The carrier will introduce twice-weekly flights from Edinburgh to Barbados from 5 December, which will become Scotland’s only direct service to the Caribbean. The airline will also fly twice weekly to Orlando in Florida from April 2022.
Virgin Atlantic will also be launching three flights per week from Manchester to Montego Bay in Jamaica from 6 November, while the airline returns to St Lucia with three weekly flights from Heathrow starting on 18 December.
The Edinburgh-Barbados route will be the first time Virgin Atlantic has flown international flights from the Scottish capital in the carrier’s 37-year history.
Juha Jarvinen, chief commercial officer at Virgin Atlantic, said: “The Caribbean is such an important destination for us and for our customers and we couldn’t be more excited to announce our new routes, as we continue to grow our ever-expanding portfolio.
“For customers based around the UK, we are also thrilled to be able to offer additional routes from both Edinburgh and Manchester. Commencing international flights from Edinburgh marks an exciting new chapter.”
The new Caribbean services will complement Virgin’s previously announced Heathrow to Barbados flights, launching on 19 November, as well as a route to St Vincent and the Grenadines on 13 October.
Gordon Dewar, chief executive of Edinburgh airport, said: “We are extremely excited to welcome our newest partner Virgin Atlantic to Scotland’s capital city.
“To be able to deliver flights to Barbados, Scotland’s only direct route to the Caribbean, and Orlando is a fantastic boost to us as we prepare for the post-Covid recovery, and it is a huge show of confidence in Edinburgh airport’s ability to deliver for passengers across the country.”
