Empty leg flights to and from Miami

Miami sits where North America meets the Caribbean and Latin America, and between December and April it becomes one of the busiest private aviation destinations in the United States. Jets from Britain land at Miami-Opa locka Executive, 11 miles north of downtown, or at Miami International, Miami Executive and the airports of Fort Lauderdale, and passengers can be on Miami Beach within an hour of clearing customs.

The crossing is a long one, about 9h 10m westbound in a Gulfstream G650, so the prices here are for ultra long range jets. Transatlantic empty legs to Miami are rarer than to New York and mostly follow the winter season: westbound when jets fly out empty to collect families after Christmas and Easter, and eastbound when jets that have dropped holidaymakers return home. In summer a few more run west from Scotland and Ireland after American golf trips. Far more sectors run inside America and the Caribbean, between Miami, New York, Palm Beach and the Bahamas, and one of them is often the cheapest way to add a second city or an island to the trip.

Empty legs to and from Miami right now

The board lists every sector that touches Opa-locka, Miami International or Miami Executive. When Miami is quiet it adds flights at Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Nassau, none of them more than an hour away by jet. Beneath it, the charter list prices a Gulfstream G650 for dates you choose.

Also moving across Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Nassau

Sectors on this list do not touch Miami itself. They are shown because the fields are close enough that the drive rarely costs you more than waiting for the right sector does. Tell us which one interests you and we will confirm it is still open.

Where Miami sectors come from

Three seasonal movements put aircraft into the air over Florida with empty cabins.

For a traveller from Britain the smartest plan is often a combination: the Atlantic crossing to New York or Miami, then a domestic empty leg for the next part of the trip. Hurricane season adds sectors of its own, because when a storm threatens, operators move aircraft out of South Florida and bring them back once it has passed.

Opa-locka Executive Airport in detail

Miami has three airports that matter to private flights, Opa-locka, Miami International and Miami Executive, and most jets from Britain choose Opa-locka. These are the facts that shape an arrival there.

Opa-locka is our default for most of Miami. We move a quote to Miami International when the landing will be after 11 pm, because customs there never close, and to Fort Lauderdale or Palm Beach when the address lies further north or when Art Basel fills every ramp in the county.

Where private passengers are handled at Opa-locka

Five companies run private terminals at Opa-locka, each with its own lounge, ramp and entrance road. The operator books one of them, and that choice decides where the chauffeur waits and how the customs visit fits into the arrival.

For most trips the choice of FBO follows the plan on the ground: a family bound for Bal Harbour, a quick business turn or a crew that needs a hangar. We name it in the quote and pass it to the chauffeur and the caterer before the aircraft leaves Britain. Hangar and ramp space across South Florida is short all winter, so a jet staying more than a night or two may have to park at another airport, and space that is easy to find in July can be gone by January.

The terminal from a passenger's side

After nine hours in the air, the arrival at Opa-locka is refreshingly short.

Customs at Opa-locka rarely take long; the clock and the traffic outside the gate are what shape the day, and both are planned when the flight is booked.

Four rules that shape a Miami trip

With these four settled, a Miami trip is as simple as a flight to the south of France, only longer. Ignore them, and the arrival can end at the wrong airport, in the wrong week or with a visa missing.

What the ground costs in Miami

Airport charges in Florida are modest next to the flight itself; taxes and peak season parking make the difference.

The duty is due only on the departure from Britain, and a flight from Jersey or Guernsey pays none, because the islands lie outside the United Kingdom for this duty. The April 2027 change, which extends the higher rate to every private jet from 5.7 tonnes, makes no difference on this route, because every jet able to cross nonstop already pays it. The United States adds its arrival and departure tax in each direction, together with the customs and inspection user fees already built into the operator quote.

A winter in Florida usually lasts longer than a crew can wait, so after the drop most aircraft fly home and return for the pickup. Those two crossings are the empty legs that lower someone else's fare, and our quotes list the airport charges, the car and any onward island flight beside the price of the jet.

Miami International, Fort Lauderdale and the other airports around Miami

South Florida offers a wide choice of private airports, and the right one depends on the address, the hour and the season.

From Opa-locka to Miami Beach and beyond

Typical drives from Opa-locka when the roads are clear. Weekday peaks on Interstate 95, weekend evenings on the causeways and the big weeks of the season can add half an hour or more.

Chauffeured cars and SUVs are the usual way into the city, and the better firms follow the flight and wait at the FBO door. For Fisher Island or a yacht moored in the bay, ask for the transfer to be arranged with the boat, since the last miles are over water.

