume flights between Chicago and Tokyo Haneda, resume passenger flights between New York/Newark and Milan and Rome, and restart service between Chicago and Amsterdam. In total, United plans to operate 52% of its overall schedule compared to May 2019, whereas in May 2020 United operated 14% of its overall schedule compared to May 2019.

"In the past few weeks, we have seen the strongest flight bookings since the start of the pandemic," said Ankit Gupta, vice president of United's domestic network planning and scheduling. "As we rebuild our schedule to meet that demand, adding in seasonal point-to-point flying is just one of the ways we are finding opportunities to add new and exciting service. And as we have done throughout the entire pandemic, we will continue being nimble and strategic with our network to add the right service to the destinations our customers want to visit."

Domestic May Schedule

Starting May 27, United will begin point-to-point service to Charleston, S.C.; Hilton Head, S.C.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Pensacola, Fla. and Portland, Maine from seven cities including Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio; St. Louis, Mo.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Milwaukee, Wis. and Indianapolis, Ind. United plans to operate these point-to-point routes through Labor Day weekend. Most customers on these flights will experience United's new Bombardier CRJ-550 – the world's first 50-seater aircraft with two cabins. The spacious CRJ-550 is equipped with 10 first class seats, 20 Economy Plus seats, 20 standard economy seats, Wi-Fi, more legroom and enough overhead bin space for every customer to bring a roller bag on board.

For video and photos of the CRJ-550 click here.

United also continues to be a leading airline to Hawaii, offering more than 200 weekly flights, including new service between Orange County and Honolulu. In May, United will begin offering United Premium Plus® service on select Hawaii routes, which includes a bigger, more comfortable seat and a complimentary meal. United Premium Plus will be available for customers traveling to Honolulu and Maui from Chicago and Denver and will be expanded in June to flights between Chicago and Kona, Houston and Honolulu, and New York/Newark and Maui. United allows customers with valid negative COVID-19 tests to pre-clear before departing to Hawaii so they can save time and skip document screening lines upon arrival in the islands.

In addition to the new point-to-point service, United will resume 20 domestic flights to popular destinations and introduce three new domestic routes. This new nonstop service includes flights between Houston and Kalispell, Mont.; Washington, D.C. and Bozeman, Mont.; and between Chicago and Nantucket, Mass. Overall, United plans to operate 58% of its domestic schedule compared to May 2019.

Service from Cleveland to:
Destination	Frequency
Charleston, S.C.	3x weekly
Hilton Head, S.C.	3x weekly
Myrtle Beach, S.C.	3x weekly
Pensacola, Fla.	3x weekly
Portland, Maine	3x weekly