As those who grew up outside of big cities know, a small luxury when going on a long vacation is to fly directly to your destination: cheaper fares, no hurried transfers at a crowded airport and no long hours in traffic on the way back.
Taking advantage of this interest from travelers to fly directly even if one does not live in New York, Chicago or Los Angeles, American Airlines (AAL) just announced five new flights to Europe from cities including Philadelphia, Miami and Charlotte, North Carolina.
Related: There's now a direct flight to this tropical European island from the United States.
The first new flight will be launched on March 30, 2025, and will be operated by a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner. (bachelor of arts) between Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD) and Madrid Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport (MAD), the gateway for many tourists traveling to Spain and Europe in general.
New American Airlines routes will take Americans to Edinburgh and Athens
Other new routes include flights from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) to Edinburgh and Milan launching May 23 and a route between Charlotte and Athens beginning June 5.
More trips:
- A new travel term is sweeping the Internet (and reaching airlines and hotels)
- Top 10 Airline stocks to Buy Now
- Airlines see a new type of traveler at the front of the plane
The final flight of the summer season, launching on July 5, will operate between Miami and Rome on board a Boeing 777-200. The two new flights to Europe from Philadelphia expand the airline's network from the city to 80 destinations, while Edinburgh, Scotland and Milan were chosen as cities that record high tourist interest during the summer months.
American hasn't flown to Edinburgh since 2019 (the Scottish capital is a six-hour train ride from London), but will resume the route by summer 2025.
Related: Get the best cruise tips, deals and news from our cruise experts.
'More ways to visit your favourite destinations in Europe'
“We look forward to offering customers more ways to visit their favorite destinations in Europe next summer,” American Airlines Senior Vice President of Network and Schedule Planning Brian Znotins said in a statement. “Resuming service to Edinburgh and adding new routes to other popular destinations across the continent will offer customers convenient access from American's industry-leading domestic network to all that Europe has to offer.”
All flights will be available to book online for travel in 2025 from 9 September 2024. The new routes are an early start to the airline’s upcoming summer schedule, as this is when demand for travel to European cities outside of metropolises such as London and Paris increases.
For the 2024 summer season, the main American competitor, United Airlines (UAL) It added new flights to Portuguese destinations outside the capital, such as Faro and Ponta Delgada, as well as routes to Malaga, Spain, and Naples, Italy, from Newark, New Jersey.
“American will offer more than 70 daily departures to more than 20 transatlantic destinations in summer 2025,” the airline writes. “Launching in 2024, American will bring back flights to Copenhagen, Denmark (CPH); Naples, Italy (NAP); and Nice, France (NCE) for the summer 2025 travel season.”
American is also bringing back new flights from Newark to Copenhagen, Nice and Naples, as well as San Francisco to Rome, which it launched for the 2024 summer season, for a second run in 2025. The flights will run several times a week (for certain routes, daily) until the weather begins to cool, then will be retired until the season returns.
Related: Veteran fund manager sees world of trouble ahead for stocks