Resorts World has added helicopter service to its guest amenity stack, partnering with Wings Air Helicopters to shuttle VIP travelers between Resorts World New York City at JFK and Resorts World Catskills in approximately 45 minutes — a journey that by car can easily exceed two hours depending on traffic.
The program launched initially as a seasonal summer offering and has since been extended, a signal that guest uptake justified a longer run. Wings Air operates the route using Airbus AS350 and AS355 helicopters, departing from strategically positioned heliports across the New York metro area. Both aircraft are valued in the luxury charter market for their wide cabin visibility and ride stability — attributes that double as a selling point when the flight path crosses the Hudson Valley.
The Operator Angle
For hospitality operators watching the amenity arms race at integrated resort-casino properties, the move is instructive. Resorts World is effectively turning the transfer between two of its own properties into a revenue-adjacent experience rather than a logistical inconvenience. Meghan Taylor, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Relations at Genting Americas, framed it plainly: connecting the two properties by air gives guests a fast, effortless way to experience both in a single trip. That framing — one trip, two properties — has direct implications for ancillary spend, loyalty engagement, and length-of-stay metrics.
The program also reflects broader momentum in premium hospitality transportation trends, where luxury hotels and resort operators are increasingly investing in first- and last-mile experiences to differentiate on arrival and departure, not just on-property amenities.
Wings Air's Position
Founded in 2002 and FAA-certified, Wings Air has nearly 25 years of commercial helicopter operations concentrated in the Northeast and, more recently, South Florida. The company holds Virtuoso Preferred Partner status and Minority Business Enterprise certification — credentials that carry weight when resort brands evaluate vendor partnerships for guest-facing programs.
Anna Macsai, General Manager of Wings Air Helicopters, pointed to growing demand for high-end travel solutions as the backdrop for the deal, positioning helicopter transport as a tool for seamlessly linking major destinations rather than a novelty. For foodservice and hospitality groups managing multi-property portfolios, that framing is worth noting: inter-property connectivity is increasingly being treated as a hospitality product in its own right.
The Resorts World arrangement joins a small but growing list of resort and casino hospitality partnerships where aviation providers are integrated directly into the guest journey. As staffing costs and guest experience expectations continue to rise across the sector, operators at all price points are scrutinizing what premium touches drive measurable loyalty — and whether air transfers can justify their complexity through repeat visitation and incremental spend.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
