A new air link between South America and the northeastern Caribbean could be on the table. Surinam Airways and the government of St Maarten are working through the details of a proposed service connecting Paramaribo (Suriname) and Georgetown (Guyana) with Princess Juliana International Airport — the famously busy hub on the Dutch side of St Maarten.
The idea isn't brand new. St Maarten's Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina visited Surinam Airways' headquarters back in November 2025 to kick things off, and this week he chaired a follow-up meeting in St Maarten with the airline, Princess Juliana International Airport, the St Maarten Tourism Bureau, the Department of Civil Aviation, and the tourism and economic affairs ministry.
The next step is a full commercial case. Officials are studying demand through Guyana in particular — a fast-growing market — plus expected passenger numbers and what the route could add in tourism, trade and regional business. It's framed as more than a flight: Mercelina called it a chance to strengthen the movement of people, goods and services between the three destinations. There's also a community angle. St Maarten is home to sizeable Surinamese and Guyanese populations, and a direct link would make family visits far easier than the current multi-stop itineraries.
Don't start planning around it yet, though. There's no launch date or schedule. The route still needs the business case completed and evaluated, air traffic rights approved, and a pile of operational and regulatory boxes ticked. St Maarten's aviation department will keep talking with Kingdom partners while Surinam Airways works out the commercial side.
Why should a traveller care? If it launches, the service opens a genuinely new corridor — Paramaribo and Georgetown are currently awkward to reach from the northeastern Caribbean. It would also beef up Princess Juliana's role as a gateway for the region, with easy onward hops to Anguilla, St Barth and Saba. For anyone eyeing a combined South America-plus-Caribbean trip, that's a promising sign the logistics may soon get a lot simpler.
Story via Caribbean Journal.