The Miami Herald
Posted on Fri, Nov. 05, 2010
Linking Europe to Miami: Air routes boost ties
BY HANNAH SAMPSON
hsampson@MiamiHerald.com
Miami boasts the title of gateway to the Americas, but an increasing number of flights to Europe are making way for
stronger business contacts and an increase in tourism.
As head of global activities for a cargo company, Doral resident Michael Claus racks up as many as 300,000 miles a year flying around the world. Many are on trips from Miami to U.S. airports that link him directly with Europe.
His transatlantic travel is about to get easier, thanks to a slew of new flights to European destinations from Miami International Airport.
Though Miami has long boasted direct service to London, Paris, Madrid and other major cities, new flights link South Florida directly to cities in Germany, Russia, Holland and Spain.
A new twice-weekly flight to Moscow on Russian carrier Transaero started late last month -- the first time South Florida has had direct service to Russia in more than a decade. Earlier this week, airberlin launched twice-weekly nonstop service to Berlin, a first for Miami. New service to Amsterdam and Barcelona starts in March; a second airline will begin flying to Amsterdam in June.
New service to Paris-Orly, Milan and Munich came online earlier in 2010; German carrier Condor Airlines started twice weekly service from Fort Lauderdale to Frankfurt in May.
``It's ideal. You don't have to go to New York, you don't have to go to Atlanta. You find all the opportunities here,'' said Claus, managing director for Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, a German company. ``For us, and I think I can speak for all business travelers, it's perfect if you deal with Europe.''
Miami-Dade tourism promoters and business groups share Claus' enthusiasm.
``That's very good for business,'' said Mario Sacasa, senior vice president for international programs at the Beacon Council, Miami-Dade's economic development agency.
SELLING POINT
The added lift to Europe is a selling point for firms thinking of moving their companies to Miami, he said. Spain in particular has strong ties to Miami-Dade; the agency has helped more than 70 Spanish companies open offices here.
``All this connectivity makes it more attractive,'' Sacasa said.
Despite the business and language ties, relatively few Spanish tourists vacation in Miami-Dade, said Rolando Aedo, senior vice president for marketing at the Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau. But that could change, he said, when Iberia launches new direct service to Barcelona on March 29.
About two million Europeans -- or a third of the county's total number of foreign visitors -- come to Miami-Dade every year, mostly for leisure.
The new service from Russia is ``a game changer,'' Aedo said, since there's been no direct service from Miami since the 1990s. The bureau is looking to lure Russians to the region for meetings and group business, especially to Sunny Isles Beach, sometimes dubbed `Little Moscow' for its significant Russian population.
For their part, European destinations are eager to snag South Florida visitors with the new flights. Earlier this week, dozens of exhibitors from airlines and tourism offices throughout Europe gathered at the Visit Europe Media Exchange in Hollywood -- the first time the event has come to Florida -- to promote their destinations.
`RIPE MARKET'
``More flights is more opportunity for us to sell Germany,'' said Victoria Larson, the German National Tourist Office's head of public relations in North America. ``Florida is a ripe market. You have people here who are retired and have money and time to spend.''
Airlines are counting on Miami's visitor appeal to fill the added flights.
Transaero chose to enter the U.S. market in Miami and New York, opting for Miami because of its popularity as a tourist destination -- and due to customer request, according to the airline's general director, Olga Pleshakova.
Germans top the number of European visitors to Miami-Dade, and airberlin hopes to capitalize on that as well as Berlin's growing popularity as a developing urban center.
``Germans look for warm weather destinations,'' said Madeleine Vogelsang, airberlin product manager for North America. ``Miami has a little bit of everything. It's cosmopolitan, it's cultured, it has the beach.''
For KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the mix of business and leisure possibilities made Miami a promising destination to return to after nearly seven years.
A spokesman for Spanish airline Iberia said officials there expect the Miami-Barcelona route to fly at about 80 percent occupancy after its March 29 launch, carrying more than 60,000 passengers a year.
Claus, the frequent flier, is also president of the German American Business Chamber's Miami chapter. He said he hopes the new connections will help spur more business development between Miami and Europe.
``Miami is the capital of Latin America,'' he said. ``But focusing on Latin America should not be the only thing. You have to look into other markets as well.''