The main gateway for air traffic to the island is the Luis Muñoz Marín
International Airport (airline code SJU), which is also the regional hub
for American Airlines and American Eagle. Together, American alone
accounts for more than a hundred flights a day between Puerto Rico, the
U.S., and the Caribbean.
SJU is about three miles southeast of San Juan. You can also fly
directly to other airports around the island from many U.S. cities.
Flights from the US and Canada
Numerous daily nonstop flights connect Puerto Rico with cities all over
the US, but the cheapest and most frequent depart from “gateway” cities
in the south and east, most commonly Miami and New York (JFK and
Newark). San Juan is the Caribbean hub for American Airlines, so it’s no
surprise that this airline operates the most flights to the island and
usually has the most competitively priced fares, though all the major US
carriers offer services, including Continental and Spirit Airlines, and
US Airways. Flying times are relatively short: around 3hr 45min from New
York, 2hr 30min from Miami, 4hr 30min from Chicago, and just over 4hr
from Dallas and Houston.
There are few direct flights from Canada, with Air Canada flying the
only nonstop service from Toronto (4hr 35min). Your options increase
(and prices fall) greatly if you fly through the US.
Flights from the UK and Ireland
British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are now operating seasonal direct
flights to San Juan via Antigua (10.5hr). Otherwise, coming from the UK
or Ireland you’ll need to change planes at least once for cheaper
flights, usually in the US. From London the cheapest option is usually
to fly with American Airlines via New York, but travel websites will
also come up with various combinations of British Airways and American
carriers via Miami and Washington DC. Iberia offers the only nonstop
flight to San Juan from Europe, a thrice-weekly service from Madrid.
From Dublin, you might save a few euros flying the same routes via
London; otherwise it’s faster and cheaper to fly with US Airways or
Delta via New York.
Flights from Australia, New Zealand and
South Africa
Getting from Australia, New Zealand or South Africa to Puerto Rico means
changing planes at least once somewhere in the US. From Sydney flights
in high season will be via Delta with two layovers. The cheapest flights
from other Australian cities route through Sydney too. From Auckland,
Air New Zealand and Qantas fly via Los Angeles to connect with the
American Airlines flight. Note that all these flights can entail long
layovers in the US.
From South Africa, various combinations of airlines will get you to San
Juan via layovers in the US or Spain (via Iberia).
Flights from the Caribbean
San Juan is one of the largest regional hubs in the Caribbean, making it
an easy fit into a larger tour of the Antilles, or an excellent base for
further exploration. The most frequent flights link San Juan with the US
and British Virgin Islands, but there are also direct services from
Antigua, St Vincent and Dominica on LIAT, plus several charter airlines
fly from the Dominican Republic. Jet Blue also has flights direct to
Santo Domingo. American Eagle uses San Juan as a hub and flies all over
the Caribbean, while Copa Airlines flies from Panama City. Smaller
airlines also link Vieques with St Croix.
