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WestJet has announced several new services as part of its seasonal schedule for the winter of 2017-18, which includes more flights from Vancouver to Calgary, Edmonton, Fort McMurray, Fort St. John, Cabo San Lucas, Cancun and Puerto Vallarta.
Vancouver to Huatulco
WestJet has announced a new non-stop weekly service between Vancouver and Huatulco, Mexico, effective Oct. 29, 2017.
“WestJet will increase service from Vancouver by 43 weekly flights this winter,” said Brian Znotins, WestJet vice-president, network planning, alliances and corporate development. “We will operate more flights between Vancouver and Calgary than any other carrier–flights which are more consistently timed to depart at the top of the hour (eastbound) or at the bottom of the hour (westbound)–and increase connections available via Vancouver by 34 per cent.”
Enhancing its service to the sun, WestJet will increase flights from Vancouver to Mexico by three per week and bring the sun a little closer to the west coast by starting its Vancouver-Hawaii service several weeks earlier.
WestJet will also increase service on the following routes from Vancouver:
- Vancouver-Fort McMurray, from five to six times weekly;
- Vancouver-Edmonton, from 55 to 58 times weekly (nine times each business day);
- Vancouver-Calgary, from 90 to 98 times weekly (15 times each business day), more than any other carrier;
- Vancouver-Fort St. John, from seven to 12 times weekly;
- Vancouver-Puerto Vallarta, from seven to eight times weekly; and
- Vancouver-Cancun, from six to seven times weekly.
“This is fantastic news from our longtime partner WestJet. The addition of Huatulco as well as increasing their other pre-existing services means that WestJet now offers our passengers more services to Hawaii and Mexico than any other carrier at YVR!” said Craig Richmond, president and CEO, Vancouver Airport Authority. “We are pleased that we are able to offer further options for passengers looking to escape the winter to go to sun destinations or go home to visit loved ones in Canada over the holidays.”
WestJet also announced the addition of dozens of new flights across Canada. The additional flights deliver optimized service for both the business and leisure traveller and give Canadians greater connectivity into and out of WestJet hubs in Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto, providing more flight frequency between key routes, more convenient schedules and greater access from smaller airports into the wider WestJet network.
“Bolstering our hub cities–the core of the WestJet network–is typical of the kind of difference we want to make for Canadian travellers,” said Brian Znotins. “The addition of more than 125 flights into and out of Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto creates one-stop connections, faster travel times and better scheduling to address the demand Canadians have for travel that is convenient, stress-free and low cost.”
Highlights of WestJet’s 2017-18 winter schedule include:
- Service from both Regina and Abbotsford to Puerto Vallarta will increase by one weekly flight for a total of twice weekly;
- Additional flights from Edmonton to a number of domestic and international destinations including Cancun, Abbotsford and Victoria;
- Additional flights from Calgary to a number of sun destinations including Cancun, Cabo San Lucas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Palm Springs and Puerto Vallarta;
- Additional flights from Calgary to a number of domestic destinations including Kitchener, Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, Kelowna and Brandon;
- Extension of existing summer service increases through the winter, including three daily flights between Toronto and Moncton, six daily flights between Edmonton and Kelowna, six daily flights between Edmonton and Ottawa, and 12 weekly flights between Calgary and Houston;
- New non-stop weekly service from Calgary to Belize City, Belize;
- New non-stop weekly service from Edmonton and Vancouver to Huatulco;
- Additional flights from Toronto to a number of sun destinations including Antigua, Cancun, Fort Lauderdale, Liberia, Orlando, Nassau, Puerto Plata, Punta Cana and Montego Bay;
- Additional flights from Toronto to a number of Canadian destinations including Winnipeg and Kelowna;
- An increase of 10 new weekly flights between Toronto and Ottawa for a total of 13 times daily;
- An increase of nine weekly flights between Toronto and Montreal for a total of 14 times daily;
- An increase of 11 weekly flights between Toronto and Calgary for a total of 10 times daily, more than any other carrier; and
- An increase of eight weekly flights between Toronto and Vancouver for a total of eight times daily.
