On this page we attempt to make available the experience of individual bicycle tourists who have travelled with Canadian Airlines (you can share your experiences here).
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Update on Canadian airlines
Zoom Airlines went out several years ago, leaving me out $1200. Air Transat still takes bikes but charges $30 per leg of trip. Turn handlebar, remove pedals and remove air from tires. They provide a heavy duty plastic bag with the $30 fee. Remember to chock front wheels straight to frame to prevent damage.
stokell, January 21, 2010Canadian Airline updates
I observed that the list for bike friendly airlines is still listing Canadian Airlines. They merged with Air Canada several years ago.
Two other Canadian airlines that accept bikes are:
AirTransat - in a bag or box with tires flattened and bars and pedals reversed. No charge as sporting equipment
Zoom Airlines- in a bag or box with tires flattened and bars and pedals reversed. No charge as sporting equipment
Canadian Airlines
I understood that the OCA (Ontario Cycling Association) had an arrangement with Canadian Airlines (not Air Canada) on certain classes of flights booked through a specific travel agency. Has this changed or did the writer mean Canadian? Can anyone enlighten me?My apologies. I DID mean Canadian Airlines. And a good thing too (for me at least), since Air Canada pilots are now on strike. The deal is that OCA members can fly their bikes free of charge on ALL Canadian Airlines flights. The ad in OCA's summer '98 newlsetter says to call American Express Travel to take advantage of this benefit, but I'm not sure if that's necessary. At the airport check-in, they tell you there's a charge for carrying the bike. If you tell them you're an OCA member, they ask for your membership card. End result: the bike flies for free.
Steve Cochrane
Spirit Compass Music
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
http://www.globalserve.net/~spiritcompass
Canadian Airlines
Trip 1: 1993 - Heathrow (UK) - Vancouver (BC) Calgary (Alberta) - Heathrow (UK)
Canadian Airlines
Bike boxed up & well padded, having no faith in the baggage handlers. Although it was not specified the bike had to be boxed, I'm sure it was worth the extra bit of effort involved. Panniers were the second piece of luggage and no problems were encountered, check-in operators very helpful. On the way back, finding a box in Calgary and then transporting it back to the airport was interesting, I was told there were no boxes at the airport. A very generous taxi driver spotted me struggling with this big box and took me to the airport for nothing.
Canadian Airlines
I recently (March 15, 1997) traveled to Cuba with my bicycle via Canadian Airlines. I arrived at Toronto airport with the bike boxed and with my panniers separate. Canadian provided a heavy plastic bag for the panniers, and they went as one piece of baggage. The second piece of baggage was, of course, the bike. There was no additional charge. Canadian Airlines are the best at transporting bikes!
Coming back from Santiago de Cuba was not quite so simple; then nothing is in Cuba! They were not able to provide me with either a plastic bag or a box for the bike, but it survived the journey in one piece. Again, there was no charge. Brian_Hedney Voice mail: 905-885-3217 x253 My homepage is located at: http://www.eagle.ca/~hedneyb TRINITY COLLEGE SCHOOL