The Longest Flights from Canada
“The world has become closer than ever before - there are now 30 flights from Canada that are over 10,000km!”
The world has become a lot closer to Canada over the last 10 years. From Canada you can fly to every (inhabited) continent. From Vancouver there are 118 weekly direct flights to Hong Kong and China. Toronto has direct flights to places like Bucharest, Addis Ababa, Ponta Delgada and Kiev to name a few. As an aviation enthusiast I decided to break down the longest flights from Canada and how to fly them using points.
Update April 2020: Many routes are currently on pause during COVID-19. I will fully update this article in the Summer 2020 when airlines start to cut long haul routes. As of April 14th, YYZ to MNL, YYZ to PEK, YYZ to NRT, YYZ to TPE, YVR to MNL, YVR to CAN, YUL to DOH have been operating, although at less frequent then before.
Why did I do this? Well, questions like “What’s the longest flight from Toronto?” and “What’s the longest Air Canada flight?” are frequent. I compiled answers from those questions here (The answers are Manilla and Vancouver to Melbourne FYI!).
The Longest Flights (over 10,000km) from Canada (DistantPoints - June 2019)
The longest flights mostly operate from Toronto and Vancouver. This list consists of flights over 10,000 kilometres (about 13 hours of travel time). As you can see, they’re mostly flights to Asia and the Middle East, along with a few flights to Australia and New Zealand.
Almost all of the longest flights from Canada are from Toronto and Vancouver
I’m fascinated by the economics of these long flights - I’m shocked that some of these flights are able to make money. That being said, out of the flights on this list I’ve been on a few of them (in economy) over the years: TPE-YYZ, CAN-YYZ, ADD-YYZ and HKG-YYZ. I’m planning to try a few more of these in the future, therefore, I’ve compiled an in-depth look at the seven longest flights from Canada as well as the longest flight from Montreal and Calgary.
Toronto (YYZ) to Manilla (MNL) - Philippine Airlines
The longest flights from Canada cater to Canada’s 850K Filipino population. These flights are rated highly by some bloggers (Business and Economy), but they are inaccessible with miles. I have rarely seen deals on this flight in economy, even when connecting to other cities.
Availability with Canadian Miles: None
Distance: 13,230km
Flight Time: 16:20hrs
Airline Alliance: None
Vancouver (YVR) to Melbourne (MEL) - Air Canada
Taxes to Melbourne are EXPENSIVE
Vancouver (YVR) to Melbourne (MEL) - The longest flight from Vancouver and the longest flight operated by a Canadian airline is so long that you arrive at your destination two days later! You can find flights using Aeroplan, but personally I used United Mileage plan to show me a map of the whole month. There isn’t a lot of premium availability, but there is generally a few seats available each time in economy.
The taxes are much cheaper from Australia
As you can see - taxes are expensive. My advice is to fly back to Canada using this flight because it’s much less expensive if you fly one-way from Australia as they regulate carrier surcharges there. (Check out Prince of Travel’s fantastic surcharge resource here)
Airline: Air Canada
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan
Distance: 13,183km
Flight Time: 16:15hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance
Flight Point Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 45K/80K with Aeroplan
Toronto (YYZ) - Hong Kong (HKG) - Air Canada and Cathay Pacific
Flown frequently by Air Canada and Cathay Pacific, this flight serves not only the large Cantonese diaspora in Toronto but as a useful connection point to travel through Asia. This flight can be booked by a variety of different methods (as shown), but Alaska miles on Cathay Pacific is by far the best deal at only 50K for a one-way flight (You can book a stop-over and continue on to Australia/South Africa). For more info on booking with Alaska miles check out Prince of Travel’s post here.
Business class flights are double the points with Avios
Airline: Air Canada/Cathay Pacific
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan/Alaska, Avios, Asia Miles, AAvantage
Distance: 12,569km
Flight Time: 15:35hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance/One World
Flight Point Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 37.5K/75K with Aeroplan on AC or 36K/108K Avios, 30K/50K Alaska, 35K/70K American, 42K/85K Asia Miles on Cathay Pacific
Asia Miles charge less miles with the same taxes.
Toronto (YYZ) - Mumbai (BOM) - Air Canada
This seasonal flight (4x weekly starting in October) takes you from Hollywood North to Bollywood in 15 hours. I’m not going to spend much time on this one - not only is there not much space on this popular leisure route, the taxes are exorbitant on these flights.
Mumbai to Toronto Aeroplan Taxes (Economy)
Mumbai to Toronto Aeroplan Taxes (Business)
One might be better off saving some money by flying Ethiopian - I highly recommend picking up some coffee there if you do! You include these flights as part of a mini around the world like my parents did.
