NEW YORK CITY, New York - Travel Agent sat down Wednesday with Sen. Brenda Hood, parliamentary secretary for culture, ministry of tourism, civil aviation and culture for the Government of Grenada, and learned that the destination is aggressively pursuing new flights to the destination on the heels of Sandals Resorts International's plans to open a resort in Grenada this December.
Currently Caribbean Airlines and American Airlines fly direct to the destination from New York, but Hood would like to see those flights increase as well as add a few new carriers to the destination's portfolio.
"We want to get new airlines to come here, but we would also like to increase the existing flights that we have already," she says. "We would like Caribbean Air to add some more service and would like to see American add more flights as well."
She said she is also looking to talk to new carriers, including JetBlue Airways, which has added a slew of Caribbean routes to its offerings in the past five years or so.
"If I have an opportunity to talk them this week while I'm in New York, I would," says Hood, who in New York City this week for the annual Caribbean Week events. "They seem to be flying to the Caribbean a lot these days, so perhaps we can get them to come to Grenada."
And the new Sandals LaSource Grenada, opening December 12, could help. It was announced in November of last year that Sandals Resorts International will be taking over LaSource, a popular luxury resort in Grenada that officially closed its doors recently due to lingering financial woes.
Aside from the general popularity of the Sandals product, Hood is even more excited to have the company's chairman, Gordon "Butch" Stewart, on her side in the fight for more flights.
"He's man who knows how to get what he wants, " she says. "He is a determined man. He often gets what he sets out for. So, hopefully, having him and his company in Grenada will make it easier for us to get the flights we really need."
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