Delta introduces 12 new and expanded transatlantic routes as part of its largest summer schedule to date

Delta Air Lines is gearing up to take you to Europe next summer.

On Friday, the Atlanta-based airline revealed its transatlantic schedule for summer 2025, featuring seven new routes, an exciting new destination, and expanded service to several popular European markets.

There's plenty to be thrilled about, especially if you're planning a major European getaway next year. Keep reading for all the details.

7 new routes and 1 new destination

The highlight of the announcement is the launch of seven new routes, including one completely new destination. All routes will commence next summer.

Delta currently serves six of the seven mentioned markets from other domestic hubs, but the new service to Catania on the eastern coast of Sicily is an exciting addition (and is likely to attract fans of "White Lotus"). This is particularly notable as there has historically been no nonstop flight from the U.S. to this island.

Overall, Delta anticipates that travelers will be eager to visit Italy next summer. Four out of the seven new routes are headed to Italy, and the airline even promoted its all-inclusive Italian vacation packages as a key feature in the Friday announcement.

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Additionally, this past summer, Delta introduced new flights to Naples from New York, and now, just a year later, the airline is back with its second route to Naples — this time from Atlanta.

Next summer, Delta will become the largest U.S. airline operating in the Italian market, providing 10% more service than this year. (Notably, the route from Minneapolis-St. Paul to Rome is technically a return, as the airline last operated in this market during the summer of 2016, according to Cirium schedules.)

Other intriguing additions include the two new services from Boston — a hub that Delta has sought to strengthen in recent years against competitors like JetBlue and others. Although Delta's New York hub is its main Northeast transatlantic gateway, it still provides service to top nonstop destinations from Boston, catering to both locals and those wanting to connect in Boston to avoid the often congested and delay-prone New York airspace, which frequently experiences ground-delay issues.

Moreover, Milan represents Boston's largest unserved European market, making the new Delta service potentially attractive to local travelers. Meanwhile, the Boston-to-Barcelona route is already operated by Iberia.

Delta's new service from Detroit to Dublin will enhance the airline's existing flights to the Irish capital from four other U.S. hubs: Atlanta, Boston, New York-JFK, and Minneapolis-St. Paul.

5 expanded routes

Alongside the new routes, Delta is also increasing its service on five transatlantic routes next summer, including:

• Atlanta to Athens: 11 flights per week
• Atlanta to Barcelona: 10 flights per week
• Atlanta to Rome: 17 flights per week
• Atlanta to Zurich: daily flights
• Detroit to Munich: daily flights

It's probably not surprising that four of the five expanded routes are based at Delta's major hub in Atlanta. The airline continues to thrive at the world's busiest airport, and these additional flights should help it draw even more local and connecting travelers through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL).

"With over 700 weekly flights to 33 European destinations and beyond, we're enhancing access to important cities like Barcelona and Dublin with new routes, while launching our first-ever nonstop service to Catania, Sicily," stated Joe Esposito, Delta's senior vice president of network planning.

1 route reduction

One route from the summer 2024 schedule will be eliminated next year. The three-times-weekly service from New York to Munich will be discontinued to accommodate the new Detroit to Munich route.

Delta confirmed the cut with this statement: "Delta is modifying its summer 2025 schedule to align with demand by discontinuing the three-times-weekly JFK to Munich service and reallocating those frequencies to provide daily flights between Detroit and Munich."

This marks Delta's latest change in Germany following its recent decision to reduce flights from Atlanta to Stuttgart.

Key takeaways

Delta's significant European expansion for summer 2025 comes just two weeks after American Airlines unveiled its own transatlantic schedule for next summer.

Similar to American, Delta is increasing its presence in southern Europe, offering more flights to Italy and Greece than ever. These destinations have consistently shown strong demand, and the airlines appear to believe that the need for nonstop service will continue to rise.

It's particularly thrilling for Delta passengers to see the airline introduce a new route to Catania, a destination that previously required a layover in a major European hub when traveling from the U.S.

While Delta has traditionally concentrated on enhancing European routes to major partner hubs like London, Amsterdam, and Paris, next summer is poised to be another standout season. There will be an unprecedented number of flights to popular tourist destinations.

With American and Delta revealing their extensive summer schedules, it will be fascinating to see what United and its innovative network planning team have planned — their announcement is anticipated in the coming weeks.