@Ottawa

Domestic flight prices within Canada continue to shine, and cheap prices are available on dates throughout 2022.

It was not that long ago you would easily be paying a minimum of $500 roundtrip after taxes to fly from Western Canada to Ontario or Quebec or vice versa. Those same routes are now routinely in the ballpark for less than half that price, and occasionally a third.

Back then you had two choices, WestJet or Air Canada. Then Air Transat started flying certain domestic routes, which helped with prices between major cities, such as Vancouver to Toronto. Then Flair entered the mix, starting with cheap flights from smaller Canadian airports, and gradually worked their way into the larger airports.

WestJet responded to this new upstart named Flair by creating Swoop to compete in the low cost carrier space.

And then there's Porter, who has been biding their time in Eastern Canada, but now appears poised to finally expand across Canada with their 80 new aircraft.

Not to mention Lynx Air, who is already selling tickets and will begin flying in April out of Vancouver, Toronto, and Calgary.

Oh, and Sunwing is back to selling domestic flights between Vancouver and Toronto.

And last, and perhaps deservedly least, is Jetlines who is claiming to finally be getting off the ground in 2022. (It should be noted that Jetlines has made similar claims for the last 6 or 7 years).

It's conceivable that soon Canada will have 4 or 5 airlines competing on some popular domestic routes. Can we handle this many?

Yes, many routes within Canada are still dominated by 1 or 2 airlines, keeping prices high on those routes (Air Canada and WestJet still operate about 80% of domestic flights). Most places with less than 200,000 people are still going to have expensive domestic flights and limited airline choices.

But I think to say that Canada's domestic market has a real lack of competition is no longer true like it once was.

Exploring for cheap flights

If you click on the links below, it will take you to an example Google Flights search you can start with.

When you get to Google Flights, you can click on the departure date box to open the calendar view and browse for the cheapest dates to fly.

If you open the calendar view on Google Flights you can adjust the trip length at the bottom.

Vancouver, Abbotsford, or Victoria to Toronto, Hamilton, or Kitchener, Ontario

Vancouver to Toronto

$158 roundtrip on WestJet, Air Canada, Air Transat (March to June, September, October - Jul/Aug for $234)

Vancouver to Toronto

$134 roundtrip on Flair (March to June, September to November)

Vancouver to Toronto

$154 roundtrip on Lynx Air (April to October)

Vancouver to Kitchener-Waterloo

$104 roundtrip on Flair (March, April, September, October)

Abbotsford to Toronto

$104 roundtrip on Flair, Swoop (March to October)

Abbotsford to Hamilton

$104 roundtrip on Swoop (March to June, September, October)

Victoria to Toronto

$221 roundtrip on Air Canada (June)

Victoria to Toronto

$114 roundtrip on Flair (September, October)

Vancouver or Abbotsford to Ottawa, Ontario

Vancouver to Ottawa

$115 roundtrip on Flair (September, October)

Vancouver to Ottawa

$138 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (September, October, July/Aug for $177)

Abbotsford to Ottawa

$104 roundtrip on Flair (April to October)

Vancouver or Abbotsford to Montreal, Quebec

Vancouver to Montreal

$271 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet, Air Transat (May)

Vancouver to Montreal

$114 roundtrip on Flair (October, November)

Vancouver or Abbotsford to Calgary / Banff, Alberta

Vancouver to Calgary

$112 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (March to June, September, October, July/Aug for $122)

Vancouver to Calgary

$96 roundtrip on Flair (March to November)

Vancouver to Calgary

$88 roundtrip on Lynx Air (April to October)

Abbotsford to Calgary

$86 roundtrip on Flair (March to November)

Abbotsford to Calgary

$105 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (March to June, September, October)

Vancouver or Abbotsford to Edmonton / Jasper, Alberta

Vancouver to Edmonton

$112 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (March to October)

Vancouver to Edmonton

$96 roundtrip on Flair (March to November)

Abbotsford to Edmonton

$86 roundtrip on Flair (March to November)

Victoria or Comox to Calgary or Edmonton / Jasper, Alberta

Victoria to Calgary

$91 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (late March to October)

Victoria to Calgary

$76 roundtrip on Flair (late March to October)

Victoria to Edmonton

$91 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (March to June, September, October, July/Aug for $111)

Victoria to Edmonton

$76 roundtrip on Flair, Swoop (March to October)

Comox to Calgary

$112 roundtrip on WestJet (May, July, August, September, October)

Comox to Edmonton

$112 roundtrip on WestJet (July, August, September, October)

Vancouver or Victoria to Kelowna or Prince George, BC

Vancouver to Kelowna

$91 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (May to October)

Vancouver to Kelowna

$98 roundtrip on Lynx Air (April to October)

Victoria to Kelowna

$91 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (June to October)

Victoria to Kelowna

$76 roundtrip on Flair (May to October)

Vancouver to Prince George

$82 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (May, June, September, October, July/Aug for $141)

Vancouver to Prince George

$66 roundtrip on Flair (June to October)

Vancouver to Saskatoon or Regina, Saskatchewan

Vancouver to Saskatoon

$116 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (May, June, September, October, Jul/Aug for $126)

Vancouver to Saskatoon

$96 roundtrip on Flair (May to October)

Vancouver to Regina

$106 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (June, September, October)

Vancouver to Regina

$86 roundtrip on Flair (May to October)

Vancouver to Winnipeg

Vancouver to Winnipeg

$116 roundtrip on Air Canada, WestJet (May, June, September, October, Jul/Aug for $146)

Vancouver to Winnipeg

$96 roundtrip on Flair (May to October)

Abbotsford to Winnipeg

$106 roundtrip on Flair, Swoop (April to October)