@movernie
February 2023 is a truly a very special month for Porter Airlines (Porter) as they have reached a milestone by flying its planes out of Toronto Pearson International Airport (Toronto Pearson) for the company’s very first time. As some of you may have known that Porter began its business back in 2006 and has offered regional flights flying out of Billy Bishop Airport (Downtown Toronto). As time evolved, Porter offers more and more flights as I had travelled with Porter many times to destinations such as Montreal, Quebec, New York City, New York and Las Vegas, Nevada. Overall, I enjoyed the service and the convenience provided by Porter.
Fast forward to February 2023, Porter has purchased a number of bigger new jets called “Embraer E195-E2” which Porter claimed the new jet to be bigger, faster and more fuel efficient. On February 1, 2023, Porter had already had its inaugural flights from Toronto Pearson to Ottawa, Ontario and Montreal, Quebec. And on February 7, 2023, for the 1st time in Porter history that they have flights flying from Toronto Pearson to Vancouver, BC. I was part of that inaugural flight to Vancouver International Airport (YVR) and you can read it via my MoVernie BLOG here. And today, February 23, 2023, another history in the making for Porter as it has its inaugural flight flying from Toronto Pearson to Stanfield Halifax International Airport (YNZ).
FYI – Porter has been offering its customers flights from Toronto Billy Bishop to Stanfield Halifax International Airport (YNZ) for many years now. So, Porter is simply expanding its flight offerings by providing its customers the choice to fly in-and-out of Billy Bishop Airport (YTO) or Toronto Pearson Airport (YYZ). And that’s good news for everyone who is travelling and want more choices. Imagine you fly out from Toronto Pearson to Halifax. And on your return flight, you can fly from Halifax to Billy Bishop. You can mix & match your flight options with Porter.
A special thank you to Porter Airlines as they have invited me and my manager, aka MoKenny to board its inaugural flight from Toronto Pearson to Halifax, Nova Scotia. It’s a great honour to be invited to experience this route by Porter. Follow along our MoBros Press Trip as we are very excited to show you what Halifax, Nova Scotia has to offer.
In the later future, Porter Airlines hope to expand its routes to the U.S. and Mexico destinations. I look forward to those new routes.
Inaugural Flight FUN Facts:
– Porter Airlines first time having its flight flying from Toronto Pearson to Halifax Airport (they do and still offer smaller planes flying to Halifax from the Billy Bishop Airport (YTZ).
– This direct flight departs from Terminal 3 (Toronto Pearson)
– Departure Time: 10:30 PM ET (pretty much a red eye flight)
– Duration: 2 hrs & 7 mins
– Arrival Time: 1:35 AM AT (YHZ – Main Terminal)
– Porter purchased the new Embraer E195-E2 jets which is bigger, faster and more fuel efficient
– Porter now offers 2 categories of flight options: PorterReserve and PorterClassic
(You can click here to read up what’s included & excluded for each category).
Here is a breakdown of my inaugural flight experience with Porter Airlines (Toronto Pearson to Halifax Airport):
Taking UP Express from Union Station to Terminal 3 – Toronto Pearson
Since I live in Downtown Toronto, I have decided to take the UP Express Train at Union Station. As a Presto user, you get discount where the UP Express is $9.20 CDN including tax per one-way and it comes every 15 or 30 minute interval, depending on the time of the day (so be sure to check the UP Express schedule for its latest updates). If you are not a Presto user, a regular adult one-way will be $12.35 CDN including tax, which is still pretty good price. It takes about 25 minutes from Union Station to Toronto Pearson Terminal 1.
Inside the UP Express train, I could see Porter advertisements everywhere along the entire train. They were advertising the various inaugural flights, free WIFI plus its new hashtag #ActuallyEnjoyEconomy.
Since this inaugural flight to Halifax is a red-eye flight, I took this UP Express at around 8:30 PM, I just always preferred to get through the security and all the processes ahead of time so I can relax and just chill inside the airport. Since it’s a late train ride, there were plenty of seats and I could sit anywhere and as there weren’t many passengers during this time, which was great!
