SkyTeam member ITA Airways has put a decent price tag on business class tickets from major Spanish cities Barcelona and Madrid to their newest destination, Toronto, selling tickets for €1,347. They require a short layover in Rome and therefore a slight detour each way. Availability starts in May 2024. While priority services and lounge access are included in this fare, many SkyTeam members don’t credit ITA tickets.
Our availability calendar highlights all possible flight dates at the lowest price for trips up to 28 days. It will forward you to ITA Airways’ website with your preselected flight dates. You can also check what OTAs have to offer, as they sell these tickets up to €60 cheaper.
ITA Airways deploys Airbus A330-900neo aircraft on the long haul flights between Rome and Toronto. These feature state of the art lie-flat-seats in a 1-2-1 pattern.
With departure from Spain, ITA Airways also has decent business class fares to both New York and Miami:
Search & Book
According to the fare rules, these tickets are available for trips between May and October 2024. There is no minimum stay. We cannot tell you when this fare is going to expire.
Google Flights will show you additional flight dates. We recommend buying tickets in ITA Airways’ website.
Why is booking with an airline better than with an online travel agency?
More often than not, online travel agencies offer lower fares than airlines do. We still recommend booking with the airlines directly. There are two main reasons for that:
Better Customer Service
In case any problems like delays, cancellations or missed connections arise, you can communicate directly with the airline. The airline has to take care of you because you have a contract with them.
If a travel agency issues your ticket, you may have to reach out to them first. You also depend on your OTA to forward information like flight changes instead of receiving them directly from the airline. In many cases, you may get a prime exhibition of responsibility shifting rather than problem-solving.
This especially applies to premium tickets. You don’t want to spend more than €1,000 to wind up with some budget OTA’s telephone hotline in case anything goes wrong.
Baggage and Other Fees
Economy fares not including hold luggage are industry standard by now. In most cases, travel agencies charge much higher baggage fees than the airlines themselves. If bags are not included in your fare, airlines are often the cheaper alternative.
This also applies to other things like food services, insurances or priority treatment. In almost all cases, you pay less for additional amenities when booking on the airlines’ website.
Mileage
ITA issues tickets for all flight segments in booking class I. We currently have no secure information on which programs credit ITA flights, besides their own program Volare, FlyingBlue, Korean Air’s Skypass and Virgin Atlantic’s Flying Club:
- 20,948 Miles on ITA Volare
- 19,716 Award Miles + 210 Tier Points on Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
- 14,788 Miles on Korean Air Skypass
- 14,788 RDM + 1,972 MQD on Delta SkyMiles
- 14,788 Miles on MEA Cedar Miles
- 12,324 Award Miles + 90 XP on Flying Blue
- 12,324 Miles on Air Europa Suma
We advise consulting the program you wanted to credit these flights for further information. Some major SkyTeam programs like Delta SkyMiles don’t credit ITA tickets.
Destination
Hotel prices in Toronto are decent during the winter, but high during the travel period. Whichever category and hotel you opt for, make sure to get the best price! Our recommendation is to search on booking.com, or even on our own Travel-Dealz hotel search:
Information & Tips for Toronto
Toronto is the most populous city in Canada and the provincial capital of Ontario. The city is located on the northwest coast of Lake Ontario, one of the Great Lakes of North America.
Best Time to Visit
The best time to visit Toronto is in late spring (April/May) or early autumn (September). Thanks to mild temperatures and plenty of sunshine, these months are best suited for tourism.
From the Airport to the City Center
Toronto has two commercial airports, Toronto Pearson (Canada’s largest airport) and Toronto Billy Bishop. The latter is located on an island and is serviced by a free ferry every 15 minutes – if you land here, you are downtown in 10 minutes! Toronto Pearson is a little further out, a taxi to the city centre costs $53 CAD. The Union Pearson Express train connects the Union Station in the city center with the airport in 25 minutes, a one-way ride costs $12.35 CAD for adults.
→ All Dealz for Toronto
Information & Tips for Canada
The North American country of Canada is the second largest country in the world in terms of surface area. In Canada, English and French are the official languages. Tourists visit Canada because of its many natural attractions and large cities, and the flight prices vary between the east and west coasts. Flights to the east coast e.g. to Toronto or Montreal regularly cost less than 400€. For flights to the west coast, e.g. to Vancouver or Calgary, prices are closer to 400€ – 600€. Other destinations are mostly only reachable with an additional domestic flight. Just like in the USA, most airlines now only offer cheap fares that do not include checked baggage. For checked baggage you should budget an additional 50€ per direction.
Best Time to Travel
Canada is a huge country with many varying climate conditions, but it is safe to say that the winters (November to March) are very cold and snowy in most regions. Summers are relatively mild and partly rainy.
Immigration & Visa Requirements
Most EU citizens do not need a visa for tourist stays of up to 6 months. However, an electronic travel waiver (eTA) must be applied for, similar to the ESTA required for entry into the USA. This costs CA$7 (~€5) and is valid for up to 5 years.
Currency
Canada’s national currency is the Canadian Dollar (CAD). One euro is approximately CA$1.46. Many credit cards may charge a foreign currency fee of up to 2% to pay in CAD.
Transfer from Canada to the USA
Canada is located north of the USA and is the only other country apart from Mexico that shares a border with it (2 borders, actually: Alaska borders Canada in the southeast!) At many airports in Canada US immigration is already done before departure, so you arrive in the USA as a “domestic” passenger in the domestic terminal which can potentially save you lots of time since you do not have to stand in line at customs upon arriving. By land the same entry formalities take place as at the airport or by train at the station in Canada. Most EU citizens don’t need a visa and can instead make use of the digital ESTA procedure.
Finding the Best eSIM Plan
We’ve compared various eSIM providers, such as Airalo and Maya Mobile. To see which plan is best for your travel needs, and which network offers the best coverage, feel free to read our detailed guide:
The Best eSIM Plans for Canada 🇨🇦 Compared
→ All Dealz for Canada
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