By the Caribbean Journal staff

It’s getting easier than ever to get to the heart of the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The island of St Thomas is seeing a major boost in service, both expanded flights and relaunched routes, with the centerpiece a new thrice-weekly route on Spirit from Orlando set to begin Nov. 8.

American Airlines, which already serves St Thomas twice daily from Miami, will begin daily service from Charlotte to St Thomas beginning Nov. 4, according to a statement from the US Virgin Islands Department of Tourism.

Heavenly Days Catamaran, Bolongo Bay Resort

American will additionally be resuming flights from Philadelphia to St Thomas beginning Dec. 19, and between New York and St Thomas on Dec. 22.

That’s not all, though — United will offer daily nonstop flights from Washington Dulles International Airport and St Thomas this winter, with JetBlue set to resume its daily Boston-St Thomas flights from Feb. 14-April 22, 2019.

The Marriott Frenchman’s Cove in St Thomas.

It’s a huge lift for St Thomas and the wider destination, which has been working to make a recovery from last year’s hurricanes.

Indeed, more than 50 percent of all accommodations in the U.S. Virgin Islands are open and accepting guests, with a total of 1,050 rooms now available on St Thomas across hotels, bed and breakfasts, timeshares and resorts, with another 600 units available on St Croix and another 150 rooms on St John.

That’s along with 830 Airbnb listings available in St Thomas, 250 in St John and 350 in St Croix, according to tourism officials.

— CJ