Departure Counter – Terminal 3 (Toronto Pearson)
Since I need to get to Terminal 3 at Toronto Pearson, I took a complimentary short shuttle train ride from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3. Then I took an escalator down to the Departure area. To my surprise, Porter got a prime time counter location. The counters were literally located near the escalator where I took the short shuttle train ride and it’s at the middle section of the entire terminal.
I also noticed all the big Porter advertisements being shown all around Terminal 3.
At the Porter check-in section, you could see the friendly staff were waiting to greet and assist its customers. There was a special PorterReserve line. There was a line dedicated only for check-in if some passengers prefer to check-in with a real human being or as they need to drop off their checked luggage. You can always check-in online via its website. And if you don’t want to deal with the real human being, there were a number of kiosks available for you to self check-in, so you got options. I noticed some friendly staff guided the passengers where to drop off their luggage.
MoVernie SUGGESTION: MoKenny and I noticed that there is no Porter Airlines app for our Smartphones. We do wish in the near future that Porter can provide its customers with an app, as it’s so much more efficient, informative and functional.
Porter had provided me and MoKenny the PorterReserve seats as they would like us to share our experience with our followers. So…as a PorterReserve customer, we are allowed to bring the following items:
PorterReserve: Baggage & Boarding
– 1 personal item
– 1 carry-on
– 2 complimentary checked luggage (3rd one will be extra for a fee)
Since we are flying to Halifax for less than a week and it’s only a 2 hour flight, we really don’t need to check in any bags, especially we don’t want to wait for any luggage to come out of the convey belt as it’s very time consuming. So, we just decided to each bring a personal item and a carry-on. So pretty much, we didn’t really have to go to the counter as I have already checked-in online with an electronic boarding pass that we received via our emails and we downloaded the tix to our Smartphones.
Flying from a Canadian city to another Canadian city is considered as a domestic flight so no passport was required. Instead, a Canadian government issued document such as a driver’s license or health card will be sufficed. I used my driver’s license getting pass the security control and it was fine. Then, I used my health card to board on the Porter flight and it was fine. So, it’s tried, tested & true!
At the Gate: B27
Since this was Porter’s inaugural flight, there was a special celebration at gate B27. The friendly Porter staff came to the gate about an hour before departure to setup everything.
Passengers who were on this inaugural flight got a chance to choose a key from the key rack and test their luck to try to unlock the mini suitcase for a chance to win a pair of flight tix with a choice of the destination where Porter will fly to. We tried our luck but no dice. Eventually, a lucky winner won the flight tix. Congrats! I wonder which destination she is going to choose that Porter flies to.
Furthermore, hot beverages such as coffee and tea were served, along with Porter famous shortbread cookies. They were super delicious. What a great way to start the journey!
The racoon swizzle stix were super cute. So cute that I decided to keep them after use. They were too cute for the garbage can.
MoVernie FUN FACT: Raccoon (aka Mr. Porter) is Porter Airlines mascot and logo. You will see this familiar face on newsletters, on the plane and on all parts of various advertisements.
Then, it’s time to lineup and board the new plane. For some reason, there was a 10 minute wait at the tunnel before we were allowed to board the plane, nevertheless, it was all good as we were all excited to board the inaugural flight.
Prior to boarding, at the counter when the staff checked our boarding passes and documents, we were handed with an envelope. Inside each envelope was a “Congratulations Letter” thanking us for our support and for flying Porter’s inaugural flight. Moreover, a $150 CDN travel voucher was in the envelope. It said that we can book any future Porter flight with the voucher until March 1, 2024 (that’s a good for one year before it expires). Furthermore, there was a little key chain showing the date of this inaugural flight to Halifax. Thank you to Porter for this lovely gift package.
Our PorterReserve Experience
Since MoKenny and I are flying with the PorterReserve experience, one of the perks that we really like was the priority boarding. We were the 1st people (other than the Porter flying crew) to board the new Embraer E195-E2 jet.
As we entered the entrance of the new jet, we were greeted by a friendly flight attendant. We were sitting Row 1. I got the window seat and MoKenny got the aisle seat. Of course, as one of the major selling point in all of Porter’s advertisements, there were no middle seats for the entire plane. Who wants to sit in the middle seat anyways?
