United is targeting remote destinations in summer 2025

Skift take

In what could be one of the most unique route announcements, United is adding eight new destinations for next summer, including the capitals of Sicily and Greenland.

Meghna Maharishi

When planning a summer vacation, Paris, Rome and Madrid might come to mind. But how about a trip to the capital of Mongolia?

United Airlines is adding eight new off-the-beaten-path destinations to its summer 2025 schedule, a bet that customers will travel to less popular destinations.

The strategy is not new for United. The airline currently offers non-stop flights to places such as Palma de Mallorca and Dubrovnik and is scheduled to begin service to Marrakech later this month.

“What we're really trying to do is add experiences,” Patrick Quayle, senior vice president of global network planning and alliances at United, said in a call with reporters.

United's new destinations for summer 2025:

• Ulaanbatar, Mongolia: Nonstop seasonal service from Tokyo Narita begins May 1.
• Kaohsiung, Taiwan: Year-round daily flights from Tokyo Narita begin July 11.
• Nuuk, Greenland: Twice-weekly seasonal service from Newark begins June 14.
• Palermo, Italy: Seasonal service with three weekly flights from Newark begins May 21.
• Bilbao, Spain: Three weekly flights will depart Newark starting May 31st.
• Madeira, Portugal: Three weekly flights depart Newark starting June 7th.
• Faro, Portugal: Four weekly flights will depart Newark starting May 16.
• Dakar, Senegal: Year-round service, three times a week from Washington Dulles, begins May 23.

How United differs from its competitors

Many of United's new destinations contrast with those of American Airlines and Delta Air Lines. American and Delta's summer schedules tend to focus on more popular routes in Europe, including increased capacity to Italy and Spain.

United doesn't completely ignore well-known destinations. Flights to Nice and Venice will be added from Dulles. The airline said it also plans to resume routes such as San Francisco-Barcelona, ​​Newark-Athens, Newark-Venice and Chicago O'Hare-Athens.

The Dubrovnik-Newark service will expand to daily service on May 1. United will also operate the Newark-Palma de Mallorca route four times a week next summer.

Quayle said United's Palermo service is the first nonstop flight to Sicily. Delta also added a new route from JFK to Catania, one of Sicily's largest cities.

He also said United does not expect Boeing delivery delays and the ongoing machinists' strike to impact its summer schedule. On Wednesday, Boeing withdrew its offer to the International Machinists Union and it is unclear when the dispute will be resolved.

For some of the more offbeat destinations, such as Mongolia and Greenland, Quayle said United analyzed a range of data to determine what worked well on its network.

“Nuuk, for example, is really hard to get to, and like Dubrovnik or Cape Town, it required really long and arduous journeys,” Quayle said. “Through simplification, we have seen transport demand in South Africa improve dramatically.”

Watch United Airlines CCO Andrew Nocella at Skift Global Forum 2024: