A new era of travel has arrived in Colombia with the arrival of new 'ultra-low' budget airline, Spirit.
On 8th May Spirit Airlines, based in Miramar, Florida, opened a new route between Fort Lauderdale and Cartagena on Colombia's north coast. The airline says it is celebrating the new route with introductory fares of $49 USD to be followed with everyday value season fares of $119.
The route to Cartagena represents the airline's first experimentation with the country and, if successful, could bring momentous change to both the national economy and the freedom of movement of its people.
For years the Colombian air travel market has been dominated by its two major domestic players, Avianca and the smaller Aerorepublica, but with prices out of reach for most ordinary Colombians air travel has mostly remained a preserve of the elite.
Spirit, which has based its successful low cost model on companies such as Ryanair, says it is planning to include Bogota as a destination in 2008 and is studying the possibility of including other cities in the future.
The news will be greeted with jubilation by both the Colombian diaspora within the United States and for those nationals seeking to expand their horizons overseas. With the arrival of Spirit, many Colombians will now feel the world is somewhat closer than before.
