Tui UK will launch the first direct flight to Los Cabos in Mexico for winter 2019.
The resort, famous as the holiday hangout of celebrities including George Clooney, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Aniston, will be served by two weekly Gatwick flights from November 2019.
Announcing the new route, UK & Ireland managing director, Andrew Flintham, said that while the company has seen a resurgence in mid-haul destinations this year, customers were still looking for “more exotic destinations”.
“Mexico is our most popular long-haul gateway,” he said. “We are the market leaders to Cancun and to Puerto Vallarta but we are excited to announce the first direct to the celebrity hotspot of Los Cabos.”
The Tui Airways flight will serve 13 hotels across two main resorts of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo.
The hotels include RIU properties, the Santa Fe and Baja California, plus the Hard Rock Hotel Los Cabos. Tui will offer seven, 10, 11 and 14-night holidays.
Flintham also announced the early release of Tui’s summer 2020 programme. It will go on sale four months earlier than usual on November 8 next week, the earliest Tui has sold a summer programme.
It includes new flights from Doncaster-Sheffield to Cancun and thousands of free kids places at own-brand hotels Tui Sensatori, Tui Family Life, First Choice Splashworld, First Choice Holiday Village and Suneo Club.
This is on top of new services from Manchester to Puerto Vallarta this winter, and six new routes to Hurghada across winter 2019 and summer 2020.
Flintham also promised “thousands” of free child places and low deposits.
He added: “It’s been an interesting summer for me and for the whole industry.
“First of all, the UK actually had a summer. Secondly, England fans actually believed it was coming home, and thirdly, the only island anyone was talking about was Love Island.
“But despite all these factors, we saw a resurgence of Turkey and also of other mid-haul destinations such as Greece, Cyprus and Croatia,” he said.
Flintham remarked on successful new additions to the programme this summer, including a new resort in Croatia, new Sensatori and Family Life hotels, plus the biggest new launch, that of ‘The Residence’ at Tui’s Sensatori property in Fetiye, Turkey, “where you can have your own lake house and Butler”. “What’s not to like?” he said.
Mark Hall, director of product and destination experience at Tui UK & Ireland, added: “As the market leader in Mexico, we’re so pleased to be able to offer our customers a unique view of the country following the success of Puerto Vallarta and Cancun in our programme. We know the inspiring, fashionable addition of Los Cabos to our Tui collection will encourage not only those who’re familiar with the destination but also those who have never visited the country before. We’re proud to be able to continue offering customers even more choice and flexibility and help British holidaymakers discover their smiles.”
Rodrigo Esponda Cascajares, managing director for Los Cabos Tourism Board, said “We are honoured to have Tui as the first carrier to start a non-stop flight to Los Cabos from Europe, specifically from the UK. We will now have the opportunity to showcase the unique diversity and sophisticated region of Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, Mexico.”