Colombia’s international skies are poised for a new growth spurt in 2026, as a wave of airlines either launch or restore routes to the country’s major cities and secondary gateways. From North America and Europe to the Middle East and the Caribbean, carriers including JetBlue, Avianca, Wingo, Viva Aerobus, Air Transat, and Qatar Airways are positioning Colombia as one of Latin America’s most hotly contested long haul and regional markets. For travelers, the result is more choice, sharper competition on fares, and new one stop links that place Colombian destinations within easier reach of major global hubs.

JetBlue Expands its Latin American Footprint into Colombia

JetBlue has spent the past several years recalibrating its international strategy, trimming parts of its transatlantic experiment while doubling down on markets where its strong brand and Airbus narrowbody fleet can be most effective. Colombia is emerging as one of those focal points. Building on its established presence in the Caribbean and northern South America, the carrier is preparing to introduce new or restored links between the United States and key Colombian cities starting in 2026.

Industry filings and network planning moves point to a model centered on JetBlue’s existing focus cities in the eastern United States, particularly New York and Florida, where demand for point to point leisure and visiting friends and relatives traffic to Colombia continues to grow. By leveraging aircraft already optimized for medium haul segments, JetBlue can tap strong year round markets such as Bogotá and Medellín, while also evaluating secondary destinations that have proven resilient for other low cost and hybrid competitors.

For travelers, JetBlue’s arrival or expansion in Colombia is significant beyond simple capacity increases. The airline’s customer friendly proposition, including a generally roomier economy product and complimentary inflight entertainment, inserts a differentiated competitor into city pairs still dominated by traditional full service or ultra low cost operators. As more schedules for the 2026 season are filed, observers expect JetBlue to concentrate on nonstop service to Bogotá and Medellín, with the potential for seasonal expansion to coastal destinations popular with North American holidaymakers.

While new foreign entrants draw headlines, Colombia’s flag carrier Avianca continues to methodically strengthen Bogotá’s role as a regional super hub. In 2024 and 2025 the airline rolled out a series of new international routes, including Bogotá to Chicago, Monterrey and Belém, while adding Tampa and reinforcing its network into Central America and the Caribbean. By late 2025 Avianca was operating one of the most extensive networks in its history, with dozens of destinations across the Americas and Europe feeding through its Colombian hubs.

That strategy sets the stage for further refinement in 2026. Rather than chasing one off, ultra long haul experiments, Avianca is focused on building dense connectivity between mid length international routes and a rich domestic network serving more than two dozen Colombian cities. The addition of new spokes such as Monterrey in northern Mexico and Belém in Brazil illustrates how Bogotá is being positioned as a bridge not only between North and South America, but also within Latin America’s own emerging corridors.

For inbound visitors, this matters because it makes it far easier to combine multiple Colombian destinations in a single itinerary. Travelers arriving from Chicago or Tampa, for example, can now connect in Bogotá to places that once required a patchwork of separate tickets and long layovers. Colombia’s tourism authorities are leaning into this connectivity, promoting multi city trips that pair the capital with Pacific rainforest destinations like Quibdó, Amazon gateways such as Leticia, or coastal cities including Cartagena and Santa Marta, many now served by direct Avianca flights.

Low Cost Challenger Wingo Targets Value Seekers

At the value end of the spectrum, Wingo is positioning itself as one of the most aggressive players in Colombia’s short haul international market. The airline has used sharp pricing and a bare bones product to build a loyal following among cost conscious travelers in Colombia and neighboring countries. With demand rebounding solidly through 2024 and 2025, Wingo has been increasing frequencies and opening new city pairs, many of them linking Colombian cities to sun and leisure destinations around the Caribbean basin.

Looking ahead to 2026, Wingo’s model is likely to lean on opportunistic expansion where airport fees, bilateral rights and schedule windows align. The carrier has already demonstrated a willingness to enter secondary airports and off peak time slots if it can stimulate demand with headline grabbing fares. For international travelers planning a multi country trip through northern South America and the Caribbean, Wingo’s growing web of point to point routes can serve as a useful, if no frills, connective tissue between Colombia and destinations such as Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Central America.

At the same time, Wingo’s expansion underscores the competitive pressures local and foreign carriers will face on shorter cross border sectors. With more seats chasing price sensitive leisure travelers, airlines are likely to differentiate not only through fares but also through ancillary offerings, such as flexible change policies, priority boarding, and bundled services. For visitors to Colombia, this competition should translate into more options for mixing full service and low cost segments within the same trip.

Viva Aerobus and the Mexico Colombia Corridor

Viva Aerobus, one of Mexico’s leading ultra low cost carriers, has long viewed Colombia as a natural extension of its network. The cultural ties, growing tourism flows, and increasing business links between the two countries have sustained strong passenger volumes on existing routes. Despite regulatory turbulence affecting some U.S. Mexico operations in late 2025, Viva Aerobus continues to see opportunity on purely Latin American corridors that bypass the United States entirely.

Against that backdrop, plans for expanded Mexico Colombia services beginning in 2026 are taking shape around high demand city pairs linking major Mexican hubs to Bogotá and Medellín. Ultra low cost economics are central to Viva Aerobus’s approach. By tightly managing costs and embracing high density Airbus narrowbodies, the carrier aims to keep headline fares low enough to attract first time international fliers while also appealing to frequent cross border travelers looking to stretch their budgets.

