New Hawaii Flight Routes 2026-2027: Every Nonstop Added
This article is editorial. No affiliate links appear in it. Route details come from airline newsrooms and published schedules and can change, so confirm before you book.
- What new nonstop routes are launching to Hawaii?
- Have these Hawaii routes existed before?
- Is Boston to Honolulu nonstop coming back?
- What else is Delta adding to Hawaii?
- What is Southwest changing for spring 2027?
- What did Hawaii lose this year?
- What does this mean for Hawaii residents?
- Which points and cards book these flights?
- FAQ
- Four headline routes land in December 2026. Alaska starts Boise to Honolulu on December 17 and Spokane to Honolulu on December 19. Delta starts Minneapolis to Maui and brings back Boston to Honolulu, both on December 19.
- All four are seasonal. Boise runs through March 21, 2027. Spokane runs Saturdays through April 17, 2027. Both Delta routes run through the winter season.
- Southwest reshuffles in March 2027. San Diego to Kona and San Diego to Lihue come back as weekend flights, plus a 2:45 a.m. reverse red eye from Las Vegas to Honolulu.
- Every one of these is also a seat out of Hawaii. Boise and Spokane become new nonstop mainland options for kamaʻāina, and Boston returns as a one flight shot to New England.
Four new nonstop routes to Hawaii start within three days of each other this December, and two more return next spring. Most coverage frames these as easier ways for mainland folks to get here. I want to flip that around, because every new nonstop into HNL or OGG is also a new nonstop out of it. Here is the full picture, verified against the airline announcements, with what it actually changes for us.
What new nonstop routes are launching to Hawaii?
Four new or returning mainland to Hawaii nonstops launch between December 17 and December 19, 2026. Alaska adds Boise and Spokane to Honolulu. Delta adds Minneapolis to Maui and restores Boston to Honolulu. Two more Southwest routes return in March 2027. All of them are seasonal winter and spring service, not year round.
| Route | Airline | Starts | Frequency | Runs through |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boise (BOI) to Honolulu (HNL) | Alaska | Dec 17, 2026 | Daily, Boeing 737 MAX | Mar 21, 2027 |
| Spokane (GEG) to Honolulu (HNL) | Alaska | Dec 19, 2026 | Saturdays only, 737 MAX | Apr 17, 2027 |
| Minneapolis (MSP) to Maui (OGG) | Delta | Dec 19, 2026 | Daily at peak, 5x weekly core winter, A330-300 | April 2027 |
| Boston (BOS) to Honolulu (HNL) | Delta | Dec 19, 2026 | Daily late Dec, then 4x weekly, A330-300 | Winter season |
| San Diego (SAN) to Kona (KOA) | Southwest | March 2027 | Weekends only | Schedule loaded to early April |
| San Diego (SAN) to Lihue (LIH) | Southwest | March 2027 | Weekends only | Schedule loaded to early April |
Sources: Alaska Airlines newsroom (July 14, 2026), Delta News Hub (February 13, 2026), Metropolitan Airports Commission, and Southwest's July 16, 2026 route announcement.
Chart: Hawaii Reward Travel, built from Alaska and Delta published schedules.
Have these Hawaii routes existed before?
Yes, all of them, which is worth knowing before you assume any of these are permanent. Allegiant flew both Boise and Spokane to Honolulu starting February 2013, ending Boise in March 2014 and Spokane in April 2014. Delta flew Minneapolis to Maui from June 2023 and stopped that September. Boston has now been cut twice. These are new for Alaska and new again for Delta, not new to Hawaii.
The Allegiant experiment is the useful comparison. Those were weekly 757 flights, and Department of Transportation data shows Boise carried about 16,200 round trip passengers at an 84.7% load factor and Spokane about 16,100 at 82.4%. Decent loads, still discontinued. Alaska is going in far more aggressively with daily Boise service from day one on a 737 MAX.
Alaska said demand from both Boise and Spokane has run strong in winter and early spring, and that a meaningful share of those travelers keep going to islands past Oʻahu. That last part matters. Those passengers connect at HNL onto Neighbor Island flights, which is exactly the interisland network we all use.
Alaska says these two routes plus increased California flying push Hawaiʻi seasonal capacity up 3% year over year, and up to 6% during peak holiday periods. Its network planning VP framed the expansion as more convenient options for visitors and Hawaiʻi residents alike, so we are at least being counted this time.
Is Boston to Honolulu nonstop coming back?
Yes. Delta restores Boston to Honolulu on December 19, 2026, on an Airbus A330-300. It runs daily through the peak late December period, then drops to four flights a week for the rest of winter. At 5,095 miles it is once again the longest domestic flight in the United States.
