American Airlines’ much-hyped international expansion is officially taking off this week, with the carrier launching a slate of new and returning long-haul routes aimed at Europe and South America just ahead of the busy summer travel season.
The routes—first announced last August as part of the airline’s 2026 summer schedule—include brand-new service to Prague; the only nonstop flight from the United States to Budapest; added seasonal routes to Athens, Milan, and Zurich; and extended service to Buenos Aires.
Here’s a closer look at the new routes—and what travelers can expect in each destination.
American’s new and expanded international routes for 2026
Bonus: It’s easy enough to supplement your visit in Budapest (pictured) with a stay in Prague by taking the train.
Photo by Arvydas Venckus/Unsplash
Philadelphia to Budapest, Hungary
Summer seasonal service from Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) to Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport (BUD) begins May 21, 2026, aboard Boeing 787‑8s. Unless another carrier announces competing service, this will be the only nonstop flight from the United States to Hungary.
Why visit Budapest in 2026
The route makes it easier to reach one of Central Europe’s most historically rich and increasingly popular cities, with its two distinct sides: Buda’s castle district and hillside hikes and Pest’s art nouveau cafés, Jewish Quarter, and iconic Parliament building. Budapest is also known for its thermal baths, including Széchenyi and Rudas, as well as a growing food scene that ranges from traditional Hungarian markets to Michelin-starred menus.
A major wave of redevelopment has recently reshaped parts of the Hungarian capital. One of the biggest updates is the April completion of the long-awaited renovation of the Citadel atop Gellért Hill, where visitors will find newly restored terraces, expanded pedestrian walkways, fresh green spaces, and a new exhibition center focused on Hungary’s history and independence movements—all paired with some of the best panoramic views in the city.
One of the buzziest recent culinary arrivals is Time Out Market Budapest, which opened inside the restored Corvin Palace with 11 chef-led kitchens, three bars, and a rotating lineup of cultural programming that spotlights both established Hungarian restaurants and rising talent. Budapest’s hotel scene has also gotten considerably cooler in the past few years. Recent openings include the design-forward Dorothea Hotel, Autograph Collection, which pairs contemporary interiors with beautifully restored historic architecture near the Danube; the folklore-inspired Kimpton BEM Budapest; and W Budapest, which transformed the long-vacant Drechsler Palace (formerly home to the Hungarian State Ballet Academy) into one of the city’s most coveted luxury stays.
Philadelphia to Prague, Czechia
Another seasonal route from Philadelphia to Prague Václav Havel Airport (PRG) debuts May 21 (and flies through October 5, 2026); it is being served daily by a 787‑8.
Why visit Prague in 2026
Across the Czech capital, a wave of reopenings and ambitious cultural projects is giving travelers fresh reasons to look beyond the castle-and-cobbled-street circuit this summer. After a years-long renovation, the Museum of Prague has reopened with more interactive exhibitions and restored historic spaces, while the Prague Planetarium now houses what’s billed as the world’s largest LED dome of its kind—a 45-million-pixel system that turns astronomy shows into something closer to immersive digital theater.
Travelers should also make time for Signal Space, a permanent digital-art gallery from the creators of Prague’s hugely popular Signal Festival. The city’s hotel scene is shifting, too. The newly opened W Prague brings a splashier, design-forward energy to the city center, while Fairmont Golden Prague has reopened inside a restored 1970s brutalist landmark overlooking the Vltava River, with interiors that celebrate Czech craftsmanship through locally made glass installations and woodwork.
A direct train runs between Budapest and Prague in less than seven hours, so travelers can easily visit both cities in one trip. They can even fly into one city and out of the other via American’s new Philadelphia routes.
Dallas–Fort Worth to Athens, Greece
Seasonal daily service to Athens International Airport (ATH) from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) aboard a 787‑8 starts May 21, 2026. That means more direct access to Greece’s capital, a key jumping-off point for exploring the Greek islands—although Athens is increasingly worth a longer stay on its own. Beyond the Acropolis and other ancient sites, travelers will find modern art museums, a strong coffee culture, a fresh crop of cool new hotels, and a walkable historic core with plenty of locally owned shops and tavernas.
Why visit Athens in 2026
Athens is no longer just the place travelers breeze through on their way to the islands—the Greek capital is firmly in the middle of a creative and cultural resurgence. Restoration work around the Acropolis continues to reveal clearer views of the Parthenon, while the National Archaeological Museum is in the midst of a major expansion that aims to modernize one of Greece’s most important cultural institutions.
