Travel news
With summer around the corner, Delta Air Lines is returning to Scotland for the first time since the pandemic, offering non-stop flights to the United States.
From this week, the airline will fly from Edinburgh to New YORK/JFK five times a week, moving to daily in June, while resuming its Boston operation five times weekly from May 28.
Both routes offer convenient access to these cities as well as access to more than 50 onward destinations including Orlando, Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
“We’re seeing increased demand for travel between Scotland and the US as customers reconnect with family and friends and seek new experiences after two years of staycations and limited holidays,” said Nicolas Ferri, Delta’s VP Europe, Middle East, Africa and India. “Restoring our network will provide a vital boost as American tourists want to discover all this country has to offer.”
Data from Visitscotland reports that the US is the largest inbound market for international tourists to Scotland with 636,000 visitors in 2019. Americans are also the biggest spenders bringing
£717 million to the Scottish economy, equating to 28% of all overseas spend. Annual exports from Scotland to the US, meanwhile, total up to £5.5 billion, with engineering and manufacturing, food and drink and technology among the main sectors. For Delta Cargo, food and drink is also the main export from Scotland.
“The return of Delta to Scotland is excellent news for Scottish tourism,” said Malcolm Roughead, chief executive of Visitscotland. “Before the pandemic, the US was our largest international market for visitors.
“The return of direct routes is vital and will help support the recovery of Scotland’s valuable tourism industry. We know there is pent-up demand from Americans to travel to Scotland and with the return of these two routes, Scottish tourism looks forward to welcoming more visitors from the US and ensuring they enjoy their visit.”
Gordon Dewar, chief executive of Edinburgh Airport said: “Continuing to reconnect Scotland and the US will be welcome as people continue to reunite with loved ones and take that holiday they’ve been dreaming of, and Scotland’s inbound tourism industry will also be looking forward to greeting thousands of visitors from across the pond. We’re excited to see Delta back at Edinburgh Airport and look forward to working with them on returning success to these routes.”