Air Canada Opens Rail + Air Connections Throughout Europe
Customers of Air Canada can now plan their flights to France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, as well as their subsequent rail travel, on a single ticket, making travel easier and providing covering for missed connections.
Travelers can check in before they depart from Toronto (YYZ) or Montréal (YUL) for both their flight to Europe and their subsequent rail journey thanks to Air Canada’s new intermodal booking service.
Countries in Europe
When passengers get to Europe, they don’t need to buy extra tickets at the train station to connect to the national rail systems of France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Both their train and flight tickets will be rescheduled in the event of a delay or disruption in their travel.
According to Air Canada, their air-to-rail service not only makes travel easier, but it also assists passengers in selecting trains for the shorter segments of their trip, resulting in a more environmentally friendly journey.
“As a leading global airline, Air Canada excels at flying, but we also know intermodal connections can enrich the travel experience through added convenience and by promoting sustainability,” said Mark Galardo, Executive Vice President of Revenue and Network Planning at Air Canada
“In offering easy onward airport connections with the national rail systems in France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, we are creating intermodal hubs and opening the door for customers to reach stations at major cities and popular destinations throughout these countries,” he added.
The passenger rail division of the French national rail operator, SNCF Voyageurs, allows passengers arriving in Paris by plane to schedule subsequent train trips from Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG). They can travel to 22 high-speed rail locations in France, such as Bordeaux, Marseille, Nantes, and Strasbourg, thanks to the codeshare scheme.
With 38 weekly departures from Montréal in January and 28 from Toronto, Paris is one of Air Canada’s most popular destinations.
Through the Express Rail program of Lufthansa, a fellow Star Alliance member, and Deutsche Bahn, Air Canada is collaborating in Germany to provide intermodal connections from Frankfurt Airport (FRA), where the Canadian airline lands more than 80 planes each week.
Travelers may reach 24 stations in Germany from Frankfurt. Additionally, they can access an additional 5,600 rail stations around Germany by using Deutsche Bahn’s Rail and Fly service out of the airports in Frankfurt and Munich (MUC). Next year, Air Canada plans to start codesharing with Deutsche Bahn.
Passengers arriving at Zurich (ZRH) and Geneva (GVA) on Air Canada can instantly connect to trains operated by the Swiss Federal Railways to reach 11 stations across the country, including Basel and Lucerne. Every week, Air Canada offers 19 flights from Montréal to Geneva and 29 flights from Toronto to Zurich.
Travelers on any of Air Canada’s 19 weekly flights to Vienna (VIE) can easily link to ÖBB services to reach nine Austrian train stations, such as Salzburg, Linz, and Innsbruck.
Back to full capacity
As Air Canada prepares to run 100% of its transatlantic capacity in 2019 for the first time since the pandemic next summer, the new air-to-rail service is being launched. By summer of next year, the airline will have 53 trips to 31 locations in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and India. Out of all North American airports, Toronto and Montréal will provide the third and fifth most transatlantic tickets, respectively.
There are other airlines that assist travelers in easily connecting to further travel throughout Europe than Air Canada. United Airlines, a fellow Star Alliance member, and Deutsche Bahn have teamed up to provide Frankfurt Airport single ticket connections to rail. Customers of United will receive MileagePlus frequent flight miles for their rail travel as well.
In the meantime, Air France is growing its long-running Train + Air service, which for over 30 years has allowed customers to reserve train travel to and from Parisian airports on a single ticket. From Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG) and Paris-Orly Airport (ORY), eight new flights are now accessible, with Arras, Laval, Lille Flanders, and Perpignan among the new destinations.