Starting Monday, Oct. 26, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport will have two new nonstop flights to the Caribbean. BermudAir's timetable lists flights from FLL to Philip S.W. Goldson International Airport in Belize City and to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands, which is where Grace Bay is. Each is a single nonstop leg of roughly two hours. In December the same airline brings back its Sunday nonstop between Fort Lauderdale and Bermuda.

For people in Broward County, this changes how a long weekend can work. You can leave from the airport off I-595 instead of driving to Miami or connecting through Charlotte or Atlanta. Up to now, that kind of trip took either a drive to Miami or a connection.

What the schedule looks like

BermudAir has posted dates and times for the whole winter, so you can plan from the timetable.

Belize flights leave FLL at 11 a.m. In the first week, Oct. 26 to 30, they run Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. From November through mid-December they run Mondays and Fridays, plus Wednesdays in early December. From Dec. 17 the schedule changes to Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, at 10:40 a.m., and that pattern runs into early May 2027. Belize is on Central time, so the clock shows only a short gap between departure and arrival, but the flight takes about two and a half hours. The return from Belize City lands in Fort Lauderdale in the afternoon or early evening, depending on the season.

Providenciales flights leave in the evening, which suits anyone who wants to work a full Friday and still sleep on the island. Through mid-December, the plane leaves FLL at 5:40 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays and lands in Turks and Caicos at 7:25 p.m. Starting Dec. 18 the Monday and Friday flights move to 9:25 p.m. There is also a Wednesday evening flight from early December through late April. Flights home leave Providenciales around 8 a.m. and land at FLL around 10 a.m., so you could be at your desk by lunchtime.

The Bermuda nonstop runs on Sundays from Dec. 20 through mid-March. It leaves FLL at 2:45 p.m. and lands in Bermuda in the early evening.

Why it is one airline doing all three

BermudAir started as an island carrier based in Bermuda. Over the past year it has grown into a small Caribbean and Central America network. Its destinations page now lists Turks and Caicos and Belize as new and Fort Lauderdale as a returning city. The FLL timetable shows how the routes fit together: one flight number carries a plane from Providenciales to Fort Lauderdale in the morning and on to Belize before noon, and another brings it back the same way. Fort Lauderdale sits in the middle of that loop, and that is why South Florida gets two new islands at the same time.

When BermudAir announced the expansion in June, it said these routes would use Embraer E190 jets. These are narrow regional jets, smaller than the A320s and 737s most people fly out of FLL. The airline's main pitch is the cabin: no middle seats, free local snacks, and free drinks that include wine, spirits and Bermuda's Dark 'n Stormy. Fares come in tiers, from a no-frills Economy Basic up to Business. Business adds light meals, extra legroom, priority boarding and access to partner lounges.

What is waiting on the other end

The two new routes offer very different trips. Providenciales is the Turks and Caicos for a beach week. Grace Bay's shallow water is as clear as it gets in the region, the reef is close enough to snorkel from shore, and the island is small enough that a rental car and a cooler cover most plans. The morning flight home also makes a three-night Friday to Monday trip realistic.

Belize is more of a trip with things to do. The Belize Barrier Reef is the second largest in the world, and the Blue Hole and the cayes are a short connection from Belize City. Inland there are rainforest rivers, caves and Maya cities with temples above the tree line. If you have been sending your divers and history fans through Houston or Miami, now they can leave from Broward and arrive before lunch.

Bermuda is different again. In winter it is cool and quiet, good for golf and the pink-sand coves, and the Sunday schedule makes a one-week stay easy to plan.

Before you book

Fares change with the date and the fare tier, so check prices on the airline's own booking engine at flybermudair.com rather than relying on any single number. Fort Lauderdale is listed as a departure city there. These are not daily flights, so pick your travel days to fit the schedule. For a long weekend in Belize, plan around the Monday, Wednesday and Friday pattern in the fall and the Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday pattern after mid-December. In Turks and Caicos, the Friday evening outbound and Monday morning return are the natural pair.

Passports are required for all three destinations. Belize and Turks and Caicos are international arrivals, so leave time for customs on the way home through FLL's international terminal.

What it means closer to home

Each new nonstop makes Fort Lauderdale more of an airport people choose over Miami, rather than the fallback. For people living between Las Olas and Hollywood, the reef and Grace Bay are now about two hours away on a flight leaving a few miles from home. The first one goes on Oct. 26, and the winter schedule is already posted for anyone who wants to plan ahead.