InterCaribbean launches nonstop Sint Maarten and Barbados flights from BVI

Officials have predicted improved regional connectivity and a surge in Caribbean travel following InterCaribbean Airways’ announcement of direct flights from the BVI to Sint Maarten and Barbados.

The announcement was made during an inaugural ceremony yesterday, March 8, attended by government officials, aviation representatives and tourism stakeholders.

InterCaribbean founder Lyndon Gardiner said the airline’s expansion will simplify travel between the Virgin Islands and the southern Caribbean.

“For years, getting here from the Southern Caribbean meant connections, layovers, and half a day of your life gone,” Gardiner said. “What we’re adding today is a direct path to and from Barbados into this world, and through Barbados, access to our full Southern Caribbean network. Dominica, Grenada, Trinidad, St Lucia, St Vincent, and Guyana.”

Gardiner said the new service places the territory at the centre of regional travel. “The BVI is no longer at the edge of the map. You are in the middle of it,” Gardiner said.

The launch comes months after Caribbean Airlines discontinued its Tortola service as part of a network restructuring. The Trinidad-based carrier had introduced flights linking the Virgin Islands with destinations such as Trinidad, Barbados and Puerto Rico in 2024, but later announced it would discontinue the Tortola route effective January 10, 2026 following a review of route performance and resource deployment.

Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer said InterCaribbean’s new services help address that gap. “Inter-Caribbean is filling a void that was announced a few months ago, where Caribbean Airlines pulled out of the region, and you have stepped in, and we appreciate you for doing that,” Rymer said.

Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley expressed that the connections are important for both tourism and residents who travel frequently across the region. “To be able to have this flight to Sint Maarten and to Barbados is so incredibly important, not just for our tourism product, but for the many residents that we have living in the Virgin Islands,” Dr Wheatley said.

He noted that many residents travel regularly to destinations such as Guyana, Grenada, St Lucia and Barbados, particularly for family matters and visa services. “With Inter-Caribbean as the hub, persons will be able to get to their destinations,” Dr Wheatley said.

Officials also highlighted the airline’s longstanding relationship with the territory. InterCaribbean established a hub in the Virgin Islands in December 2015 and has since expanded its network across the region.

Director of Administration at the BVI Airport Authority, Diana Maduro Romney, said the airline now connects dozens of cities across the Caribbean.

Officials noted that the new routes will provide easier access to European connections through Sint Maarten while linking the Virgin Islands more directly to the wider southern Caribbean via Barbados.