Popular routes between the UK and Miami, and which way they run empty

Each figure is the price of a whole Gulfstream G650 on a transatlantic sector released by its operator, because the aircraft has to cross anyway. Chartered on dates of your own, the same jet costs more than twice as much, and the charter list under the board shows those numbers. Flight times cover the air time only, and the westbound figure is always the higher one, since the jet stream blows against the aircraft on the way out.

Transatlantic sectors to Florida appear less often than European ones and seldom more than a week ahead. Leave us the route and a rough window of dates, and we will tell you the moment one appears.

Online calculator

If you want to see what your route would cost as a standard charter, so you have something to measure an empty leg against, use the calculator below. Fill in the airports, the dates and the number of passengers, add any preference on aircraft type, and we will send a written calculation by email or messenger. Please check your contact details carefully so that we can reply quickly.

The figure the calculator returns is an estimate for planning. The firm quote comes back from our consultants with the cost broken out line by line, and the price agreed there is the price written into the contract.

If you would rather skip the arithmetic, send us the route and the dates instead and a consultant will come back with both numbers, the charter price and any empty leg that fits.

Arriving in Miami from the UK

Opa-locka has its own US customs station, so passports, travel authorisations and luggage are checked at the airport itself, on the customs ramp beside the runways.

• Passport. British travellers need a passport that stays valid for the length of the visit, according to the Foreign Office, and an ESTA can only be issued against a chipped passport, which all current British passports are.
• ESTA. The fee is about 40 dollars, and one approval covers any number of visits of up to 90 days over two years, ending early if the passport expires. Apply at least 72 hours before the flight, include the selfie photograph the form now asks for, and remember that further questions, including about social media, have been proposed.
• The operator. On a private or charter flight the ESTA counts only if the operator belongs to the Visa Waiver Program. Without that, anyone who would normally travel on an ESTA needs a full US visa.
• Island trips. A side trip to the Bahamas or elsewhere in the Caribbean does not restart the 90 days; the time away counts as part of the same visit.
• Duty free into the US. Free of duty, a visitor may bring in 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars, a litre of alcohol from the age of 21 and, for a stay of at least 72 hours, gifts worth up to 100 dollars, which may include up to 100 cigars. Declare all food at the border, since meat, fresh fruit and vegetables face strict limits.
• Cash. Sums above 10,000 dollars, in cash or instruments such as traveller's cheques, are reported to the officers both on arrival and when leaving.
• Coming home. Arriving in Great Britain by private aircraft, each traveller aged 17 or over may bring 4 litres of spirits, 18 litres of wine, including sparkling wine from 1 October 2026, 42 litres of beer and 200 cigarettes, and every traveller may bring other goods worth up to 270 GBP. Anything made from meat or milk in the United States has to be left behind.

Empty leg calendar for Miami, month by month

Miami runs on a sharp winter season and a long, hot, quiet summer, and the empty legs follow the movement of owners and families between the two.

The best transatlantic sectors come in the first week of January, before Christmas and in April. For domestic and island legs, look from November to May, and keep late summer dates flexible because of the storms.

Three situations, three answers

Flying to Miami with a dog or a cat

The United States sets the federal rules and Florida adds its own. For a dog from Britain the CDC asks for a microchip, a minimum age of six months, six months spent only in Britain or other countries free of dog rabies, and the receipt for the CDC Dog Import Form, filled in online before departure; such a dog may arrive at any US airport, Opa-locka included. The CDC sets nothing for cats, but Florida expects dogs and cats over three months old to be vaccinated against rabies, so carry the vaccination record and a recent health certificate from your vet.

The return journey to Great Britain is stricter. The animal must be microchipped and vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days before it lands, and it may come back on a private flight only along a route approved for animals and with an approved operator. A dog must also be treated for tapeworm by a vet between one and five days before landing, and every pet travels with a health certificate for Great Britain signed by a USDA accredited vet and endorsed by the USDA, arriving within ten days of that endorsement. Mention the pet in your first message, and every aircraft we propose will come from an operator that accepts animals.

Questions about flying private to Miami

Call +44 7857 574938 , message the same number on WhatsApp , or write to flight@empty-leg.co.uk . Let us know where in Miami you are staying, the dates, how many passengers and bags are travelling and whether a pet is coming, and we will reply with matching sectors, a full charter price, the ground costs and a confirmation that the operator is approved for ESTA travel.