PorterReserve: We are seating in Row 1!
I think this was the 1st time in my life that I was sitting in row 1 of a plane! Thank you Porter for my 1st time, bucket list fulfilled!
Here are some of the observations and experiences of us sitting with PorterReserve seating in row 1:
– we realized there are no seats in front of us as we were sitting on row 1. So, the good thing was…no one is going to recline their seats backwards as it would be quite unplasant when translate to less space for me and my tray will be tilted. Instead, there were seat pockets that we can put our smartphones, chewing gum, other goodies in it. In the seat pockets, we saw a “Re:Porter” magazine, jet layout card, instruction menu, WIFI instruction menu, etc.
– there were plenty more leg room sitting at PorterReserve seats (36″) as compared to PorterClassic (30″), we could stretch our feet and relax
– You can only get PorterReserve from Row 1 to Row 4. If you are PorterClassic but is willing to pay extra for more leg room, you could opt for PorterClassic Stretch seats (34″) that are available from Row 5-7 and exit rows on Row 13-14.
– Trays were located on the left side of our respective seats, it’s very easy to pull it out and form a tray
– Unlike other normal seating setup, we can’t put our personal item underneath the seats as there were no seats in front of us to place our personal items with, we can’t put our items underneath our seats either as there were some equipment blocking it. So, we had to place our personal items on the upper cabin space.
– We do find that upper cabin space for carry-on for row 1 are slightly shifted back, so of the space were occupied by those a bag filled with Porter emergency demo. So, if it’s filled with a full flight of PorterReserve, we may have slight issue trying to get upper cabin space with other PorterReserve passengers, but nevertheless, I am sure we will figure something out if space becomes an issue, but durign this flight, we were able to put our carry-ons and personal item on it.
– When sitting so close to the entrance door, that also means cold air from outside are flowing in so MoKenny and I had to wear our winter jacket until the plane got heat and when the door was closed for takeoff
– It was cool that from our window, we could see the controller moving the tarp away from the plane when ready to take off
– Of course, the flight attendant serves us with beverage and snack first from row 1
– Our respective power outlet were located underneath our seat in the central location. If you are seating with the PorterClassic, the power outlets will be located at the seat located in front of you.
For more INFO on the various Porter seating options and their differences, please click here.
On the New Embraer E195-E2 Jet:
First thing that I noticed about this new Embraer E195-E2 jet was how much longer this plane was as compared to the smaller propeller Porter planes flying out of Billy Bishop. This new jet doesn’t uses propeller but instead, it uses big turbine engines located on both sides of the wing.
However, this plane was not wide, it’s quite similar to the width as the propeller planes that Porter uses to fly out of Billy Bishop. It feels like the same propeller planes only twice the length. The layout was 2×2 configuration, where there were no middle seats, with the window/aisle combination.
I luv the fresh smell of the new plane. The seats smelled fresh. In fact, everything smelled amazing! There were overhead cabins to put in the carry-on. Each seat had a headrest with a Porter logo on it. Each passenger had its own light and fan which I like. In many other airlines, I hate it when all the ventilation and lights were located in one seat location relying the fan to be strong enough to blow some air con to my face from afar, I don’t like that. Kudos to Porter having each individual ventilation. I had my own control and ventilation separate from the other passenger’s control system. I guess the big drawback was the lack of TV screen on each individual seat and rely solely on your own laptops or smartphones for the complimentary in-flight entertainment. But for a short 2-hour flight from Toronto to Halifax, I am ok as I prefer to do my social media posts using Porter’s free WIFI instead.
Porter Perks on These Flights:
– Complimentary WIFI + In-Flight Entertainment
– Complimentary Beer/Wine/Non-alcoholic beverages with glassware (not many airlines offer glassware)
– Complimentary Snacks
– Complimentary Meal (PorterReserve if the flight is 2.5+ hour or longer, in our case, since our flight to Halifax was only approximately 2 hours, we didn’t get our complimentary meals)
– Meal for purchase (PorterClassic)
– No Middle Seat (2×2 window/aisle layout)
So…one thing I would like to note was that….prior to boarding on this inaugural flight, I was super excited to try its premium liquor as it’s pointed out on Porter’s website that PorterReserve passengers get complimentary premium liquor which PorterClassic only gets free beer/wine, which is still amazing! But when I asked what type of premium liquor I could choose, the flight attendant informed us that this short flight didn’t have that. So, we settled for the complimentary beer.