The backstory is worth knowing before you count on it. Delta launched this route in November 2024 and suspended it in April 2025, less than one full season. Federal data showed it filled just 63% of its seats. Hawaiian had flown it since 2019 and ended it in November 2025, calling Boston underperforming. That left New England with no nonstop to Hawaii at all. This is a third attempt at a market that has not yet stuck, so book it if you want it, but do not assume it is permanent.
What else is Delta adding to Hawaii?
Delta is running what it calls its largest seasonal Hawaii schedule to date. Beyond the two headline routes, four existing routes get more flights or bigger planes, most of it starting November 9, 2026.
- Detroit to Honolulu goes from three times weekly to daily starting November 9, 2026, on the A330-300.
- Atlanta to Honolulu adds a second flight three times weekly from January 4, 2027 through March, on the A330-300.
- New York JFK to Honolulu went from up to five weekly to daily on April 1, 2026, on the Boeing 767-300.
- Salt Lake City to Kona starts daily service November 9, 2026, earlier in the season than last year, on the 767-300.
- Los Angeles to Kona gets upgauged to the 767-300 for the winter season.
Widebodies on these routes is the real story for us. A330-300s and 767-300s mean lie flat seats and premium cabins on runs that used to be narrowbody. If you are heading east and you have points to burn, that is a comfort upgrade you can actually book.
What is Southwest changing for spring 2027?
Southwest brings back San Diego to Kona and San Diego to Lihue in March 2027 as weekend only service. It last flew both routes in 2022. Honolulu to Burbank and Honolulu to Ontario each increase to five times a week, every day except Tuesday and Wednesday. And Southwest adds a reverse red eye from Las Vegas to Honolulu departing at 2:45 a.m. and landing at 6:10 a.m.
Southwest said outright that the Vegas overnight is aimed at Hawaii residents who travel back and forth regularly, including people who want a few hours on the ground in Vegas without booking a room. That is an unusually direct nod to us. Worth noting it is not the first westbound overnight into Hawaii either. Hawaiian already flies Las Vegas to Honolulu departing around 1:55 a.m. and landing at 5:15 a.m., so you now have two options on nearly the same routing.
One more that already happened. Southwest started flying Las Vegas to Hilo on August 6, 2026, which is currently the only mainland nonstop to Hilo on any carrier. If you have Big Island ʻohana on the Hilo side, that one matters more than anything launching in December.
The same March 2027 schedule shows a major restructuring of Southwest interisland flying. Honolulu to Kahului drops by roughly half, and every neighbor island to neighbor island route is gone, leaving only Honolulu to Hilo, Kahului, Kona, and Lihue. Departures are also consolidated into a few daily banks rather than spread across the day. Southwest has said nothing publicly about any of this, and the schedule is only loaded through early April 2027, so treat it as schedule data rather than confirmed policy. I am flagging it now so you are not blindsided.
What did Hawaii lose this year?
Honolulu to Auckland is gone. Hawaiian had served Auckland seasonally since 2013, running three times weekly in the winters since the pandemic, and it was set to resume in November 2026. Alaska confirmed in July that it will not come back, which leaves Air New Zealand as the only carrier on the route. Alaska cited high fuel costs, soft demand recovery in international Pacific markets, unfavorable exchange rates, and shifting travel trends. The freed A330 capacity goes to domestic leisure markets, including extra Las Vegas flying at peak.
For anyone who used Auckland as a South Pacific gateway on points, that is a real loss. It was one of the few long haul options where our home airline took you somewhere genuinely far without a mainland connection first.
What does this mean for Hawaii residents?
Three concrete things. First, Boise and Spokane become nonstop mainland options out of HNL again for the first time since 2014, and Alaska will be the only carrier flying either one. Second, Boston returns as a single flight route to New England for the first time since late 2025. Third, more widebody flying on Delta's east coast routes means more premium seats to compete for.
The Boise timing is genuinely usable. The daily flight leaves Honolulu at 12:42 p.m. and lands in Boise at 9:45 p.m., which gets you a full morning at home before you go. Outbound from Boise it departs 10:20 a.m. and arrives HNL at 2:20 p.m. Round trip fares were listed around $530 to $700 shortly after the announcement, so this is a route where cash can beat points depending on the date.
The strategic play is positioning. Boise and Spokane both sit inside Alaska's network with easy connections onward, so a cheap HNL to BOI nonstop can be the first leg of something bigger. If you are already thinking that way, our guide to flying to the mainland from Hawaii covers how to stack these.
Which points and cards book these flights?
