The Martinique airport, located directly outside the town of Lamentin, is less than twenty minutes from Fort de France on the island’s west coast and just under an hour from Les Trois Ilets, a well-known resort area and top tourist destination on Martinique. A good point to note when booking a flight to the Caribbean island of Martinique is that the official name for the Martinique airport has been changed. Once called Lamentin International Airport, the name was officially changed to Aime Cesaire. The name Aime Cesaire was chosen to pay homage to the well-loved French statesman and poet Aime Cesaire.
When booking Martinique airfare, it’s also important to keep in mind that most flights arrive from one of the neighboring islands, normally Antigua, Barbados, or Puerto Rico. Flights to Martinique leaving any of these islands also typically require a stopover on the French island of Guadeloupe before arriving at their final destination. It’s rare for tourists to find nonstop or direct flights to any one of the French islands. Martinique airfare is usually secured on one of a few top airlines flying into the Caribbean island. LIAT from Antigua, British Airways, Air France and American Airlines all offer regular flights to Martinique all with stopovers before the final arrival.
Cheap flights to Martinique can be found through American airlines outside of the heavy tourist season, predominant during the winter months when North America is generally cold and snowy. Via American Airlines, tourists fly to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and then transfer to an Air Caraibes plane flying to the Martinique airport. It’s also possible to fly to the island via Air France flights to Martinique. This route is slightly more complicated with two transfers involved. The final transfer happens on Guadeloupe where up to ten daily flights are offered to visitors.
If you’re looking for flights to Martinique without
any transfers, Air France is the only option. Even with
a seat sale, these aren’t very cheap flights to
Martinique but they’re the most convenient and hassle
free. From Miami,
Air France’s daily route flies to either Port au
Prince or Guadeloupe and onto the Martinique airport with
just a short stopover. Nonstop flights to Martinique are
also offered from Paris departing once daily to the French
island in low season and twice daily during the winter
months, generally from around November through March.
British Airways flies to Barbados and Antigua three times
weekly departing from London.
From either of the islands a connection via LIAT Airlines
takes visitors directly to Martinique.
There are other times of year to avoid traveling when
counting on cheap flights to Martinique. Carnival, beginning
in the first week of February each year, is the grandest
of events on the island. At this time of year, Martinique
airfare is at some of the highest rates and seats are
hard to find. It can also be difficult to find low-priced
seats in May during the popular Jazz Festival, the Tour
des Yoles Rondes in August and the Rum Festival and Christmas
holidays in December. That’s not to say good deals
aren’t available, but the better bargains are usually
found through package deals with Martinique
hotels and resorts during high season and other popular
flight times. Transportation via rental
car during peak times is generally more expensive
and the island is quite crowded due to all the celebrations.
Martinique is an island full of exciting things
to do and discover. Dining is always a treat with
Creole flavors gracing dishes with plenty of exotic spices
to write home about. Shopping is also a wonderful adventure
with both top brands and local handicrafts all up
for grabs. Outdoors there are scenic routes winding up
to famous Mount Pelee and
plenty of ruins to discover below in St Pierre.
Diving reveals an abundance of wrecks and reefs to explore
below the surface of the clear blue ocean. For an exciting
Caribbean flair, with touches of France
all around, a visit to Martinique offers a different take
on the Caribbean while offering all the same elements
ideal for a relaxing vacation.
