tootsiegirl

I am looking for Business Class from Calgary, Alberta(March 5th) going to Frankfurt, Germany on March 23rd flying out of LHR. is calling for 110,000 aeroplan miles and the following for taxes


Carrier Surcharge
$970.00
Canada Domestic/International Airport Improvement Fee
$34.00
Canada Goods and Services Tax
$1.50
Canada Domestic/International Air Travel Security Charge
$25.91
Canada Harmonized Sales Tax
$0.52
U.K. Domestic/International Passenger Service Charge
$80.40
U.K. Air Passenger Duty [NOTE: Passengers aged 2-15 (on day of departure from the U.K.) travelling in Economy Class from the U.K. are exempt from the Air Passenger Duty. If this fee has not been waived, please complete your booking then call the Aeroplan Contact Centre at 1-800-361-5373 to get refunded.]
$279.40
Total per passenger
$1,391.73
Total passengers
1
$1,391.73

Yet when I go as if I am going to pay for the exact same flights etc...the total cost for taxes, fees and charges is $421.70 WTH...why $1000.00 almost difference.....can anyone explain this to me..

yvr76

Think of the carrier surcharge as a copay. It has nothing to do with the taxes the airline is charged, but a way for them to make additional revenue from reward flights.

Stranger

It's that. But not just that. Also a work around some regulatinos in some countries for paid tickets.

Also of note, SEs are exempt.

rankourabu

$421 is actual tax.
$970 is a scam, the money goes directly into Air Canada's pockets

This should be useful reading:
How to Save Money/YQ on Aeroplan Europe redemptions

The Lev

If you can find a flight via say ORD on UA you can avoid the scam charges.

tootsiegirl

Yeah, that won't work..booo...We are taking a tour so the flight from Calgary to Frankfurt cannot be changed. I am not to sure where else we can fly out of that would save us $1000.00 on scam charges being that we will be in London for a week after our tour. I looked to fly out of Gatwick and the prices is about 900.00 worth of scam charges, so not sure how to save moola...LOL

YXUFlyboy

There's also a direct YYC-FRA that would avoid the UK taxes but not the scam charges/carrier surcharge (YQ).

tootsiegirl

Yeah, we are planning on grabbing the Calgary to Frankfurt direct flight. And we need to fly back from London to Calgary..so I guess we pay the scam charges...LOL..Unless of course someone has any other ideas

PB53x11

Think about paying cash for the seats. Seriously. I've seen YYZ-LHR return (not recently, but I think the concept still holds) where fees were $750 (on top of points, obviously) but you could get a seat for $850. Your differential will be higher, but save the points for a route where you can minimize fees.

[as pointed out below, this likely doesn't work for business class. Missed that.]

canadiancow

OP wants business class, where this is almost certainly never going to be the case.

PB53x11

Oops, thanks, missed that. I take it P fares never get low enough to make it enticing?

Often1

All of the charges other than the carrier surcharge are either Canadian or UK taxes. The chief UK culprit is the APD because you are flying in a premium cabin. Nothing to be done about those. The surcharge is solely an AC charge. UA does not levy surcharges, but you are stuck on AC because of your tour group routing.

rehoult

Ignoring the discussion of fairness, etc.. and focusing on your specific question:
When you price out a paid ticket, the carrier surcharge will be included in the "Air Transportation Charge" section, and not the "Taxes, Fees and Charges" section. If you expand the ATC section, you'll see a line for surcharges, and that's where you should see the $970.

rehoult

LHR pretty much never has discounts for J, except for BA occasionally. Enough actual business travel there to fill the front cabins for most carriers.

1Newflyer

If the flight is part of the tour then why are you asking about the award ticket to Europe and back? If the tour starts in Frankfurt and ends in London and the flight is on you then there are many ways to get to Frankfurt.