Flight attendants say seat 8A on Air Canada’s B767 is the best seat on the plane. Why? Read on! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Nearly every frequent traveler knows about those fancy flat bed seats flying between California and New York.
But did you know that you can also fly flat between San Francisco and Toronto-Pearson (YYZ) on Air Canada? (LAX-YYZ, too)
Last March, the Canadian carrier deployed a single daily B767 round trip on SFO-YYZ. It departs SFO at 11:35 a.m. and arrives in Toronto at about 7:30 p.m. The widebody departs Toronto at 8:00 a.m. and arrives SFO at 10:25 a.m.
While it would be nice to take advantage of those roomy lie-flat seats on an overnight flight, Air Canada has its 767 timed for connections at its Toronto hub. The flight from SFO arrives in Toronto just in time to meet several evening departures for Europe and Asia, which means business travelers can connect to another lie-flat flight for the transoceanic portion of their trips.
Fares: Since Air Canada and United have a code share (and monopoly) on this route, you can buy your ticket from either airline– but you’ll pay a premium for the lie-flat 767. Business class round trip fares for mid September run $3,200 on the B767, and $2,800 on its four other daily flights on A320s or A321s. Economy class round trips for mid-September are now about $885. (Virgin America and United both bailed on this route in 2011 and 2012, respectively.)
Regrettably, there is no wi-fi on this 767, but it does have it on some of its A320s on the route, including my return flight to SFO.
Air Canada invited me to check out the service last week on a two-day jaunt to Toronto. The airline covered the cost of my flight, and I paid hotel, meals and transfers. (Stay tuned for another Trip Report about my ride on Toronto’s new airport-to-city center train!)
Let’s jump onboard!
Air Canada B767-300ER(Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Air Canada’s flights depart from the “A” side of SFO’s international terminal, which seemed odd since it is a Star Alliance and code sharing partner with United, which is on the “G” side.
Air Canada Boeing 767-300 business class cabin (Chris McGinnis)
The Boeing 767-300 ER has 24 business class seats in rows 1-8. Seats are configured 1-1-1. Seats along the left side window have their own aisle, which offers more privacy, while seats on the right share an aisle. If you are traveling alone, try to get the A side. Those traveling with someone else should sit across the aisle from each other on the F-K side to facilitate conversation.
Business class on Air Canada B767 (Chris McGinnis)
Seats are large, well-cushioned and very private. Headphones were (unusually) hardwired into the seats and could not be removed or replaced with personal headphones. High walls between seats make conversation with seat mates difficult. And due to the herringbone configuration, it’s tough to get a good view out the window.
Old school overhead bins on Air Canada’s B767 (Chris McGinnis)
The 767 is an older plane with smaller overhead bin space. These bins could barely accommodate a standard rollaboard carryon turned sideways. Since Air Canada plans to replace these old birds with new 787s, its unlikely that overhead bins will be replaced before they are retired. Nonetheless, there was no problem fitting all passenger carryons in the space provided.
The A side of business class offers the most privacy (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
These A seats along the right side window in business class are best for solo travelers.
Seat 8A is the best seat on Air Canada’s B767 (Chris McGinnis)
So here we are at seat 8A again. Why do flight attendants say this is the best seat on the plane? First, it’s very private, in it’s own cubby hole at the back of the section with a closet separating it from economy class. What’s even better is that it is the first seat in the cabin to get flight attendant service– just two flight attendants service the entire cabin, and those seated on the right side may miss out on the entree of choice.
Lie-flat comfort- sadly not enough time on this 4-5 hour flight to truly enjoy it (Chris McGinnis)
Air Canada’s business class seats are 21 inches wide (Chris McGinnis)
Business class seats are nice and wide and long enough to accommodate my 6′ frame comfortably. Downside is that all that space for your body takes up valuable storage space for your stuff, which means lots of getting up and down to get into the backpack or briefcase. Nonetheless, my biggest regret is that I was not able to spend the night in this nice cozy blue cocoon!
Seat in full recline (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
A three course meal with mains to choose from on SFO-YYZ lunchtime flight (Chris McGinnis)
(Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Warm nuts to start.
Starter salad (Chris McGinnis)
Chicken breast with tagine sauce (Chris McGinnis)
A choice of two whites and two reds (Photo: Chris McGinnis)
Beef tenderloin (Chris McGinnis)
Pan seared Atlantic salmon (Chris McGinnis)
Light gelato and fruit for dessert (Chris McGinnis)
Overall, the inflight dining experience was excellent, with pleasing portions and very good flavor. However, the presentation is a bit bland compared to what we’ve seen recently in premium cabins on JetBlue (see Trip Report) or Virgin America (See Trip Report) transcons. My suggestion would be for flight attendants to primp the dishes a bit before serving, and maybe add a sprig of parsley or other garnish. Otherwise, the food comes out looking factory-made even though it does not taste that way.
Economy class on Air Canada B767 (Chris McGinnis)
Economy class seats are configured 2-3-2 and appeared to be very comfortable. Plus each seat has a big screen, USB port and power outlet.
