How to get here..
Abaco, so close yet so far. The superlatives to describe Abaco abound but getting there can often be arduous. It seems it’s the dream of many a retired pilot with a few bucks and backers to start up a “little out island airline”. Some manage to stick it out for a decade, many just a couple years, one for only a couple months. The reason is quite simple. How to keep the seats full during off peak periods and still run an credible scheduled air carrier on a shoe string. Add to this, swings in the economy. Eventually many switch to becoming “Shared Charters” hoping to sell enough cheaper seats to fill a plane. That may work on weekends in season, still numerous reports were posted on the bulletin boards and the Abaconian Newspaper regarding these carriers unanswered phones, canceled flights, FAA fines for “operating aircraft in violation of its air carrier certificate” etc etc. Fall 2014 saw the below carrier list shortened by four, yet by 2015 a new carrier was added.
Chartering sounds like it’s only for the rich and famous. For a family of six or 3 couples, not so, and can offer many pluses. Namely you can fly into Treasure Cay and back from Marsh Harbour if it suits you. AND that’s on your own schedule arriving and departing, allaying connection concerns. You avoid long custom and security lines, no lost luggage, and no hassle. It could be well worth it. IE: the plane is yours, and you can bring as many bags as you like, a cooler even your dog.
| In a Nutshell, most all Abaco travel connects or originates in Florida with the two US Carriers. Namely, USAir/American Airlines flying as American Eagle/Envoy out of Miami to Marsh Harbour. United/Continental flying as Silver Airways out of Ft. Lauderdale, Palm Beach, Orlando and Tampa. They also fly to Marsh Harbour with limited service to Treasure Cay. In July Delta/Delta Connection announced new service to Marsh Harbour from Atlanta beginning in Dec., adding additional connection possibilities. Southwest began flights to Nassau via Baltimore with early morning connections from the Northeast cities. All requiring a Bahamas Air connection to Abaco. Lastly, Bahamasair has nonstop flights to Marsh Harbour four days a week from Palm Beach. They also fly from other US Cities with connections via Nassau. Note: Schedules do vary seasonally, often reduced to weekends only. In this regard re-confirm flights regularly as they can be dropped especially late summer early fall. As for Eastern Air Lines, mentioned above, at the moment they are operating as a charter. |
Air Flight Charters – Via Ft. Lauderdale. 954-359-0320 |
Some guidelines to consider when planning your trip.
1) If you are considering going in high season, May, June, July or around Christmas and especially on weekends during those periods, book well in advance. This applies not only to airlines but boat rentals and to a lesser degree, golf cart rentals.
2) Reconfirm your flight a few weeks prior to departure to avoid any surprises.
3) Use carry on luggage if you can, in case you have to change flights in a hurry.
4) Late arrivals could cause conflicts trying to catch the last scheduled ferry to your Cay resulting in an expensive charter.
5) Get to your departing flight early. The is not to deal with lines, but to allow time for your passport number to clear with Homeland Security in the US. It’s not uncommon to hear of a passenger arriving 15 minutes before departure and not be allowed to board.
6) If you have an early AM flight, you might want to consider a day in Marsh before your leave – Rent a car and do a little Big Island exploring. The Lofty Fig and Conch Inn allow one night booking.
7) If you have a choice when changing planes in south east Florida, try to use West Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale and Miami in that order. An earlier trip had us connecting through West Palm Beach. Including baggage pickup, customs and immigration, we were at the departure gate for Tampa in about 15 minutes!
8) Connections via NASSAU, require customs clearance and can often result in missed connections via Bahamas Air and increase your odds of lost or late arriving “checked” luggage.
9) One last consideration if you find yourself aboard the popular Cessna 402 – a small 8-9 seater; Weight is more critical and all passengers luggage will be weighed and checked. If the combined weight is too much, it could be possible that your bags might follow on another plane. It’s happened to us.