Although we didn’t pay for this Porter flight as it’s a media trip, I would think a regular paying passenger maybe disappointed to learn that they are not being served with premium liquor. I would suggest Porter could put an asterisk on its website that premium liquor are only being served on longer flights. That way, the paying customers will know that premium liquor is NOT being served on the shorter flights.
During this short 2-hour inaugural flight from Toronto Pearson to Stanfield Halifax, we were served with snacks that we could choose from a basket, followed by complimentary beverages that we chose Steamwhistle beer. For those who wants the complimentary wine, they were white or red from Jackson Triggs, which are well-known Canadian wines.
The flight was overall steady and calm with slight turbulence but that was to be expected. The plane sounded relatively quiet throughout the entire journey.
There were 2 washrooms on the plane, with one washroom at the very front of the plane near the entrance. And the 2nd washroom was located at the back of the plane. Both washrooms were typically small size but did its job with the toilet seat, garbage can, sink with soap. Nevertheless, the washroom was clean, modern and bright.
After approximately a 2-hour flight, we had landed safely at Stanfield Halifax International Airport (YNZ). Our plane pulled up to the airport terminal at around 1:35 AM Atlantic Time. Yup! This was a red-eye flight.
It didn’t take long before we got off the plane especially we were sitting in the 1st row. The airport was pretty much empty as stores were closed by then. After a short walk, we were already at the main lobby of the airport.
At the Stanfield Halifax International Airport (YHZ):
So, I asked myself, “Why did Porter offers a flight from Toronto Pearson that departs at 10:30 PM ET and landing in the middle of the night in Halifax at 1:35 AM AT? That’s odd isn’t it?” I try to make some sense out of this schedule. Well…as I mentioned earlier in this MoVernie BLOG, Porter has always offered to fly to Halifax from its downtown Toronto Billy Bishop Airport, there are many flight options throughout each day flying from morning to noon to afternoon and early evening. There is no point to duplicate the same departure time if Porter already offer those options at Billy Bishop daily. Instead, Porter possibly decided that if someone finishes a business meeting or a dinner in the evening, they can still board on this late flight departing at 10:30 PM ET. Porter is definitely filling the void and providing more flight options that fits different people travel lifestyles and needs.
MoVernie TIP: Since we arrived at the Halifax Airport at wee hours, although Uber service was available in Halifax, there was a massive surge charge. When I said massive, it was massively expensive. The most expensive surge charge I had ever seen in my life! I guess most passengers from this flight all wanted to order Uber initially, so it drove the Uber cost up since it’s based on supply & demand. The cost went from about $55 CDN (we checked when we were landed and was still in the plane), but as we walked to the Taxi/Bus area in the airport lobby, the surge charge pricing of Uber went off the roof to $111 CDN and tops as high as $223 CDN, crazy eh? I have never seen such expensive pricing for an Uber in my life! So, MoKenny and I decided to wait a bit to see if the Uber price will drop down. After 15 mins, there were no Uber rides being available at all.
So, what’s the solution? We walked up to the staff at the Taxi booth and she didn’t ask us our names or how many people, instead, she said, “You are #8”. We were a bit skeptical at first on how the system works. Anyhow, we saw more people requesting for a taxi ride, soon, the list went up to #19. After 15 minutes wait, the lady came out of the booth and asked everyone what # they were given (now, as Canadians, we are polite and honest, everyone stick to their assigned #). The lady asked everyone’s # and order and where they were heading and how many people in the group. At the end, she paired everyone up that were going in the same direction coz there weren’t enough taxi to pick passengers up individually. We ended up assigned to travel with a young couple. 4 of us sat in the taxi and off we went to downtown Halifax and it took about 30 minutes to get there.