For travelers considering Colombia and Mexico in a single itinerary, this expansion opens up new routing options. Rather than looping back through U.S. hubs, visitors may be able to fly directly between beach destinations or cultural capitals in both countries, with Colombia serving as either an origin, stopover, or finale. The rising traffic could also encourage tourism operators on both sides of the route to build combined packages that highlight shared themes such as gastronomy, music, or colonial heritage.

Air Transat Builds Seasonal Bridges from Canada

Farther north, Canadian leisure specialist Air Transat has been gradually rebuilding and reshaping its southern network. Traditionally known for transatlantic charters and winter sun flights to the Caribbean and Mexico, the airline has been probing opportunities in South America as Canadian travelers search for new warm weather destinations. Colombia, with its mix of Caribbean coastline, Andean cities and relatively short flying times from eastern Canada, is increasingly part of that conversation.

Air Transat’s announced and planned services toward the mid 2020s suggest a pattern of seasonal, high density operations, particularly during Canada’s winter months. In 2026, that could translate into new or restored routes linking cities such as Toronto and Montreal with Colombian gateways like Cartagena and Bogotá. These routes typically align with peak holiday periods and are often sold both as standalone air tickets and as part of package holidays marketed by Canadian tour operators.

For Colombian tourism stakeholders, direct connectivity from Canada is especially attractive. Canadian visitors tend to stay longer than many regional travelers and often seek out multi stop itineraries that pair beach stays with cultural and nature experiences. If Air Transat deepens its Colombia program in 2026, it will not only add seats but also help raise the country’s profile in the Canadian market, where destinations like Costa Rica and Mexico have traditionally dominated winter travel choices.

Qatar Airways and the Long Haul Premium Market

At the long haul end of the market, Qatar Airways has been steadily expanding its Latin American footprint as part of a broader global strategy to channel traffic through its Doha megahub. The carrier already serves several major South American cities, using a mix of nonstop and linked services to connect the region to its far reaching network in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Colombia has long been viewed as a logical candidate for inclusion as tourism and corporate links with the Gulf and beyond quietly grow.

The announcement of new or resumed routes involving Colombia for 2026 positions Qatar Airways as a key player in the country’s highest yield international segment. Whether configured as a direct gateway or as part of a South American multi stop service, a Qatar Airways link would immediately open one stop travel options between Colombian cities and dozens of destinations that today require multiple connections. This is particularly important for business travelers, expatriate communities and high spending leisure visitors.

From a product perspective, Qatar Airways’ entry or expansion reinforces Colombia’s appeal to premium travelers accustomed to high standards of onboard and ground service. It may also encourage competing carriers to upgrade their own offerings on overlapping city pairs or to develop partnerships and code shares that simplify through ticketing to and from Colombia. In practical terms, travelers could increasingly find Colombia appearing in fare searches not just as a standalone destination, but as part of multi continent journeys spanning Europe, Asia and Africa.

What the 2026 Wave Means for Travelers to Colombia

The combined moves by JetBlue, Avianca, Wingo, Viva Aerobus, Air Transat and Qatar Airways underline how rapidly Colombia’s role in global aviation is evolving. For years, Bogotá’s El Dorado Airport served primarily as a regional connector, while secondary cities such as Medellín, Cali and Cartagena played more limited international roles. By 2026, that picture will look markedly different, with multiple long haul and regional carriers overlapping across key markets and stimulating new ones.

For travelers, the most immediate impacts will be seen in greater choice and often more competitive pricing. On transborder routes where only one or two airlines currently operate, the arrival of an additional carrier often triggers both fare adjustments and improvements in schedules, as airlines fine tune departure times and frequencies to secure attractive slots. Over time, ancillary benefits tend to follow, including better lounge facilities, improved onward connections, and more dynamic loyalty program partnerships.

However, the growth also places a premium on smart trip planning. With more airlines and routes in play, the range of product standards, baggage policies and change rules widens. Travelers will need to pay closer attention to total journey times, minimum connection windows in Bogotá and other hubs, and the trade offs between ultra low cost and full service offerings. For those willing to navigate this complexity, the reward is a level of flexibility and geographic reach that would have been difficult to imagine a decade ago.

Colombia’s Tourism Landscape Prepares for a New Era

As 2026 approaches, Colombia’s tourism sector is moving to capitalize on the expanding web of international air links. Government agencies and local destination marketers are working with airlines to promote lesser known regions, highlighting the diversity of experiences available within relatively short flying or driving distances from major international gateways. New routes from the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Middle East are being framed not only as transport links, but as enablers of broader economic development and cultural exchange.

At the same time, infrastructure and service providers are adjusting to the prospect of higher international volumes. Hotels in cities like Medellín and Cartagena are preparing for a more globally diverse guest mix, while tour operators are crafting itineraries tuned to the expectations of North American, European and Middle Eastern travelers. In secondary destinations, improved air access is encouraging investment in boutique accommodation, nature based tourism and community led projects aimed at distributing the benefits of growth more widely.

For travelers contemplating Colombia in 2026 or beyond, the message is clear. A more connected Colombia offers new possibilities, whether that means a quick city break paired with regional exploration, a multi country Latin American journey stitched together by low cost links, or a premium long haul itinerary anchored by a stay in Bogotá, Medellín or on the Caribbean coast. With JetBlue, Avianca, Wingo, Viva Aerobus, Air Transat and Qatar Airways all sharpening their focus on the country, Colombia’s place on the global travel map is set to grow significantly in the years ahead.