GAINESVILLE, FL (352today.com) – Pack your bags. Starting Monday, travelers in North Central Florida can hop a nonstop flight from Gainesville (GNV) to Fort Lauderdale (FLL).
Silver Airways announced the new route more than a month ago. On Monday, the inaugural flight is scheduled to depart FLL at 6:20 p.m. and arrive at GNV at 7:50 p.m. The airport is anticipating 80-100 passengers between the arriving and departing flights. The departing flight is scheduled to take off at 8:30 p.m.
Silver Airways says the new daily route caters to the growing demand for convenient and efficient travel options between the two cities.
“A low-cost nonstop route to and from FLL has long been requested by our University of Florida and business communities,” said Allan Penksa, CEO, Gainesville Regional Airport, when the route was announced in July.
A release from Gainesville Regional Airport says Broward County is the largest source of UF Students (5,018) and living UF alumni (24,913). They hope this service will be attractive to that potential customer base, along with business and leisure travelers throughout the region.
For context, the flight from Gainesville to Fort Lauderdale should take just 90 minutes versus driving which takes at least five hours barring traffic.
To celebrate the launch, Silver Airways offered one-way fares starting at just under $49. A check of the Silver Airways website on the date of this publication indicates there are still seats available on that first flight out of GNV on Aug. 21. Using a return date of Saturday, Aug. 26, and no checked luggage the website calculates the total fare at $97.96 including taxes and fees. The first checked bag would be an additional $30 if paid in advance, $5 more if booked at the airport.
The flight to FLL makes it the fifth international hub now accessible to Gainesville passengers. The others are Atlanta via Delta Airlines along with Charlotte, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Miami via American Airlines.
If you happen to be one of the passengers on the inaugural flight into or out of GNV, you’ll be treated to cake, macarons, punch, and some Silver Airways swag.