That said, some of the city’s most exciting energy is happening in neighborhoods like Exarchia, as Katherine LaGrave, Afar’s executive editor, recently reported. The longtime countercultural enclave has become a hotbed of natural wine bars, restaurants, galleries, and independent shops—offering a glimpse into a younger, more contemporary side of the city. Beyond the city center, the Athens Riviera, the stretch of coastline south of downtown, is undergoing its own transformation. Newer arrivals like Ace Hotel & Swim Club Athens and One&Only Aesthesis (which Afar named one of the Best New Hotels of 2024) are helping turn the area into a more design-forward beach destination.
Venice isn’t the only Italian city where canals provide vital passageways; in Milan’s hip Navigli neighborhood, some of the city’s buzziest bars and restaurants line two main canals.
Photo by Sergey Omelchenko/Unsplash
Miami to Milan, Italy
As of March 29, 2026, American began offering year‑round service from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP) with 787‑8 aircraft—reinstating a route suspended during the pandemic. It’s a useful route not only for travelers heading to Milan, but also for those planning to explore the surrounding region. From Milan, it’s easy to reach Lake Como, the Dolomites, or cities such as Verona, Parma, and Bologna by train.
Why visit Milan in 2026
The Winter Olympics may be over, but Milan is still riding the momentum. The Milan–Cortina Games accelerated years of transit upgrades, rail improvements, and neighborhood redevelopment projects that have made Italy’s financial capital and the surrounding areas easier and all the more exciting to explore.
The city’s cultural scene is entering a new chapter with the debut of Palazzo Citterio, a long-awaited new museum space within Milan’s broader Grande Brera project that opened in late 2024. Set inside an 18th-century palazzo reimagined with contemporary galleries and subterranean exhibition space, the museum showcases 19th- and 20th-century works by artists like Morandi, Modigliani, De Chirico, Picasso, and Braque, while helping connect the Pinacoteca di Brera, Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense, and the surrounding Brera neighborhood into a more unified cultural district.
Expanded train connections are also making day trips to the Alps and Lake Como even more seamless, while formerly industrial pockets of the city continue to evolve into greener, more walkable districts filled with galleries, wine bars, and independent shops.
Dallas–Fort Worth to Zurich, Switzerland
Running from May 21 to August 4, 2026, with daily flights on a Boeing 777‑200, this summer route from DFW to Zurich Airport (ZRH) offers a straight shot to Switzerland’s most cosmopolitan city.
Why visit Zurich in 2026
Take in lakefront art museums, indulge in Swiss cuisine (like fondue and rosti), or time your trip for Zurich’s famed open-air cinema season. The new flight route also grants access to the rest of Switzerland, with high-speed trains connecting Zurich to Lucerne, Bern, and Andermatt within a few hours.
Zurich has long been one of Europe’s most livable cities, but lately, it’s become a far more interesting place to visit, too. In 2024, the new Natural History Museum at the University of Zurich opened by combining four former university museums into a single sprawling institution filled with dinosaur skeletons, zoological collections, and interactive science exhibits, while the Kunsthaus Zürich, Switzerland’s largest art museum, continues to raise the city’s cultural profile with blockbuster contemporary exhibitions and immersive installations from artists like Marina Abramović and Yayoi Kusama.
Dallas–Fort Worth to Buenos Aires, Argentina
In addition to the five new European routes, American is extending service from DFW to Buenos Aires’s Ezeiza International Airport (EZE), already a popular winter route, into the Northern Hemisphere’s summer, with flights from May 21 through August 3, 2026, on a 787-8. That’s shoulder season in Argentina, a cooler but quieter time to experience tango in San Telmo, graze through Palermo’s parrillas, or escape to nearby wine country in Mendoza.
Why visit Buenos Aires in 2026
MALBA, the city’s influential Museum of Latin American Art, recently acquired the sprawling Daros Latinamerica Collection—more than 1,200 works that significantly expand the museum’s contemporary holdings and reinforce its standing as one of the world’s leading institutions for Latin American art. Accommodation-wise the biggest recent opening is Casa Lucía, a 142-room luxury hotel that debuted in 2024 inside the restored art deco Edificio Mihanovich tower in Retiro, bringing contemporary Argentine design, a dramatic cocktail bar, and skyline views to one of the city’s grandest historic buildings.
This story was originally published in August 2025, and was updated on May 21, 2026, to include current information.
