Greetings!

My husband and I are in the pre-planning stages of a December trip to the Virgin Islands, a destination we have visited many times and adore. Anguilla is also on our bucket list and I see that Winair has flights from Tortola's Beef Island airport to SXM/St Maarten.

Just wondering if anyone has any recent experience on this route (EIS to SXM) and how reliable Winair is. I realize weather can always cause flight delays but generally speaking, is Winair consistent? My fear is getting stranded at the last minute with no options to get to Anguilla. I don't believe there are direct flights from the Virgin Islands to Anguilla, unfortunately.

Thank you all in advance for your input!

Winair has been around since 1961. We’ve flown them in/out of SXM as well as other Caribbean airports on numerous times since the early 1990’s and can tell you that they are pretty much like any of the other Caribbean commuter airlines, they have their good days and they have their bad days. The thing is you never know what type of “day” they will be having the day you fly. Like most Caribbean commuter airlines they have a relatively small fleet of planes so if mechanical issues or weather delays disrupt a particular flight or flights it can have a ripple effect through their entire system. Hen island hopping by plane around the Caribbean it helps to be patient and flexible.

Thank you Fletch! You raise a good point about being flexible, especially when there is only one airline with two puddle jumper flights on a single day servicing a location. I will have to decide if the risk of a potential "bad day" flight-wise is worth it to reap the benefits of squeezing the BVIs AND Anguilla into the same trip. This is a good problem to have to solve! We will have insurance so it wouldn't be financially catastrophic if we lost a night's hotel stay on Anguilla should flights be cancelled. Just thinking about the stress factor if we were displaced and had to scramble for accommodations at the last minute on Tortola... Decisions, decisions!

PS: Is your nickname "Fletch" after the Chevy Chase movie? A classic! LOL!

Sort of! The name honors a pet cat that passed away years ago. My son named him after the movie character.

The best person to ask these questions would be one of the pilots himself! Who also owns Captain's Rib Shack! Really good ribs!! Contact Dino Arrundell @ https://www.facebook.com/darrundell

we took that route on WinAIr some years ago for a side-trip to the BVIs...getting to Tortola wasn't a problem, but returning to SXM a few days later was an experience...after a couple hours delay, we finally boarded the flight, and after a long time we eventually taxied to the runway...but then the engine quit ...pilot literally had to help tow the plane with a rope back to the terminal

it was mid evening by this time, and we were told they had to order a part for the plane which would arrive the following morning...WinAir got us a room back in town, and provided transportation to get us back to the airport the following morning...but after arriving at EIS the next morning we found out there would be another several hours delay...we asked if we could leave our luggage there, and wound up catching a small boat to nearby Marina Cay where we enjoyed a few hours at a beach bar

we eventually made our way back to the airport to experience more delays...the new plan was to get as many of us as possible on that evening's normally scheduled flight, with preference rightfully so to those that had previous reservations for that flight...it was like a lottery...we all huddled in a group while they started calling names of those that would get on the flight...they actually called my wife's name a passenger or two before mine .....anyway, we eventually made it back to SXM that night

would we take WinAIr to EIS again? heck yeah!

If you are willing to go back to San Juan first, Silver Airline has direct flights to Anguilla 2 days a week. When you consider having to go through customs in SXM and then to a ferry it might be more time efficient.

Fletch: That's a lovely tribute! Cheers!

Colour1: Thanks for that tip! Captain's Rib Shack has been bookmarked on my map!

IslandBoi: What an adventure! The kind of thing everyone prefers to avoid but makes for a great memory and story down the road! LOL!

DougP: That's not a bad idea at all! Definitely an excellent option to consider. Thanks!

Order the combo, there is plenty for two! The rum punch is really good too! My favorite is Driftwood! IMHO, best rum punch on the island!