I'm going to a conference in Toronto in August, and looking for cheap ways of crossing to Vancouver or Calgary for a holiday. So far, the best I can do is Ł250ish on Air Canada. I found West Jet, but have never heard of them before - anyone want to enlighten me as to any cons with them (I haven't done the conversion yet as to whether they were cheaper than AC either!). And why can't I find US airlines (which would broaden my miles earning out a bit) with hubbing flights through north US back into YVR?

You won't find US airlines offering fares between 2 Canadian cities because of US-Canada agreements. (For the same reason, you won't find Air Canada offereing fares between US cities with connections in Toronto.)

However, because Canada decided to put most of their cities on/near the U.S. border, you have some other options. For example, if instead of flying between Toronto and Vancouver, you flew between Buffalo and Seattle, you are likely to find more attractive fares. Travelocity, for example, shows a fare of US$273 for a BUF-SEA round-trip, which is about 60-70% of the AC price you quoted.

Travelocity also shows an AC fare YYZ-YVR of -- you need seats in the 'L' bucket, travel Mo/Tu/We/Sa, stay over Sat nite, and travel between Jun 27 and Sep 3.

Westjet (WS) is closely patterned after Southwest (WN). Fine airline operating very new 737-700s on that particular route. Don't expect much in the way of food/drink (other than very basic snacks) or entertainment (none), not that AC is much better.

Other possibilities are Jetsgo and HMY Airways (latter claims to offer above average/superior food/beverages & IFE).

Just be aware that the Seattle option can be expensive. Car rental rates in Seattle are generally not cheap and various taxes and fees (some of it to fund a billionaire's football stadium) add 28% to the pre-tax rate. A r/t bus trip will cost you USD 55. That'll eat up most of the savings and we haven't even gotten to the cost of getting to BUF.

Have you had a look at Air Canada's low cost arm, Flytango.com?

Thanks guys! Some excellent suggestions to investigate. Can just about fiddle the AC cheap dates as well, so will give that a try. And thanks for explaining the lack of US airlines. I could just hear the howls now if Europe tried to do this!

If you can swing it fly into Calgary or Vancouver and drive to the other city through the mountains. Oh they are spectacular.

Another option is to fly from Toronto to Kelowna BC. AC has a direct flight in the summer (for now) and a random ticket with Sat night stay came out to $571 CDN including taxes.

Kelowna is right in the heart of the Okanogan Valley and is wonderful.

If you are able to, I recommend driving from there to Calgary through the peaks of the Rockies. It is a site that everyone should experience in their lifetime. It is only a 1 day drive (about 8 to 9 hours) to Calgary from there. You can even just stop in Banff if you can't make it to Calgary. That will save you about 1 1/2 hours driving each way.

As for WestJet. they are fine airline as said earlier on. You can fly to either Calgary, Kelowna or Vancouver. Kelowna will require a connection in Calgary. The good news with WestJet is that all fares are one way so you can fly in and out of different airports without penalties. Also they have been around for a quite a while now and are very reputable (and profitable) so they no need to worry about them going under before your trip.

The seat pitch tends to be a bit less than on AC and as said they don't serve meals or provide movies or audio channels on your flight.

I visited Calgary once too many times with my old job out of Toronto and quit to move here. I fly into Kelowna every 6 weeks for work (don't have time to drive it anymore ).

A nice side trip from Banff is to drive up Glacier National Park where the mountains are indescribable. You can also take a tour on a glacier even in the summer.

I don't check in here too often but if you would like any further advice feel free to drop me an email or come by the Air Canada forum. We talk about everything Canadian there there is someone there asking about accommodations in Banff that is getting responses.

Have a great trip and I hope that you enjoy Canada

[This message has been edited by cattle (edited 05-16-2003).]