Boise Airport welcomes back flight to popular tourist destination
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Alaska Airlines will restore nonstop Boise-Bozeman service starting October 5.
- Alaska ends Boise-Orlando route due to low demand, limiting East Coast access.
- Boise Airport passenger traffic rises 8%, poised to set new record in 2025.
The Boise Airport will soon see the return of a nonstop flight to a popular Montana destination, as well as the formal end to its longest route to the East Coast.
Alaska Airlines, the airport’s primary air carrier, is set to restore its direct flight from Boise to Bozeman, Montana. The airline launched the winter seasonal route last year, and saw enough interest from travelers to warrant bringing it back with expanded service.
Just in time for fall trips to Yellowstone National Park, the nonstop Bozeman flight starts again Oct. 5, according to the airline’s online booking calendar.
Meanwhile, the airline’s nonstop seasonal flight to Orlando, Florida, has reached its terminus. The route, offered for the very first time in Boise this past winter, was “less popular” than other flights, and the airline shifted gears, Alaska spokesperson Ray Lane said in an email to the Idaho Statesman.
Instead, he said, Treasure Valley residents still wanting to fly to South Florida can first head to Portland or Seattle — the airline’s headquarters — to hop a connection to Orlando, home to Disney World and Universal Studios Florida.
“We’re always disappointed to see nonstop service to a destination end, and the loss of Orlando is no exception,” Boise Airport spokesperson Shawna Samuelson told the Statesman. “That said, we recognize that airlines must regularly assess route performance and passenger demand when making network decisions.”
The loss of the Orlando route continues the challenges of flying to the East Coast without a layover for Boise-area travelers.
The airport held out hope last year that it may be in line for a nonstop flight to Washington, D.C. But those dreams were dashed when five new long-distance routes to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport approved by Congress were awarded to other Western U.S. cities.
In addition, JetBlue Airways, which briefly operated in Boise in 2021, offered nonstop flights to and from New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport that summer. But the airline announced the next year that the flight would not return and also vacated the market.
With Orlando falling off the map, the Boise Airport drops to 25 nonstop routes, to which Alaska operates along 15 of them. The end of the route means the daily flight to Atlanta from Delta Air Lines is again the airport’s longest route.
New York City and Washington, D.C., remain among the regional air hub’s priority destinations. Also on that list are: Anchorage, Alaska; Charlotte, North Carolina; Boston; Honolulu; and, once again, Orlando.
“Orlando remains one of our highest-priority unserved markets, and we continue to actively engage with our airline partners about this route — as well as opportunities to expand service to other unserved and underserved destinations,” Samuleson said.
Frontier Airlines arrived after Avelo departed
Alaska Airlines has still other service changes on the horizon in Boise.
After pausing flights last summer between Boise and Las Vegas, the airline has revived those daily flights this summer. Doing so means Alaska will again compete with Southwest and Spirit Airlines, which each also fly the nonstop route.
“Summer is the least popular season for our Idaho-based customers to visit Las Vegas,” Lane said. “However, we’ve brought back service this summer as part of our effort to increase nonstop flights on the most popular routes out of Boise.”
Alaska also will restore its seasonal nonstop flight between Boise and Palm Springs, California, on weekends this upcoming spring. Dates are not yet finalized, Lane said.
Last month, Frontier Airlines made its return to Boise after several years away, with a nonstop flight to Denver. That came on the heels of fellow ultra-discount air carrier Avelo Airlines abandoning the market after three years in favor of a federal contract to use its planes to fly people deported by President Donald Trump’s administration out of the country.
Monthly passenger totals continue to climb at the airport. Through May, more than 2 million travelers already have passed through the local air hub — more than an 8% spike compared to last year when a new passenger total was set at nearly 5 million.
At its current pace, the airport expects to once again break its annual passenger record in 2025.
“While many airports are experiencing softening passenger numbers in 2025, Boise Airport is currently tracking 8% above last year’s levels,” Samuelson said. “And although the industry remains cautious about growth, we’re optimistic that our continued momentum and strong community support will help make the case for future air service opportunities.”
This story was originally published June 24, 2025 at 1:02 PM.
