TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin AA vs. Jet Blue to SXM

I am now able to book my outbound flight from Portland, OR, to SXM for next June. There are two somewhat reasonable FC fares, each with one seat left; one routing is PDX-PHX-MIA-SXM ($761 one way), and the other is PDX-DFW-MIA-SXM ($595 one way). The latter routing has only 45 minutes between flights in MIA. All other flights are over $900 one way on American, down from over $1,600 on previous days.

I've never flown Jet Blue but checked their flights and routing. They are booking only into February at this time, but the most expensive fare is a redeye at $467 (up over $100 from yesterday) with just one layover in JFK and a leisurely connection time.

My questions follow and are directed to those who have flown similar routings on both airlines:

• If I choose AA through DFW, is 45 minutes sufficient to change planes in MIA?
• If I decide to wait for Jet Blue to announce its June 2019 schedule, what is the likelihood that prices will increase significantly so that it would have been better to book one of the AA flights now?

Thanks in advance for your wisdom.

I think you know the answers to all of your questions. JB is a great airline...would take them over American any day of the week.... but with plane transfers, etc, we all know what problems a delayed takeoff, a delayed landing, weather, gate access or any other problem that may arise in any of the flights.can cause....especially with a connection.

The more AA has shrunk its seat room, the more I disliked flying them, until I quit altogether in 2012. All jetBlue ever since. No first class (just extra space) but I'm VERY happy with JB.

OMG! AA down last month was a NIGHTMARE! With the tray table down there was zero room. My boobies were on the table...lol

The Delta flight on the way back had more room.

Linda,

Like you, we greatly prefer Business Class tix when we can get them, so we continue to prefer AA out of JFK to SXM as opposed to JB. But that’s us.

We’ve only flown through DFW once and it was NOT a good experience for us. It was supposed to have been an hour and a half connection but heavy air traffic and weather delayed us considerably and we had to run through DFW but we made it. Just barely, but we did so only after doing the OJSimpson Sprint through the terminal. Miami has always been easy for us going TO SXM and we’ve never connected there coming home or had to clear C. & I there.

Coming home from SXM we definitely prefer JB over AA because of their more convenient Customs and Immigration Hall at JFK. The JB extra room seats in the front of the plane are nice but they don’t compare to AA Business, IMHO. and of course the JB extra room seats do add considerably to the ticket price along with possible differences in price if you typically check more than one piece of luggage, as well as the 70 pound weight allowance as opposed to 50 on JB.

And it goes without saying, no one can say with any certainty what either airline will do about pricing. We were watching an AA flight that we thought was outrageously priced at $615.00 one way and from Sunday night to Monday morning it went up to $930.00 pp one way, and as of this morning it rests at over $1400.00 pp. our personal experience is JB typically runs less than AA to SXM but the difference is usually negligible.

I agree. AA used to be our preferred airline. Now JB is our favorite (domestic) airline and AA is taken only when there is no alternative.

Do the Dallas to Miami connection. Did FC this last trip and it's a 777-200. Omg what a great way to fly. Plenty of connection time.

Pat,

Off-topic to the original post, but you may have another non-stop option out of JFK in a few months. DL’s current schedule has them starting Saturday-Only service as of October 6, increasing to Daily effective November 27.

I also did that in June and it was great. On the particular itinerary I'm looking at, however, it's not a 777.

To bad. That plane was showing for the MIA Dallas conection for next June 1st but we elected to fly back through CLT to SEA direct.

We just flew home July 11 from SXM to Boston on AA through Miami and must say it was one of the most stressful flights we have take in many years. The flight from SXM was delayed over 1 hour which would have caused us to miss our connecting flight . Fortunately our flight from Miami was also delayed but it took a total of 14 hours door to door. I will never take a flight through Miami again as the airport is horrible in my opinion. No TSA pre approved line open. We had to file into the TSA area along with everyone but were given blue card as TSA approval. Took a long time to get through; the walk from plane to immigration was long and waiting for bags to come off flight took a long time. We had flown 1st class and our priority checked bags were some of the last ones off the plane along with all priority checked bags not the 1st group we were promised. When we got to Boston ; it took 47 minutes for the bags to get to us. Everyone was very upset at how long it took to get unloaded off the plane.
We normally fly on Jet Blue non stop which takes about 3 1/2 hours to fly from Boston to SXM but now they have dropped the non stop flights.Until Jet Blue starts non stop flights again; we will fly either through Philadelphia or New York; never again through Miami is possible.

There prices have stayed pretty constant over the years . I don’t think 45 min is enough time especially the way AA changes they times

I've found that the minute JB opens their schedule for future is the lowest fare. Then it goes up from there. Last year we booked March for !46 one way then before we left it was up to over $400.

Linda is talking about First Class, so the seat size shouldn't be a problem.

Wow. 46 one way is a deal. Lol

Haven't done either of those connections, but prefer JB over American any day of the week. Delta is our favorite, but not an option for you. JB prices, at least direct from JFK to SXM, seldom vary much in pricing lately.

Book the lower cost option, flights will change between no and then. I bet over 3 times. Then AA gets to accommodate you.
Cheers, Todd

So true Todd.

Having flown AA for years, I have to chime in that AA has all but abandoned SXM.

That being said, our general rule is that for flights under 5 hours, just go with the cheapest nonstop flight.

"..AA has all but abandoned SXM. " Really??

What??????

OK perhaps that was dramatic but only one non-stop from JFK when there used to be multiple?

Also, on our last flight, we upgraded to business, only to learn that the plane was downgraded the day of flight, so half of us were accommodated and the other sat in the back.

In comparison to JetBlue with a few nonstops from JFK and knowing that with a narrow range of fleet types, you know what a/c you’ll get and what to expect.

Sorry if I was being a bit dramatic. But AA just seems to be abandoning it the Caribbean (for a few years now) to concentrate on more profitable routes, IMHO

That’s exactly what AA is doing at JFK. You’re unlikely to ever see the Caribbean service from JFK, including service to SXM, restored to what it once was. That doesn’t mean that there won’t be some service from JFK, or that AA is abandoning SXM. Look for continued service from MIA, and for service from CLT and PHL to resume.

Well, its not the same but JetBlue picked up[ where AA left off. Even the aircraft that AA chooses to use to serve SXM are their dated 757s. Lets see what happens. Hopefully things would improve.

757's or A319's seem to be the aircraft of choice for AA to SXM

It is a business, they should concentrate on whatever routes provide the most profit.

Until there is more availability of lodging on SXM and a more fully functioning airport, there is likely not the need for increased air service from any airline. Not too wise or profitable to fly planes at much less than full capacity.

Those who are spoiled by the lower fares and non-stop service from the NYC area are just getting a small taste of what the majority of others experience when traveling to SXM.