Nantucket is a neat little airport – located on the northern part of the island, it serves regional flights during their peak season, and a smattering of prop-plane commuter flights year round, weather permitting.
When I’ve previously visited Nantucket, I’ve always flown directly to Boston, and from their rented a car, driven to Hyannis, and then taken the ferry over. Let me be the first to say that flying directly onto the island is such a joy and takes a huge hassle out of what’s otherwise supposed to be a pleasurable experience.
American Eagle operates a once daily Nantucket to Washington Reagan flight on a E-175, which was completely full on my trip (in fact, almost oversold).
Check-in is done inside, with each regional airline having a small section of counter space.
Surprisingly, American had a priority lane for elites and First Class, though there was no need for it as there was no one in line.
Once you check in, you’re then told to wait about pre-security until about a half hour before boarding. Unlike most airports, you’re not allowed to go through security until you’re called, as there’s not enough space post security to hold everyone. At about 11:00am, a half hour prior to boarding, we were called to go through.
On the other side is a large room with benches, with two “gates,” which are really just doorways to the outside.
There were two podiums, and at the time of my flight, the American agents were clearing some standbys.
Boarding was called and we proceeded through the doorway out onto the paved lot outside, walking to the plane, a couple hundred feet away.
Boarding was via a ramp. Once inside, I was offered a pre departure beverage and I chose cranberry juice. Seating in first class is the usual 1×2 configuration, and my favorite spot is always 1A as it’s a single seat, at the bulkhead with very generous legroom.
Boarding took about 20 minutes and once things were wrapped up, we commenced a pushback, and departed almost exactly on time. The views flying out of the island were gorgeous.
In the air, I selected a red wine to drink, which was served in a traditional glass and not the usual wine glass. A pass of the snack basket was made and a flight time of about an hour was announced.
It was an uneventful flight, with no refills being offered.
Of course, as flying into Washington Reagan, the views on final approach are wonderful.
Overall, a really nice flight experience, mainly because of the location of the airport and how convenient it is to town. I’d almost certainly consider flying into here over doing the ferry, if time and cost permitted.
Jamie Larounis is an avid traveler, blogger and miles/points educator. Traveling well over 100,000 miles a year and staying in hotels for over 100 nights, he leverages miles, points and other deals to fly in first class cabins, and stay in 5-star hotels. The Forward Cabin shares his experiences, musings, reviews, tips, tricks, resources and industry news with you, the fellow traveler.
I learned the hard way how the puddle jumper from Boston Logan to Nantucket cost 3 x cost of ORD-BOS flight! Best, cheapest, and fastest from BOS is either MBTA’s “Cape Flyer” train, or, Peter Pan bus direct from Logan and onto ferry to Martha’s Vineyard or Nantucket.
Too bad Amtrak Marketing has not realized potential for seasonal service from Washington/NYC direct to Hyannis/ferries. Such a service only ran briefly for 1-2 seasons in mid-1980s. A serious deficiency is the lack of seasonal rail services, as driving is becoming less desirable. This should be an issue to be raised more often by the states and regions involved.
In follow-up, the impression of this story is this is something new, when Jet Blue has already been flying out of DCA.
As part of any meaningful infrastructure program, we need to invest in to improve rail infrastructure to accommodate seasonal trains, such as to the Cape, with the necessary equipment built in the US.
Cape Cod is a terrific destination with plenty to do and see.