gran canaria direct flights canada

Gran Canaria to launch first direct flights to Canada

Historic direct flights from Canada to Gran Canaria

Gran Canaria is set to make history by launching its first-ever regular direct flights to Canada, a milestone connection that will become the island’s first stable transatlantic operation to North America in 50 years, according to the Cabildo of Gran Canaria’s tourism department. The new route will be operated by Canadian airline Air Transat, which serves more than sixty destinations across Canada, the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America, and Europe.

Flight schedule and aircraft details

The service will include two weekly frequencies: departures from Gran Canaria to Montreal on Sundays and to Toronto on Mondays. Flights from Canada will leave Montreal on Saturdays and Toronto on Sundays. Air Transat will operate the connection using Airbus A321LR aircraft, a model designed for long-haul transatlantic routes with high efficiency. The plane has capacity for approximately 200 passengers, distributed across two travel classes.

Officials hail the development

The Cabildo’s tourism department has hailed the new connection as a historic step that places Gran Canaria in a new international dimension and confirms the prestige and strength of the destination in long-haul markets, said Carlos Álamo, the island’s tourism minister. “We will be directly connected to North America, making it easier for potential visitors interested in discovering our landscapes, our culture, and the island’s great attractions to reach us,” Álamo stressed.

Jéssica de León, the Canary Islands government’s Minister for Tourism and Employment, also highlighted the major advance these new routes to Canada represent for the destination. “We are positioning the archipelago in a strategic market with enormous potential for the islands, especially during the winter season, when we become the great European sun-and-beach alternative for Canadian travellers,” De León said.

A boost for tourism diversification

The opening of this route will provide access to one of the world’s highest-spending tourism markets, a strategic segment for the tourism diversification model promoted by the Cabildo of Gran Canaria in recent years. The connection will also benefit Gran Canaria residents, who will be able to travel to Canada without needing stopovers.

“Gran Canaria offers the best of both worlds: the sun and mild climate of the Canary Islands combined with the charm and cultural richness of Europe,” said Sebastián Ponce, Transat’s revenue director. “With an ideal climate all year round, spectacular beaches, and a vibrant food scene, it is a destination that perfectly meets the expectations of travellers looking for something new,” the airline’s spokesperson added.

Years of groundwork pay off

This connection is the result of years of technical work and international promotion carried out by Turismo de Gran Canaria and the Canary Islands to position the destination in the North American market, the island council said in a statement. Councillor Carlos Álamo publicly thanked the technical teams of Turismo de Gran Canaria for their years of effort and dedication. “Opening a market of this nature requires planning, persistence, and a sustained strategy over time,” he said.

Jéssica de León explained that these new connections are the fruit of intensive work in which the public company Turismo de Islas Canarias played a key role, and assured that these routes “reinforce our strategy of market diversification and attracting higher-value segments, aligned with the goal of increasing tourism revenue while maintaining current arrival levels and generating a positive impact of tourism on the public.”

A route absent for more than half a century

The new connection with Canada is part of the market diversification strategy developed by Turismo de Gran Canaria, a line of work that has reduced dependence on traditional markets and strengthened the destination’s stability against possible fluctuations in international demand. Gran Canaria thus recovers a route that has been absent for more than half a century. The island once had up to 20 per cent of North American clients in the 1970s.

About Air Transat

Air Transat is one of Canada’s leading leisure airlines. It specialises in international holiday routes, with a strong presence in the markets of Quebec and Ontario. Based in Montreal, it operates primarily from Montreal-Trudeau and Toronto Pearson airports. The airline carries around five million passengers per year and has been recognised on several occasions as one of the world’s best holiday airlines.

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