Eastern Canada: Star Alliance Flights Starting at €284 From Paris (€384 With Luggage)

montreal square victoria

Flying from Paris to Canada in late 2020 and early 2021 is very cheap thanks to Star Alliance airlines Air Canada and Lufthansa. Prices start at €284 for flights to Montreal, but you can also fly to Quebec and Toronto for roughly €330. Luggage, however, is not included. You can even bump the price down to €259 if you book through an OTA, though that may be a bit risky in these times.

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Lufthansa’s rebooking policies don’t allow you to cancel your flight for a refund. You may change travel dates without an extra fee, but you’d still have to pay the price difference, which can easily exceed several €100.

We found these cheap flights from Paris to the following cities:

All flights include meals and drinks, even if they don’t include luggage. Adding luggage makes the tickets €100 more expensive. You’ll fly to Montreal, either nonstop with Air Canada or via Frankfurt with Lufthansa. If you’re traveling to Toronto or Quebec, Air Canada will fly you there from Montreal.

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By the way, Canada is expected to reopen its borders for fully vaccinated Europeans on September 7:

Search & Book

This deal will remain valid until December 31, 2021. You can fly from September until the end of March (you won’t find any availability during Christmastime). Your trip has to be between 6 days (or a Sunday) and 3 months long.

You can find the cheapest dates on Google Flights, and then either book directly on Lufthansa’s website or via our Travel-Dealz flight search.

This is a Star Alliance fare that does not include check-in luggage. Additionally, some other disadvantages may apply, especially when flying with United:

Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian

Lufthansa Group airlines call this fare Economy Light. You can select your seats during the check-in process. While these airlines still allow Star-Alliance-Gold customers to bring one 23kg bag, it is said that this benefit will soon be eliminated without much warning.

United Airlines

The long-haul United Basic Economy allows Star-Alliance-Gold customers to fly with 2 x 23 kg luggage, or even 3 x 32 kg if you’re a MileagePlus frequent flyer. Nevertheless, there are other restrictions:

  • You cannot reserve your seats. Even at the time of check-in, you’ll be automatically assigned a seat, which you cannot change.
  • You’ll be the last one to board the plane (except if you’re a frequent flyer).
  • Additionally, if you’re a MileagePlus-customer:
    • No free Economy-Plus upgrades
    • Only 50% PQM instead of 100%, and only 0.5 PQS per flight
    • No modifications (e.g. Same Day-Changes) possible
    • Upgrades are not permitted
Air Canada

On flights with Air Canada, there is also a Basic Economy, but it is not quite as restrictive as United’s. If you have a Star-Alliance-Gold-Status, you can give up a 23 kg luggage, and Air-Canada-Altitude status holders can even be allowed up to 3 x 32 kg.

Other restrictions include:

  • You can reserve seats, but at a higher price than usual for Economy.
  • For Air Canada Altitude customers:
    • 25% miles for transatlantic flights, none for domestic.
    • Upgrades are not permitted.
    • From Prestige 25K onwards you can select your seats.

If you feel that these restrictions are unbearable, you should book over the airline’s website, such as Lufthansa.com, and select the rate that includes luggage for roughly €100 more.

Mileage

The tickets are issued in booking class K. To give you an example, the flights depicted in the screenshot above would get you:

  • 2,891 Miles on ANA Mileage Club
  • 1,893 Points on SAS EuroBonus
  • 1,838 Award Miles + 368 PQP on United MileagePlus
  • 1,838 CV Points on Vistara Club Vistara
  • 1,716 Miles on Aegean Miles+Bonus
  • 1,716 Miles on Copa ConnectMiles
  • 1,716 Miles on Thai Royal Orchid Plus
  • 1,716 Miles on TAP Miles&Go
  • 1,716 Miles on GOL Aéreos Smiles
  • 858 Award Miles on Air Canada Aeroplan
  • 858 Miles on Avianca LifeMiles
  • 858 Miles on EVA Infinity MileageLands
  • 858 Miles on Egyptair Plus
  • 858 Miles on Asiana Club
  • 858 Miles on Singapore KrisFlyer
  • 858 Miles on Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
  • 858 Award Miles on Azul TodoAzul
  • 858 Award Miles on Etihad Guest
  • 712 Award Miles + 140 Points on Miles&More
Data provided by miles.travel-dealz.com. Without guarantee on correctness.

United MileagePlus seems to be the best option to credit your flights.

Information & Tips for Canada

The North American country of Canada is the second largest country in the world in terms of surface area. In Canada, English and French are the official languages. Tourists visit Canada because of its many natural attractions and large cities, and the flight prices vary between the east and west coasts. Flights to the east coast e.g. to Toronto or Montreal regularly cost less than 400€. For flights to the west coast, e.g. to Vancouver or Calgary, prices are closer to 400€ – 600€. Other destinations are mostly only reachable with an additional domestic flight. Just like in the USA, most airlines now only offer cheap fares that do not include checked baggage. For checked baggage you should budget an additional 50€ per direction.

Best Time to Travel

Canada is a huge country with many varying climate conditions, but it is safe to say that the winters (November to March) are very cold and snowy in most regions. Summers are relatively mild and partly rainy.

Immigration & Visa Requirements

Most EU citizens do not need a visa for tourist stays of up to 6 months. However, an electronic travel waiver (eTA) must be applied for, similar to the ESTA required for entry into the USA. This costs CA$7 (~€5) and is valid for up to 5 years.

Currency

Canada’s national currency is the Canadian Dollar (CAD). One euro is approximately CA$1.46. Many credit cards may charge a foreign currency fee of up to 2% to pay in CAD.

Transfer from Canada to the USA

Canada is located north of the USA and is the only other country apart from Mexico that shares a border with it (2 borders, actually: Alaska borders Canada in the southeast!) At many airports in Canada US immigration is already done before departure, so you arrive in the USA as a “domestic” passenger in the domestic terminal which can potentially save you lots of time since you do not have to stand in line at customs upon arriving. By land the same entry formalities take place as at the airport or by train at the station in Canada. Most EU citizens don’t need a visa and can instead make use of the digital ESTA procedure.

Finding the Best eSIM Plan

We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Airalo and Maya Mobile. To see which plan is best for your travel needs, and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:

The Best eSIM Plans for Canada 🇨🇦 Compared

→ All Dealz for Canada

Cover Picture: Photo by Michael Descharles on Unsplash

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