Each of these routes lives in a different currency, and that changes how you earn for them. Alaska routes book with Atmos Rewards. Delta routes book with SkyMiles. Southwest books with Rapid Rewards. There is no single card that covers all three well.
| Route group | Program | How you feed it |
|---|---|---|
| Boise, Spokane, Las Vegas, all Alaska and Hawaiian flying | Atmos Rewards | Bilt Rewards transfers 1:1 and is the only bank program that does. Marriott Bonvoy transfers at 3:1. Amex, Chase, and Citi do not transfer to Atmos. |
| Boston, Minneapolis to Maui, Detroit, Atlanta, JFK, Salt Lake City | Delta SkyMiles | Amex Membership Rewards transfers, plus Delta cobranded cards. SkyMiles pricing is dynamic, so compare against cash every time. |
| San Diego to Kona and Lihue, Las Vegas red eye | Southwest Rapid Rewards | Chase Ultimate Rewards transfers, plus Southwest cobranded cards. Award pricing tracks the cash fare. |
Transfer partner details verified August 2026. Ratios and partnerships change, so confirm in your account before moving points.
If you live in Hawaii and you are only going to optimize one of these, make it Atmos. It is the program that covers the most flying you actually do, including interisland. Our complete Atmos Rewards guide walks through earning, redeeming, and status. And if rent is your biggest monthly expense, the Bilt calculator shows what that turns into in Atmos points.
Our ʻOhana Program is free, personalized card strategy built around how your family actually flies. No sales pitch, no obligation. Just a real plan for turning everyday spending into seats.
Join the ʻOhana ProgramScottie's Take
Every time a new route gets announced, the headlines are written for the person on the other end. More visitors, more tourism, more lei greetings at baggage claim. Fine. But I read these announcements looking for the return flight.
Boise and Spokane are the ones I am most curious about. Not because I have a burning need to be in Idaho in January, but because Alaska is the only carrier flying them, and monopoly routes on a program I can actually earn in tend to produce weird award pricing in both directions. Worth watching once the schedule loads fully.
Boston I am more skeptical about. Three attempts in three years and two of them got cut. If you want that flight, book it early in the season rather than betting it will still be there next winter.
The one that would actually change my year is the Southwest interisland situation. If Honolulu to Kahului really does get cut in half and the neighbor island hops vanish, that hits residents far harder than any new mainland nonstop helps us. I will be watching closely and I will update this piece when Southwest says something official.
What route are you hoping shows up next? Drop it in the comments. I have a short list and I am curious how much it overlaps with yours.
FAQ
Alaska Airlines starts daily nonstop service between Boise and Honolulu on December 17, 2026, using a Boeing 737 MAX. The route runs through March 21, 2027. Alaska is the only carrier flying it, and tickets are already on sale at alaskaair.com and hawaiianairlines.com.
Yes, starting December 19, 2026. Alaska Airlines flies Spokane to Honolulu once a week on Saturdays through April 17, 2027, on a Boeing 737 MAX. Spokane last had nonstop Hawaii service from Allegiant, which flew the route from February 2013 to April 2014. Alaska is the only carrier on it now.
Boston to Honolulu, at 5,095 miles. Delta restores the route on December 19, 2026, on an Airbus A330-300, running daily through the late December peak and then four times weekly through the rest of winter. It reclaims the longest domestic flight title when it returns.
Yes. Both routes book through Atmos Rewards, the combined Alaska and Hawaiian program. Bilt Rewards is the only bank program that transfers into Atmos at 1:1, and Marriott Bonvoy transfers at 3:1. Amex, Chase, and Citi points do not transfer to Atmos.
Alaska announced in July 2026 that Hawaiian will not resume its three times weekly seasonal Honolulu to Auckland service, which had run since 2013. The airline described it as aligning capacity with evolving travel demand, and is redeploying those A330s to routes including Las Vegas during peak periods.
No. All four December 2026 launches are seasonal winter and early spring service. Boise runs through March 21, 2027, Spokane through April 17, 2027, and both Delta routes run through the winter season. The Southwest San Diego routes start in March 2027 as weekend service.
Published March 2027 schedule data shows Honolulu to Kahului cut roughly in half and all neighbor island to neighbor island routes removed, leaving only Honolulu to Hilo, Kahului, Kona, and Lihue. Southwest has not confirmed or announced these changes. Schedules this far out routinely shift, so treat it as an early signal rather than a decision.
Want these updates as they drop instead of finding out when the schedule changes on you? Join the HRT newsletter and I will send the ones that actually matter for kamaʻāina.
A hui hou,
Scottie
