Avelo Airlines inaugurated its new flight route from Wilmington (ILM) in North Carolina, U.S., to Punta Cana (PUJ), Dominican Republic, on Wednesday, Dec. 24. Operating twice a week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays, on a Boeing Next-Generation 737, the nonstop service takes just over three hours to complete.
Departing from Wilmington at 10:00 a.m. on both days, the flights will land in Punta Cana at 2:05 p.m., then depart at 3:35 p.m. and return to Wilmington at 5:53 p.m. the same day. Travellers can book seats on the new route via the airline’s website, with some fares starting at under $100.
An international expansion for Wilmington
The low-cost Texas-based Avelo is the first and only airline offering a nonstop connection between Wilmington and Punta Cana.
Andrew Levy, Avelo Airlines Founder and CEO, said in a statement:
“Our inaugural international service to Punta Cana from ILM is a significant milestone for Avelo and Wilmington.
“As the first and only airline offering international service from ILM, we are making it more convenient and affordable for our Wilmington-area Customers to enjoy the D.R. and our 15 popular destinations, while making it easier for visitors to experience the best of Coastal North Carolina.”
Jeff Bourk, director of the Wilmington International Airport, thanked U.S. Customs and Border Protection for preparing the airport’s facilities to “handle scheduled commercial international service for the first time in ILM’s history.”
Punta Cana as a key tourism hub
The new connection comes as Punta Cana ranked second among international year-end holiday destinations for American air travellers in AAA’s booking data.
On the Dominican side, the government reported a record number of over 10 million visitors in the first 11 months of 2025 – a 52% increase from pre-pandemic 2019, and of 3.1% compared to last year. Among those, 7,884,421 were air travellers.
The Punta Cana International Airport accounted for 62% of all tourist air arrivals in the country.
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