Southwest Airlines begins nonstop service between Las Vegas and Hilo on August 6, marking the first-ever direct mainland connection to the east side of Hawaii’s Big Island. The route will operate three times a week, on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays.
Westbound flights depart Las Vegas at 9:30 a.m. and arrive in Hilo at 12:35 p.m. local time. Eastbound flights leave Hilo at 8:45 p.m. and land back in Las Vegas at 5:10 a.m. the following morning.
The new route gives travelers direct access to Hilo’s waterfalls, botanical gardens, and Hawaii Volcanoes National Park without connecting through Honolulu or Kona, as most mainland itineraries have historically required. Local tourism officials expect the route to ease pressure on the more heavily trafficked Kona side of the island.
Southwest is also adding one-off charter flights between Las Vegas and Hilo timed to Hawaii’s Merrie Monarch Festival, part of a broader expansion of the carrier’s Hawaii network this year.
Sources: Big Island Now, Travel And Tour World
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