For the 2023/2024 winter season, Itaka, a prominent Eastern European tour operator, is teaming up with LOT Polish Airlines to introduce 23 charter flights between Warsaw and Salvador de Bahia, powered by the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The expectation is that this 11-hour service will deliver more than 6,000 inbound tourists to Salvador.
This service was jointly announced by the authorities of Deputado Luís Eduardo Magalhães Airport, the Secretariat of Tourism, and Itaka, in celebration of the burgeoning long-haul market. Post-pandemic times have seen Salvador da Bahia emerge as a promising domestic hub in Brazil, offering new regional destinations that were previously unexplored.
Besides the charter flights from Poland, last summer also brought services from Montevideo, offering more travel options for international passengers. Specifically, the demand from Uruguay to Salvador has skyrocketed by 150% since that season.
Simultaneously, TAP Air Portugal is planning to increase its services between Lisbon and Salvador de Bahia from six to seven weekly flights on Airbus A330-200 and A330-900neo during this northern winter season. This move signifies the solid traffic between these cities, mirrored in the high occupancy factor of the route.
The charter flights from LOT Polish Airlines to Salvador are set to enhance the region’s connectivity with Eastern Europe, attracting more traffic from Poland and its surrounding nations over the next few years. The Secretary of Tourism of the State of Bahia, Mauricio Bacellar, and Luis Afonso, at the official reception of the Polish operator Itaka, revealed that the new service between Warsaw and Salvador will launch on October 29, 2023.
These services, facilitated by LOT Polish Airlines, are expected to bring over 6,000 Polish tourists in the first season, largely influenced by the following factors:
- Global resort chains based in Bahia, with international contracts with major tour operators.
- A diversified product offering encompassing cultural (gastronomic, musical, ethnic) and natural components (Brazil’s longest coastline, turtle and whale hatchery) catering to various niches and target customers.
- Efforts among stakeholders to streamline and foster the continuous attraction of international flights.
- Planned projects to introduce at least two new international brands in the coming years – Anantara and Rosewood.
- Strategic geographical positioning for Europe with respect to the South, and for South America concerning the Brazilian Northeast.
On top of its operations to Brazil, LOT Polish, in partnership with Itaka, will provide charter flights to various holiday destinations during the winter season, including Thailand, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Madagascar, Tanzania, Kenya, Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Mexico.
