WestJet beefs up winter sun destinations for Canadians...Lower fares on way?

July 20, 2011

WestJet beefs up winter sun destinations for Canadians...Lower fares on way?

Yeah, it's not exactly the type of weather that has up dreaming about going south. More like north to a lake with cool water and a couple or six brewskies.

But six weeks from now (and sorry to mention this), it will be September. And pretty soon the nights will be crisp and then some leaves will start falling and we'll be looking to book our winter vacations. So here's some good news: Canadians have more options than ever for winter getaways to lands where palm trees sway.

WestJet Wednesday said it will start added service to sun destinations from several Canadian destinations starting Oct. 30, including flights from Toronto to San Juan, Puerto Rico (see photo).

Here are the new flights they're starting:

Toronto to San Juan every Saturday and Sunday, starting Nov. 5 (fares from $189 plus taxes and fees)

London, ON to Cancun: Every Saturday starting Nov. 5, then Saturdays and Wednesdays beginning Dec. 14 (fares from $159)

London to Las Vegas: Thursday and Sunday starting Oct. 30 (fares from $179)

Thunder Bay to Montego Bay: Every Saturday starting Nov. 5 (fares from $189)

Winnipeg to Palm Springs: Thursday and Sunday service staring Dec. 15 (fares from $219)

Kelowna to Phoenix: Every Monday starting Oct. 31 (fares from $189)

Victoria to Phoenix: Every Friday beginning Nov. 4 (fares from $189)

WestJet also said it will resume its non-stop, season service to Hawaii from Calgary this winter, althought details haven't been released.

LOWER FARES COMING OUR WAY?

Might be wishful thinking, but the Financial Post today said Canadian airlines might be looking to ease off on fares.

Higher fares in June appear to have slowed demand for air tickets, and airlines analyst Ben Cherniavsky said lower prices from Air Canada and WestJet might attract more customers.

"The very aggressive fare increases that Canada's airlines have recently implemented finally appear to be having a negative impact on demand," Cherniavsky said in a note to his clients.

Summer air fares to Europe were sky-high. I paid $800 recently for a round-trip ticket from Toronto to Montego Bay.

Posted by Jim Byers at 04:42:33 PM in airlines, Bargains, California, canada, caribbean, Las Vegas, mexico, ontario, The beach, toronto, Travel, united states

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Good news for Canadians... very affordable packages!

Posted by: Starbase Aviation | July 21, 2011 at 02:16 AM

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Travel Blog by Jim Byers

Jim Byers is the Star's Travel Editor. He has been writing travel stories for more than a decade, covered five Olympic Games and spent years covering the Blue Jays, the Toronto Raptors and the PGA Tour. He's been everywhere from Bonavista to Vancouver Island, as well as China, Hong Kong, Australia, the Caribbean, Thailand, Mexico, Tahiti, New Zealand, Vietnam, a dozen countries in Europe and just about every major city in the U.S. Okay, he was only in Liechtenstein for a couple hours in a rental car and his only visit to New Orleans was when he was 12, but you get the picture.

July 20, 2011