Economy class on Air Canada B767 (Chris McGinnis)
Economy class on Air Canada B767 (Chris McGinnis)
View from the roof of the Thomspon Hotel Toronto (Chris McGinnis)
After landing at YYZ, I stayed at the hip Thompson Hotel Toronto for two nights, then flew back to SFO on an Air Canada A320. Here’s a mini-review of the Thompson hotel.
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Disclosure: Air Canada covered the cost of Chris’s roundtrip airfare to Toronto
NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Avoiding long customs & immigration lines + Fingerprint as boarding pass? + Hotel rate shocker + More!
I was just re-reading this post (while cleaning out my Inbox) and was wondering on what return flight is this equipment used (if it is still used on this route).
I already hate connecting anywhere, so adding security and/or an additional layer of CBSA waiting just seems like unnecessary downside for transiting passengers. For me it is NOT worth the deep discount that AC gives over more direct routes. They need to fix that part of the experience if they want to sell tickets to international connecting passengers like BA or Emirates (where in LHR or DXB international connecting pax don’t need to go through immigration/customs) and make the international-to-international connections as truly seamless as possible.
I agree Laurence why would you want to fly through such a backward and US unfriendly country as Canada
As far as I’m aware, US airlines aren’t positioning themselves to Canadians as a transit gateway to Europe. Also Canadaians would go through US customs in Canada at the point of departure so they wouldn’t be delayed in the transit point with a risk of missing the connecting flight.
And what do you think happens when flying out of Canada through your wonderful US of A ???? You go through US customs and immigration as if you are some sort of terrorist and not one of their beloved yanks.
thanks. We’ve corrected the typo
thanks! sorry for the typo now fixed
“The widebody departs Toronto at 8:00 a.m. and arrives SFO at 2:20 p.m”
I just flew this last week, it arrives at 10:25am not 2:20pm
Air Canada invented bland presentation. But nice that SFO has this premium option.
I think you’ve got the arrival time at SFO and departure times somewhat reversed. If it arrived at 2:30p that would make the flight 9-1/2 hours long, and it’s more like 5-1/2 hours. The return flight actually leaves an hour after the inbound arrives, which is at 10:30a, since the same plane is used in both directions. (As for Salvator’s comment, could have been a 2-2-2 UA biz class seat! And Laurence is wrong, US-International connections at YYZ and YVR do not require going through Canadian customs, just a cursory passport check through a different portal, and bags are transferred automatically and do not have to be picked up. At YYZ, arrival also connects to flights to South America which depart around 11p.)
Thanks – I know the new terminal in Toronto is better, but honestly I’ve just had one too many close calls with long waits at CBSA to make it worth my while to connect through Canada to Europe from the USA. Definitely my worst experiences with air travel. Also, Air Canada sells US-EU tickets through airports that don’t have the same transit connection facilities that Toronto now does e.g. via Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Montreal. Just last year my sister missed her connection from London to Boston via Ottawa because it took her so long to get through CBSA. It’s just too much of a risk and too much hassle when I can fly direct to Europe without stepping foot in Canada! I’m also too used to Global Entry and e-Passport gates to tolerate waiting in an immigration line (of any sort).
Air Canada actually has some of its flights depart out of boarding area A at SFO, and some at boarding area G. Definitely sub-optimal. At one point, they were supposed to move back to Terminal 3 after the renovations to T3E were complete, but I haven’t heard anything about that in a while.
I once took a flight that was scheduled to depart from the A gates, but was delated so long (5+ hours) that they had to move it to the G gates, making everyone re-clear security. People were not happy campers.
There’s now a bypass directly to the international gates for travellers connecting to international (non-U.S.) flights.
Good point, L! I’ve never flown through YYZ, only to/from it. And even that is kind of a mess- poor signage, but at least a lot of helpful people around to help you find your way. We fixed the caption, too. –chris
This looks like a dream come true. Not like the Business Class seat I was on yesterday from Paris to Washinston on United. Their 767-300s are 2-1-2 and are very tight and uncomfortable. Some say they love the United flat-bed seats, I say it’s like a coffin bed, way too tight and not a truly comfortable ride. Would love the old seats that were much wider than the new seats.
Gosh I have avoided Air Canada thinking it was a joke airline. In their relationship with United, I have to check them out and still get United points for a better experience.
Sorry, but flying between the USA and Europe through Canada is the worst. There’s a reason it’s so much cheaper! You have to pass through Canadian immigration and customs, and in many cases (though not all) must collect checked baggage and shlep around with it. It is an incredibly frustrating waste of time to stand in a passport hall waiting to go through immigration for a country you’re not even trying to enter. Not premium at all. I nearly missed a plane on two because of this ridiculous waste of time. Why go through all that hassle when you can just fly direct to Europe in the first place?
Also, I think that some of the captions in this article need to be changed – they say 777 when it is a 767.
I’m sure the seats are very nice, but the photos make them look like the chairs in my dentist’s office. Hmmm… there’s an idea, fly business class and for another $250 you can get your teeth cleaned in flight. Not sure how they’d get the spit sinks in there, but I guess they could just give you a big bowl.