Canadian travel advisors don’t believe a new, $50 fuel surcharge from Air Canada Vacations will affect business. However, they do worry about rising costs in general and are suggesting clients book their trips soon to save money.
“I think clients have suspected that they will see increases in pricing because of increased fuel costs. So I (and others) are using Air Canada Vacation's announcement to urge people to book, who may be sitting on the fence,” said advisor Judith Coates.
“It's great material for social media posts!”
Writing on Facebook, an advisor from Makena Travel Company said they expect other airlines will follow suit.
“If you’ve been thinking about booking a summer or Christmas getaway to the sun, this is a really good time to get it locked in.” they said.
Advisor Brenda Slater said she doesn’t think the surcharge will deter travellers.
“I can’t see it being a big issue. People who want to travel won’t be deterred,” she told Open Jaw.
“It’s not ideal, but it’s also not surprising given everything going on globally with oil and fuel right now,” said advisor Kim Machan. “At $50, I don’t see it having a huge impact on most people’s decision to travel or my ability to sell. It’s a relatively small increase in the grand scheme of things.’
Machan, however, said she’s “very worried” about fuel prices, which could mean higher costs for not just travel but everyday goods.
“That’s where it could have a greater impact over time. People will not have the extra revenue to travel and it's been getting harder and harder since Covid as it is.”
“Due to the recent increase in global fuel prices, a fuel surcharge will be introduced across all sun destinations,”
Air Canada Vacations said in a note posted on Facebook. “Effective for new Air Canada Vacations bookings that include a flight portion beginning April 6, 2026, a fixed surcharge of CAD $50 per passenger will be applied and reflected within the selling taxes and surcharges at the time of booking,” the company said.
“Existing bookings will not be affected.”
Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick told Open Jaw the change is for Air Canada Vacations packages only, “and mostly reflects the increased cost of ground packages.
“For our part, the airline, we are managing fuel costs through fares, which as you know continually go up and down in response to a variety of factors, such as but not limited to demand, competition and costs,” he said.
Porter Airlines in late March introduced a temporary CAD $40 surcharge on VIPorter flight redemptions and raised base fares to deal with the rising price of jet fuel.