This winter WestJet will operate an average of 700 daily flights to 93 destinations including 37 in Canada, 22 in the United States, 33 in Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America, and one in Europe.
Edmonton to Huatulco
WestJet also announced new non-stop weekly service between Edmonton and Huatulco, Mexico, effective Nov. 2, 2017. The service is part of the airline’s seasonal schedule for the winter of 2017-18.
“WestJet will increase service from Edmonton by 24 weekly flights this winter,” said Znotins. “As the carrier providing more service from Edmonton International Airport than any other, WestJet is committed to providing new destinations and routes, more convenient connections and more opportunities for Edmontonians and Northern Albertans to access WestJet’s low fares, growing network and friendly, caring service.”
WestJet will also increase non-stop service between Edmonton and Abbotsford from 11 to 13 flights per week, and between Edmonton and Victoria from 10 to 13 flights per week.
“These new non-stop flights are great news for both leisure and business travel,” said Traci Bednard, EIA vice-president, passenger market development. “For vacation travellers, Huatulco is an exciting, new sun destination and more flights to Cancun provide more scheduling options. On the business side, year-round service linking the provincial and national capitals is a major addition! These new flights are part of WestJet’s tremendous investment in Edmonton and Northern Alberta.”
Calgary service to Belize
WestJet will also offer a new, non-stop weekly service between Calgary and Belize, effective Nov. 3, 2017.
“WestJet will increase service from Calgary by 52 weekly flights this winter,” said Znotins. “As the carrier with more flights from Calgary International Airport than any other, we have designed our Calgary flight schedules to deliver 55 per cent more connecting itineraries which will help to launch new flights in future seasons and further expand our presence in YYC–a key driver in economic and employment growth in the city.”
WestJet will also increase service on the following routes from Calgary:
- Calgary-Vancouver, from 90 to 97 times weekly (15 times each business day), more than any other carrier;
- Calgary-Toronto, from 58 to 68 times weekly, (10 times each business day), more than any other carrier;
- Calgary-Fort McMurray, from four to five times each business day;
- Calgary-Kelowna, from six to seven times each business day, more than any other carrier;
- Calgary-Brandon, from 10 to 12 times weekly;
- Calgary-Grande Prairie, 19 to 26 times weekly;
- Calgary-Kitchener, from five to seven times weekly;
- Calgary-Los Angeles, from 11 to 14 times weekly;
- Calgary-Phoenix, from 19 to 20 times weekly;
- Calgary-Palm Springs, from 18 to 20 times weekly;
- Calgary-Cancun, from 14 to 16 times weekly; and
- Calgary-Cabo San Lucas, from seven to eight times weekly.
“The considerable increase in frequencies out of YYC, combined with the introduction of WestJet’s Calgary to Belize route is exciting news for Albertans,” said Bob Sartor, president and CEO for The Calgary Airport Authority. “Enhancing the WestJet network out of their home base is a strategic investment to advance one of their largest hubs, and provide YYC passengers with more options to connect out of Calgary.”
Increased service from Kelowna
WestJet will offer more flights between Kelowna and Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto, effective November 2017. The additional service represents a significant increase in flights from Kelowna International Airport.
“WestJet is proud to be the largest carrier in Kelowna with more seats, flights and destinations than any other airline,” said Znotins. “Increased service this winter represents better connectivity, more choices and greater access to WestJet’s growing network, as well as low fares and friendly, caring service for Okanagan residents and visitors to the area.”
Details of WestJet’s increased service from Kelowna this winter:
- Kelowna-Edmonton, from four to six times daily (continued from summer 2017), more than any other carrier;
- Kelowna-Calgary, from 44 to 47 times weekly (seven times each business day), more than any other carrier; and
- Kelowna-Toronto, from five to seven times weekly.
