Flights to Venezuela are coming back faster than at any point in a decade. On Saturday, Caribbean Airlines restarts its nonstop flights between Trinidad and Caracas, and next week Qatar Airways is set to become the first Gulf airline ever to fly to Venezuela, with a route linking Doha, Bogotá and Caracas. They join a long list of airlines that have returned since the start of the year, when a US military operation removed President Nicolás Maduro and Venezuela's new government moved quickly to repair ties with Washington. For travelers, it means more ways to reach Venezuela than there have been in years, though getting through Caracas' airport still isn't easy.
Who Flies to Venezuela Now
The biggest change for Americans is that you can fly nonstop again. The US banned direct flights between the two countries in 2019, and the Transportation Department lifted that ban in January, a few weeks after Maduro's capture. American Airlines restarted Miami to Caracas on April 30, its first Venezuela flight in seven years, and now flies the route twice a day, along with daily flights from Miami to Maracaibo. A new Miami to Barcelona, Venezuela, route is due to start on Jan. 15. Laser Airlines, a Venezuelan carrier, also flies daily between Caracas and Miami, with the flights operated by US charter airline GlobalX.
From Europe and Latin America, the list is longer. Copa, LATAM, Avianca, Iberia, Air Europa, TAP Air Portugal and Plus Ultra all fly to Caracas again, several of them barely a year after Maduro's government revoked their permission to fly there. All told, 19 airlines reportedly operate at Caracas' main airport today, 11 of them international.
What's Coming Next
Qatar Airways' new route is the one that changes the map. Its flights are scheduled twice a week starting Nov. 4, flying from Doha to Bogotá, on to Caracas and then nonstop back to Doha on a Boeing 777. That makes Caracas a one-stop trip from much of the Middle East, Asia and Australia through Qatar's hub, without connecting in Europe or the US.
Caribbean Airlines' flight is smaller but symbolic. The Trinidad and Tobago airline is restoring nonstop service between Port of Spain and Caracas from Oct. 31, reconnecting two close neighbors whose direct air link had been cut.
More is lined up for 2027. United has pushed its Houston to Caracas route back several times and is now selling flights from Jan. 12, though it has warned the date could slip again. LATAM plans to add Santiago, Chile, to Caracas in January, and ITA Airways, Italy's national airline, plans flights from Rome next spring. Delta and JetBlue have said they want to return but haven't announced dates.
Why Airlines Left in the First Place
The comeback is striking because of how long the exodus lasted. In 2003, Venezuela introduced currency controls that made it extremely hard for foreign airlines to convert the money they earned from ticket sales into dollars and take it home. By 2014, IATA, the global airline trade group, said more than $4 billion in airline revenue was stuck in the country. One by one, airlines cut flights or left altogether, and by 2018 most of Venezuela's foreign airline partners were gone.
Then came the final blows. The US suspended all direct flights in 2019, forcing Venezuelans to connect through cities like Panama City and Bogotá. And in November 2025, after airlines paused flights over US security warnings, Maduro's government revoked the permits of six foreign airlines: Iberia, TAP, LATAM Colombia, Avianca, GOL and Turkish Airlines.
Before You Book
Caracas' airport is open, but it isn't back to normal. Two powerful earthquakes struck the coast near the airport in June, shutting it to commercial flights for about 10 weeks. Passenger flights restarted on Sept. 1 from temporary modular terminals set up outside the damaged buildings, and the airport is handling only a fraction of its old capacity. Officials originally hoped to finish permanent repairs in early 2027, but that could slip, and the head of Latin America's airline association has warned the temporary setup could last most of next year.
That means more flights don't yet add up to an easy trip. Expect a basic terminal experience, give yourself extra time and check the US State Department's latest Venezuela travel advisory before you book. After a decade of airlines leaving, though, the direction is clear: Venezuela is getting easier to reach, and next week it gets its first direct link to the Gulf.
