Norwegian continues to expand its ever-growing network to include Tampa International Airport as its 15th U.S. gateway. The inaugural route to London has commenced, operating twice weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
In Florida, Norwegian offers three major gateways - Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, Orlando International Airport, and Tampa International Airport - more than any other state in the U.S. Floridians now have increased access to affordable flights and can experience award-winning service with a combined total of 14 nonstop routes to Europe and the French Caribbean.
“It’s an exciting time for Norwegian in the U.S. as we continue to widen our footprint in one of the most active states for outbound and inbound travel in America, Florida. Our first flight from this state took off in 2013 from Fort Lauderdale and since then we’ve grown to become the largest foreign airline to offer transatlantic nonstop routes. We foresee continued growth in Florida, including new gateways and more routes. Additionally, we will continue to attract more tourists and add more jobs in the state as demand for our award-winning product and service broadens,” said Bjørn Kjos, Founder and CEO of Norwegian.
The United Kingdom is Norwegian’s most popular destination with U.S. travelers. Nearly 4 million Americans visited the UK overall in 2017, a 13 percent increase from the previous year. On Oct. 28, a third daily flight to London was launched at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport to meet increasing demand from the U.S.
“We saw record-breaking numbers of tourists visiting the UK last year including strong growth from the U.S., our most valuable inbound visitor market for tourism spending. We want to build on the strong growth we have seen and are delighted to be working with Norwegian to introduce new visitors from Tampa Bay and its surrounding areas to London and beyond. Increasing route connectivity and airline seat-capacity is a crucial part of our competitive tourism offer and these new and accessible nonstop routes with Norwegian will make it easier for U.S. visitors to travel to the UK, converting the inspiration to visit into bookings,” said VisitBritain Executive Vice President, Americas Gavin Landry.
“We appreciate Norwegian’s investment in Tampa Bay, and we look forward to welcoming Norwegian’s new UK visitors to the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater region,” said Joe Lopano, CEO of Tampa International Airport. “We’re eager to show them why Trip Advisor, Travel + Leisure, and JD Power all rank Tampa International Airport among the world’s best.”