The taxi driver charged each person for $21.00 CDN, which was thankfully super reasonable, especially we were pretty much have not much options in the middle of the night. We checked that normally, it’s about $72 CDN taxi flat rate ride from downtown Halifax to the airport. But hey, it’s still cheaper than the surging Uber pricing and in the middle of the night while it was snowing hard, we were just glad we got a taxi ride to check-in our hotel.
MoVernie TIP: If Uber pricing is expensive and unattainable, make sure to go to the taxi booth and request for a taxi. Tell the staff how many of you and where you are heading and just to be safe, ask how much is the taxi ride so you have an idea whether it’s an acceptable pricing or not. Don’t jump into a taxi without knowing how much they are going to charge you. Another alternative is to pre-book a limo or taxi ahead via phone or online. I later realized there are such services in Halifax.
Anyhow, I think this is also a consideration you have to consider if you plan to take this Porter flight in the near future as it departs from Toronto Pearson at 10:30 PM ET, it arrives in Halifax in the middle of the night so there maybe limited taxi available and the pricing of Uber is higher. Normally, we checked the Uber, it’s normally around $55 CDN in the morning, during the day and in the evening. It’s just super expensive and hardly available during wee hours.
MoVernie Final Verdict:
I have always liked Porter Airlines ever since they entered the air travel industry since day 1. I enjoyed the lounge at Billy Bishop as they offer complimentary snacks and coffee back in the good ol days. I luv the convenience of just taking a short streetcar ride or its Porter free shuttle bus from Union Station to Billy Bishop. I appreciate the shorter lineup at the security check, less wait time at the custom check, and how short walking distance to get to the gate.
I luv how Porter is mostly always on time and its excellent service they provide for each passenger. They have always offered complimentary free beer/wine/non-alcoholic beverages and free snacks and I am glad they continue with this tradition. I still remember Porter was the 1st airline that offered root chips and that’s how I know about root chips and felt in luv with how tasty they were.
Overall, I am happy for Porter on its expansion to offer new destinations and new flights flying in-and-out of Toronto Pearson. I think it’s a win-win for passengers who now have 2 options of deciding where they want to fly in-and-out of Toronto, whether via Billy Bishop (Downtown Toronto) or via Toronto Pearson (Mississauga).
I enjoyed the inaugural flight from Toronto Pearson (YYZ) to Halifax Stanfield Airport (YHZ). Porter Airlines have definitely provide another excellent option for passengers who wants to fly to Halifax from Toronto Pearson with its bigger and more fuel efficient planes.
Moreover, the prices are super competitive as compared to other airlines. Porter has elevated the “Economy Class” flying experience with its many complimentary perks. In the past, I know many passengers chose Porter mainly for its business trips. But now with more destinations and flight options that Porter offers, it is also a great option for family trips and personal leisure trips.
I do, however, would prefer to take Porter from Billy Bishop as I live in Downtown Toronto, so it’s quicker for me to get to Billy Bishop and it takes less travel time for me to get to Billy Bishop. However, I will definitely consider flying with Porter on flights that are only being offered at Toronto Pearson.
Porter is now pushing the envelope, disrupting the air travel industry in a good way, forcing other airlines to take notice. Porter has elevated their services while offering competitive pricings.
In summary, it’s a win-win situation for customers!
Congratulations to Porter Airlines and I hope to fly with Porter in the near future to new destinations, perhaps somewhere outside of Canada on its new planes flying out of Toronto Pearson again!
I highly recommend you to give Porter Airlines a try and experience for yourself!
Now let me enjoy my visit in Halifax, NS. When people often talks about from coast-to-coast, I think I have finally able to experience the true meaning of coast-to-coast with Porter (from Vancouver to Toronto and from Toronto to Halifax in a span of just a few weeks). MoKenny and I are looking forward to check out what Halifax has to offer. Discover Halifax has already provided us with media passes to sightsee this city and we can’t wait!
I will be flying back from Halifax to Toronto in a few days with Porter once more. So stay tuned for my other MoVernie BLOG on my travel experience on my return flight!
Porter Airlines:
Website
Hubs: Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport & Toronto Pearson International Airport
Founded: February 2, 2006, Toronto, Canada
The inaugural return flight experience was provided by Porter Airlines. However, as always, the opinions expressed in this post is entirely my own.