Ethiopian only charges 28 dollars in tax for the same flight via ADD
Airline: Air Canada
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan
Distance: 12,513km
Flight Time: 14:55hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance
Flight Point Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 50K/75K with Aeroplan on AC
Vancouver (YVR) - Sydney (SYD) - Air Canada/Qantas
The second Canadian flight to Australia, this flight is popular with leisure travellers both ways and it can be tough to find award availability. Qantas isn’t known to release a lot of availability on this flight and most AC availability is booked up quickly. Personally, if you’re looking to get to Australia I would fly through Asia.
Airline: Air Canada/Qantas (Seasonal)
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan/Alaska, Avios, Asia Miles, AAvantage
Distance: 12,484km
Flight Time: 15:35hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance, One World
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 45K/80K with Aeroplan on AC or 36K/108K Avios, 42.5K/55K Alaska, 40K/80K American
Toronto (YYZ) - Guangzhou (CAN) - China Southern
This flight directly into the heart of the Pearl River Delta, the largest urban area in the world, is flown on China Southern. I’ve flown this route before in Economy on my way to Ho Chi Minh City, and while the service isn’t amazing, it’s one of the cheapest ways (by cash) to get to South-East Asia, with fares from Toronto frequently around $600 roundtrip to cities like Bangkok, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. If I was looking for a cheap ticket to Asia, I wouldn’t hesitate to fly China Southern again.
Airline: China Southern (5x Weekly)
Availability with Canadian Miles: American AAdvantage
Distance: 12,462km
Flight Time: 15:40hrs
Airline Alliance: (None)
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 35K/70K American
Toronto (YYZ) - Taipei (TPE) - Eva Air
Another long flight from Canada that I’ve taken, this flight is a fantastic option for connecting to SE Asia on Aeroplan points. It leaves Toronto at 12:45am so you’re able to get on the flight and get right to sleep. The flight back to Canada is also timed well, it leaves and arrives in the evening, so if you can’t sleep on the flight you go right to bed when you get into Toronto, or you can still make the last flight out of Toronto to cities further East. The best part of this flight? Flights on Eva have no additional taxes on Aeroplan and they release their flights well in advance. If you're looking for a last minute booking, Eva releases remaining seats within a few days of departure.
A very cheap flight on a top product!
Airline: Eva Airways (Daily)
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan
Distance: 12,462km
Flight Time: 13:50hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 37.5K/75K with Aeroplan on AC
Montreal (YUL) to Shanghai (PVG) - Air Canada
Lot’s of cheap direct availability between Montreal and Shanghai
Launched in 2017, these daily year round flights are the longest from YUL and the 13th longest from Canada. Unfortunately, they are subject to high taxes on Aeroplan award redemptions. If you’re looking to fly this flight, you can frequently find great deals in economy for less than $800 roundtrip!
Airline: Air Canada (Daily)
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan
Distance: 11,367km
Flight Time: 14:10hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 37.5K/75K with Aeroplan on AC
Montreal (YUL) to Beijing (PEK) - Air China
The 24th longest flight to serve Canada (and Montreal’s second longest flight) is Air China’s direct flight to Beijing. Interesting to note - this flight continues on to Havana 3 days a week, and is one of the only ways to get to Havana in a lie-flat seat. Although this used to be a cheap choice to get to Asia on points, Aeroplan recently started charging a surcharge on Air China flights.
Not exactly “fee-free” anymore!
At this point, I would probably consider flying via Zurich on Swiss instead as it’s a better product, much cheaper and I think it’s better timed for some rest. My parents loved this flight on their mini around the world trip this past winter.
Airline: Air China (5X Weekly - continues to Havana 3X weekly)
Availability with Canadian Miles: Aeroplan
Distance: 10,473km
Flight Time: 13:55hrs
Airline Alliance: Star Alliance
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 37.5K/75K with Aeroplan on AC
Calgary (YYC) - Beijing (PEK) - Hainan Airlines
A great deal in Business Class
Note: As of April 2020, this flight has been cancelled. It was supposed to return in March 2020, but COVID-19 has upended the industry. Hainan is still running flights to Toronto, bookable the same way as the Calgary flights. The longest flight from Calgary is on the 5-star Hainan Airlines to Beijing. Although I haven’t flown on this airline, they are generally considered the best Chinese airline. This flight is only 50K Alaska miles in business and with the Alaska program you are able to get a free stopover in Beijing and then continue on to SE Asia destinations such as Bangkok and Phuket.
Airline: Hainan Airlines (2-3 weekly)
Availability with Canadian Miles: Alaska Airlines
Distance: 8,772km
Flight Time: 11:40hrs
Airline Alliance: (None)
Flight Cost (One Way Economy/Business) - 30K/50K
Bottom line: The Canadian airline market is thriving, with more destinations then ever from Canada, which long-haul flights will be next?
If you have any questions, comments, or find any mistakes don’t hesitate to contact me! (Updated: November 2019)
