Business Class sale from Canada to Europe, but is it GOOD?
We get a ton of requests through our Travel Booking Service about how to book cheap business class travel tickets, because after all, the name of our blog IS No Mas Coach! But, just because you found a good price, does it really mean it’s a good deal?
Let’s take a look at two fare sales currently from Canada to Europe.
Pan Am “Sleeperette” seating with miles of leg room
Vancouver to London, $1598
Air Transat is currently offering seats in their Club Class, RT for only $1598. Business Class to Europe for under $1600? That’s a hell of a deal, right?
Air Transat Business Class Options
Well, not so fast. Thinking you’re gonna get a flat bed across the Atlantic? Think again. Here’s a picture for the club class they offer.
Air Transat Club Class
A glorified domestic first class seat with little to no pitch and not a lot of legroom. But hey, at least there is a six-way headrest! From their own website, the seats offer:
- Larger, more comfortable seats
- A six-way headrest
- More legroom
But, “larger” and “more” than what… economy? Because that’s not a huge improvement. While $1598 is a fantastic deal in business class, make sure you’re comparing apples to apples.
Toronto to Europe, $1400+
There are also some killer deals heading out of Toronto to all points Western Europe for around $1,500. The catch? It’s on Azores Airlines! From their own website, the benefits are:
Consideration
PLUS offers greater consideration: a service directly managed and supervised by our Heads of Cabin Crew in order to guarantee excellent service and attention to detail;More room (pitch)
Executive Class seating positions have an average distance between rows of 47cm (18,5in) in Airbus A310 aircraft and 33cm (13in) (in Airbus A320 aircraft, providing passengers with greater comfort and relaxation;Menus Prepared by Chef Chakall
In outgoing flights from Portugal, executive class meals will be prepared by the renowned chef Chakall. These are meals specifically designed for SATA Executive Class flights, combining typical ingredients from the Azores and Madeira with international and contemporary cuisine to provide a unique sensorial experience. Meals are served in modern chinaware of contemporary design;Selected Wines
Wines are provided free of charge to Executive Class passengers, in 75 ml bottles, with a wine list specially selected to accompany the meal being served;Amenity Kits
Long-distance passengers will be provided with an amenity kit containing products to ensure an enjoyable and more comfortable trip;Comfort
For greater comfort on board, passengers have at their disposal a pillow and a soft wool blanket;Free Newspapers and Magazines
SATA PLUS passengers will be provided with the latest newspapers and magazines.
So you get your own flight attendant, pretty decent leg room, and wine out of an actual bottle! We’ll even get a pillow and blanket. Bonus!
Here’s one of the photos that I found from airliners.net
Azores (Sata) Long Haul “Business”, from airliners.net
This doesn’t look like a service that I would be willing to pay an extra $800-1,000 to receive.
Wrapping Up
So yes, there are lots of great deals out there, and trust me, you can get some good ones. But just like you can’t judge a book by it’s cover, don’t always assume that a good deal is one that is going to benefit you. If you’re going to use some of those hard earned two weeks that we talked about last week, and you’re going to pay a premium, make sure that you’re actually GETTING a premium.
