Air Travel in Puerto Rico

Your flight into San Juan's busy Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín may be more crowded than in years past, as airlines have reduced the number of flights to Puerto Rico. You may find that you have to transfer at one your airline's hubs instead of flying direct. But there are still plenty of flights available, especially from the East Coast. Air Tran, American, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, United, and US Airways are your best bets.

It used to be that travelers arriving at San Juan's international airport had to transfer to nearby Aeropuerto Fernando L. Rivas Dominici (close to Old San Juan and Condado) to take a flight to Vieques or Culebra. This is no longer the case, as all the carriers servicing the islands also have flights from the international airport. Air Flamenco, Isla Nena Air Service, and Vieques Air Link offer daily flights from both airports in San Juan to Vieques and Culebra. Cape Air flies between the international airport and Vieques.

Puerto Rico is also a good spot from which to hop to other Caribbean islands. American Eagle serves many islands in the Caribbean from San Juan; Cape Air connects San Juan to St. Thomas and St. Croix. Seaborne Airlines has seaplanes departing from San Juan's Aeropuerto Fernando L. Rivas Dominici to St. Thomas and St. Croix.

Major Airlines

Air Tran (800/247-8726. www.airtran.com). American Airlines/American Eagle (800/433-7300. www.aa.com). Continental (800/231-0856. www.continental.com). Delta (800/241-4141. www.delta.com). JetBlue (800/538-2583. www.jetblue.com). Spirit Air (800/772-7117. www.spiritair.com). United Airlines (800/864-8331. www.united.com). US Airways (800/622-1015. www.usairways.com).

Regional Airlines

Air Flamenco (787/724-1818. www.airflamenco.net). Cape Air (800/525-0714. www.flycapeair.com). Isla Nena Air Service (877/812-5144. www.islanena.8m.com). Seaborne Airlines (888/359-8687. www.seaborneairlines.com). Vieques Air Link (787/741-8331 or 888/901-9247. www.vieques-island.com/val).

Airports and Transfers

The island's main airport is Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín (SJU), 20 minutes east of Old San Juan in the neighborhood of Isla Verde. San Juan's secondary airport is the small Fernando L. Rivas Dominici Airport (SIG), also called Isla Grande, near the city's Miramar section. From either airport you can catch flights to Culebra, Vieques, and other destinations on Puerto Rico and throughout the Caribbean. (Note that although the Dominici airport was still operating at this writing, its future is uncertain.)

Other Puerto Rican airports include Aeropuerto Internacional Rafael Hernández (BQN) in the northwestern town of Aguadilla, Aeropuerto Eugenio María de Hostos (MAZ) in the west-coast community of Mayagüez, Aeropuerto Mercedita (PSE) in the south-coast town of Ponce, Aeropuerto Diego Jiménez Torres (FAJ) in the east-coast city of Fajardo, Antonio Rivera Rodríguez (VQS) on Vieques, and Aeropuerto Benjamin Rivera Noriega (CPX) on Culebra.

Airport Information

Aeropuerto Antonio Rivera Rodríguez (Vieques. 787/741-0515). Aeropuerto Benjamin Rivera Noriega (Culebra. 787/742-0022). Aeropuerto Diego Jiménez Torres (Fajardo. 787/860-3110). Aeropuerto Eugenio María de Hostos (Mayagüez. 787/833-0148). Aeropuerto Fernando L. Rivas Dominici (Isla Grande, San Juan. 787/729-8711). Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín (Isla Verde, San Juan. 787/791-4670). Aeropuerto Internacional Rafael Hernández (Aguadilla. 787/891-2286). Aeropuerto Mercedita (Ponce. 787/842-6292).