Branson Airport: New Direct Flights to Phoenix and Austin

The Branson Airport announced on Monday, June 27th that Frontier Airlines will be adding new direct flights to Phoenix, Arizona and Austin, Texas. This will be seasonal service, for now at least, with the Phoenix flights running between 9/16-12/14 and the Austin flights from 9/17-12/10.

This is a great move for Branson fans living in the southwest and we can only hope that the ridership on these routes will be strong enough to justify an extension of the service.

For those of you who would like to try the airport but haven't yet Half Price Ozarks is currently offering a deal on a travel package to the Branson airport that may be worth checking out.

Branson Airport: New Service through Branson Air Express

Branson's airport will announce new service branded Branson Air Express, operated by ExpressJet Airlines.

The five new destinations offered by this service will be:
Austin-Bergstrom (AUS), TX
Des Moines (DSM), IA
Hobby Airport (HOU), TX
Terre Haute (HUF), IN
Shreveport (SHV), LA

Two thoughts about this announcement:
1) ExpressJet primarily offers private charters and this essentially represents the creation of Branson branded air service through public charter flights. Not what I expected, but an interesting approach by the country's only private airport.
2) The five new destinations are also very interesting and I think are well-chosen. These communities are close enough for Branson to attract visitors currently who are willing to make a long drive (or go on a bus trip). Inexpensive air fares may entice these visitors to come more often and there are likely others in these communities who are familiar with Branson and may consider coming now that they don't face the prospect of a long drive.

I will admit this was not the carrier I was hoping for, but I think it represents a good move on the part of airport officials. Hopefully it will help those Branson fans in Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, and Texas enjoy our beloved Ozarks more often!

As always, thanks for visiting the site and happy travels!

Airtran Drops Milwaukee Flight, Adds Atlanta Flight

Some decidedly mixed news for the Branson Airport today:

The bad-After only two weeks, AirTran has concluded the daily Milwaukee flights are not profitable and has decided to cut them back to three days a week (Monday, Thursday, and Saturday) on June 6 then end them altogether on July 6. This is especially not encouraging considering the fares were on sale for about $39 each way for most of this route's short life.

The good-Daily flights from Atlanta have been successful enough, despite higher average fares, that AirTran will be adding a second daily flight starting on July 6.

The success of the Atlanta route and the decision to add a second flight is very encouraging since it is AirTran's main hub and offers the most connections. However, the inability of the Milwaukee route to attract sufficient flyers even with low fares does not speak well for the addition of other destinations, although it would have been nice if the route had been given more time. We'll be keeping our eye on the Dallas and Minneapolis/St. Paul routes flown by Sun Country to see how they fare.

Thanks for reading!

Pictures from the Branson Airport's Grand Opening

The Springfield-News Leader has posted photos from yesterday's grand opening. I really like the design of the lobby, it is quite unique and really fits with the character of Branson. It sounds like yesterday was a pretty successful day without any significant first day mistakes and good flight numbers, let us hope this is the first of many such days.

Now that the grand opening is complete, I will not be posting about the airport as often: only if there is major news or I learn about significant airfare sales.

Thanks for reading!

First Flights Arrive at Branson Regional Airport

The festivities concluded yesterday and the countdown has concluded: Branson's new airport is now officially open for business!

The first arrival to the Branson Regional Airport (BKG) was a SunCountry flight from Minneapolis and SunCountry also had the honor of flying the first departure (to Dallas).

While the Arrivals/Departures feature is not yet operational on the Branson Airport's website, their construction cameras are still working, allowing you to get a glimpse of the lobby.

The preceding festivities, the Big Smith concert and the grand Air Show, highlight the significance of today's opening. Today opens up Branson to a wide range of additional visitors and also allows Branson's convention center to better compete for events. Hopefully the Branson Airport both succeeds but does so without changing the character of Branson which we all love.

I posted a link yesterday to some pictures from the air show, but the News-Leader has now posted a new collection of pictures taken by attendees which I think are even better than those taken by their photographer.

Thanks for reading!

Branson Air Show Pictures

If you were not able to attend the first annual Branson Air Show this weekend, or attempted to but are still stuck in traffic, the Springfield News Leader has posted some pictures of the event.

Thanks for reading!

Some (Belated) Branson Airport Updates

First of all, I apologize that I have not posted in so long. I hope to keep the blog regularly updated over the summer for those of you looking to plan vacations.

Since my last post, there has been more news on the Branson Airport (which now has a shiny new website):

1) AirTran will be providing direct daily service from Milwaukee in addition to Atlanta with connections to over 50 other destinations.

2) The second inaugural carrier will be Sun Country which will offer direct flights from Minneapolis/St. Paul and Dallas.

3) Rental car service will be provided by Enterprise.

4) Shuttle service will be provided by Gray Line with one-way rates running from $12-15 for adults.

5) Famous Dave's will be providing the food service for the airport. I'm pretty excited about this both because the restaurant decor fits perfectly with the airport's architectural style but also because I love Famous Dave's BBQ.

The airport will be open in less than two weeks and the interior looks pretty impressive (check out the construction cams).

To provide some examples I looked up some fares on each airline. If I want to fly on Sun Country from Dallas to Branson departing on May 25 and returning on May 30 the cost is $140.20 (including taxes and fees). If I want to fly on AirTran from Atlanta to Branson on the same dates the cost is $204.70 (again including all taxes and fees).

These are both very good deals with relatively short notice. This should allow a whole segment of visitors to enjoy Branson who previously would not have because it was too far to drive and allow some who normally drive to save the stress and time for a reasonable cost.

The First Carrier for the new Branson Airport: AirTran

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/2008-12-10-branson-airport_N.htm

AirTran will offer daily flights from Atlanta in May and will consider adding additional destinations (they have been granted exclusivity for the Atlanta route plus some unnamed other cities)

Branson airport officials state in the article that they are still in negotiation with other airlines so this may not be the only big announcement before the airport opens. However, it is likely that some other airlines will wait to see how succesful AirTran's routes are before making a commitment.

I'll have more on this later, but this is great news for Branson fans in the Southeast or any who live near cities currently served by AirTran (since Atlanta is their main hub).

Big News: The Carrier for Branson Airport will be Announced Thursday

Per KOLR10 News

I'm still holding out hope for Southwest Airlines, although I realize it is very unlikely. We'll post again after the big announcement to discuss its implications for Branson tourism.