Monterey Regional Airport placed third in the country in USA Today's 10Best Readers' Choice Awards for best resort airport, the airport announced Wednesday, Oct. 14.
The ranking put the Monterey Peninsula's small commercial airport alongside larger resort destinations nationwide. A panel of subject-matter experts and USA Today 10Best editors selected the nominees before the public cast votes, according to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota Bradenton International Airport in Florida took the top spot for the second consecutive year.
"Thank you to all who voted," the airport wrote on X. "Your contributions and support helped recognize Monterey hospitality on the national stage."
No second-place finisher was identified in the available results.
The recognition arrives as Monterey Regional Airport expands its route network. Delta Air Lines is set to return to the airport after a nearly 20-year absence, with new nonstop flights to Los Angeles International Airport and Salt Lake City International Airport, according to a Sept. 24 report by Monterey County Now. Airport officials announced the Delta addition on Sept. 18.
Airport Executive Director Chris Morello called the Delta return "a major achievement for our community" in that September announcement, saying it "reflects the growing demand for air service in the Monterey Bay region." The airline plans to launch twice-daily nonstop flights to LAX and one daily nonstop flight to Salt Lake City on Dec. 19.
The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported that officials at the winning Florida airport emphasized the economic weight of air service connections. One Sarasota official estimated that a single year-round, twice-weekly nonstop route delivers $10 million to $12 million in annual economic impact to that community.
Delta's Dec. 19 launch will mark the airline's first flights from Monterey in roughly two decades.
