Sun Country Airlines has opened its booking schedule through April 13, 2027, giving Midwest travelers an earlier look at next winter and spring break flying and bringing back several leisure routes that had been missing from the carrier’s network.
The June 9 schedule extension is not just a routine calendar update. It is one of the first clear network signals from Sun Country since the Minneapolis-based airline became a wholly owned subsidiary of Allegiant Travel Company, and it points to a renewed push around cold-weather leisure demand from the Upper Midwest to Florida, Mexico and the Caribbean.
For travelers who use Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) as a vacation gateway, the headline is the return of nonstop service between Minneapolis and Montego Bay, Jamaica (MBJ), along with the return of Minneapolis service to Orlando Melbourne International Airport (MLB) on Florida’s Space Coast. Sun Country also said seasonal service between Duluth International Airport (DLH) and Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) in Fort Myers will resume.
What Sun Country Is Adding Back
According to Sun Country’s announcement, customers can now book travel for the winter and spring break 2027 period. The carrier said its schedule includes daily service and increased frequencies to major leisure destinations such as Fort Myers, Orlando, Las Vegas and Phoenix, along with more flights to international vacation markets including Cancun, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta.
The restored routes are especially notable because they serve the type of traveler Sun Country has long targeted: leisure passengers, visiting-friends-and-relatives traffic and price-sensitive vacationers who often plan around school calendars, winter weather and nonstop access rather than business schedules.
Sun Country said it will serve 11 destinations in Florida, six in Mexico and 12 across the Caribbean and Central America through the winter season ending in April 2027. That gives travel advisors and package sellers more lead time to compare flight availability with resort inventory, cruise departures, car rentals and spring break lodging.
Why This Matters for the U.S. Travel Market
The practical impact is concentrated, but meaningful. For many travelers in Minnesota, Wisconsin and northern Midwest communities, nonstop winter flights can determine whether a trip is simple enough to book at all. Restoring Duluth-Fort Myers service, for example, gives travelers in northern Minnesota another option that avoids a drive to Minneapolis before flying south.
For MSP, the announcement is also a useful early read on how Sun Country intends to behave under Allegiant ownership. Axios reported in May that Sun Country officially became a subsidiary of Las Vegas-based Allegiant after the companies closed their merger, and that the Sun Country brand and operating systems are expected to remain in place during a transition period. The new winter schedule suggests that, at least for the 2027 booking window, Sun Country is still leaning into its familiar Minneapolis leisure base rather than pulling back from it.
That matters because MSP travelers have watched the merger closely. Sun Country has been an important lower-cost alternative in a market where Delta Air Lines is the dominant network carrier. If Sun Country maintains or restores leisure routes, the result can be more fare competition and more nonstop options during peak winter demand. If capacity tightens later, travelers could face higher prices or more connecting itineraries.
Florida and Caribbean Routes Fit a Bigger Winter Pattern
The restored Minneapolis-Montego Bay and Minneapolis-Melbourne flights also fit a broader pattern in U.S. leisure travel: travelers are booking around warm-weather reliability, nonstop access and total trip cost. Jamaica remains a major winter resort market for U.S. travelers, while Florida’s Gulf Coast and Space Coast continue to draw snowbird, family and cruise-adjacent demand.
For Fort Myers trips, the return of Duluth service may also help travelers who prefer to pair flights with longer stays, vacation rentals or road trips across southwest Florida. Odyssey readers comparing ground plans can check car rental options at RSW, while travelers beginning in the Twin Cities can review car rental options at MSP before deciding whether to fly from Minneapolis or connect from a regional market.
The schedule also gives tour operators and independent advisors a clearer planning window. Winter sun packages often depend on aligning flight days, hotel check-in patterns and transfer logistics. When an airline opens seats into April, it becomes easier to price full itineraries before the highest-demand periods around Presidents Day, spring break and late-winter school vacations.
What Travelers Should Watch Before Booking
The main takeaway is positive, but travelers should still treat the schedule as a planning tool rather than a guarantee that every fare will stay cheap. Restored service can improve options, yet peak winter dates remain price-sensitive and are often shaped by fuel costs, aircraft availability and local school calendars.
- Book early for school-break weeks. Nonstop seats on Midwest-to-sun routes can disappear quickly when vacation calendars overlap.
- Compare nearby airports. Duluth travelers may now have a stronger local option for Fort Myers, while Twin Cities travelers may still find broader frequency from MSP.
- Check route days before locking hotels. Seasonal leisure routes may not operate daily, so hotel and rental-car dates should match actual flight schedules.
- Watch the merger transition. Sun Country remains under Allegiant ownership, and future integration could still affect branding, distribution and long-term network choices.
For now, the news gives Midwest vacationers more clarity. Sun Country’s 2027 winter and spring schedule restores several familiar sun routes, expands the booking horizon and signals that the airline’s leisure-focused identity remains central as it moves through the next stage of life under Allegiant.
Sources: Sun Country Airlines June 9 schedule announcement; Axios Twin Cities reporting on Allegiant’s acquisition of Sun Country.