TORONTO — Air Transat is suspending flight service to Puerto Rico for the 2017-2018 winter season. To fill the gap the airline will expand its Mexico lineup, with details about destinations and gateways to be announced soon.

Air Transat will resume operations in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the 2018-2019 winter season.

Clients with flight reservations for Puerto Rico can change their booking for any other Air Transat destination or obtain a full refund, according to the carrier.

As of Oct. 24 Air Transat was still planning to return to Puerto Rico, with flights scheduled to re-start Feb. 18. The carrier had planned to offer one flight per week from Toronto and one flight per week from Montreal.

Air Canada announced it was suspending its flights into Puerto Rico for the 2017-2018 winter season back in October.

Puerto Rico was hit hard by Hurricane Maria. Jose Izquierdo, Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, says “recent advancements on major tourism infrastructure, like our main airport fully operational with back to normal schedules and operational cruise ports and hotels, show a steady pace on our rebuilding path.”

He adds: “We are glad to report that the preparedness measures put into place have allowed for what we are expecting to be a full recovery for our tourism industry. We look forward to getting back on our feet in the hopes of welcoming visitors to the Island in the weeks ahead. We are confident that with the continuous support of our industry partners, we can build a stronger Puerto Rico.”

Regularly updated information on flights, hotels, cruise ports and local business is available at puertoriconow.seepuertorico.com.

With the airport fully operational and open 24 hours, the PRTC had estimated that by the end this month the island would be receiving more than 700 domestic and international flights daily.

Meet Puerto Rico, the destination marketing organization responsible for attracting meetings, conventions, trade shows, sporting events and incentive groups to Puerto Rico, recently launched ‘Check Off your Bucket List’ to promote Puerto Rico’s MICE product, long a mainstay for the island’s tourism industry.

“We were hit hard, that is for sure,” said Milton Segarra, CDME, President & CEO, Meet Puerto Rico. “But we are still standing. Right now, according to the Puerto Rico Tourism Company (PRTC), 72% or 108 out of 149 endorsed hotels, are operating. This means that 82% of endorsed rooms are available and accepting reservations for new bookings. We current also currently have 1,747 weekly nonstop and direct flights to Puerto Rico from the U.S., Caribbean, and international cities.”