Hello from Canada, as I’ve just kicked off my review trip to Bangkok! For the first segment of my trip, I flew Porter Airlines’ Embraer E195-E2 on the 3hr15min flight from Fort Lauderdale (FLL) to Montreal (YUL). I flew the carrier’s most premium product, which is PorterReserve. The airline markets this as its “all-inclusive economy experience,” but I don’t think that actually does justice to what it is.
Canada’s Porter has been growing at an incredibly fast pace with beautiful new Embraer jets, and I’ve been meaning to check out this experience for a long time. I booked my ticket for just 10,000 Alaska Atmos Rewards points, which is an unbelievable bargain, so of course it was worth it (since for that many points, I’d take the most basic type of economy experience).
In this post, I’d like to share my initial thoughts, and then I’ll have a full review upon returning home.
In this post:
Porter’s Embraer E195-E2s are a pleasure to fly in general
Broadly speaking, the Embraer E195-E2 is a lovely plane to fly. For those not familiar, this is the newest and biggest Embraer jet. From a passenger experience standpoint, it’s tough to beat the plane’s 2-2 layout, as there are no middle seats. It’s amazing how long and narrow this plane is, with 132 seats.
Despite being a stretched regional jet, the plane has large overhead bins, and just generally has “big jet energy.” The lavatories are really small, but then again, airlines have managed to shrink those on mainline aircraft as well, so that’s not necessarily that noticeable.
Porter also has free Viasat Wi-Fi for members of its free VIPorter program, so it’s lovely to get free inflight connectivity on as many devices as you’d like (you don’t actually have to credit the flight to the program, but you do have to be a member).
While there’s no seat back or streaming entertainment, there are AC power ports at all seats, so it’s easy to stay charged and enjoy your own devices.
Porter’s PorterReserve has a unique market position
You’ll find PorterReserve in the first four rows of the Embraer E195-E2 cabin. As you can see, the seats are still in a 2-2 configuration, and it’s not a separate cabin, in the sense that there’s no divider between cabins, no separate lavatory, etc.
The seats have very generous legroom, and at 36” of pitch, you should have no issues stretching out. Now, I lucked out on this flight, because I had an empty seat next to me, and obviously that makes a massive difference in terms of the perception you’ll have of a product (for that matter, I had the entire row to myself).
The airline markets PorterReserve as being an “all-inclusive economy experience,” though really, it offers a lot more than that. On the ground, it includes everything from two checked bags, to priority check-in, to priority security at select airports, to priority boarding.
What about once onboard? The soft product is differentiated quite a bit. Upon boarding, you’re given a bottle of water and a menu for the flight. 
The food selection consists of a modified version of the buy on board options in economy, along with a starter of sorts. For example, on this flight, the starter was a “fiesta dip,” and then the main course was the choice between a mango chicken bowl, a “buddha bowl,” and a cheese plate.
There’s then a full choice of drinks, with soft drinks, coffee, beer, wine, and cocktails, all served in proper glassware (keep in mind that everything except cocktails are free in economy as well). It’s not just a one-time service, but you can request as many refills as you’d like.
Additional packaged snacks are also offered.
In terms of service, I’d say it’s a little more attentive in PorterReserve than in the main cabin, as they proactively come around once or twice to offer refills. And you can always ask for more by pushing the call button or going to the galley. But it definitely still feels more like economy than anything.
At the right price, I think PorterReserve is great
For a reasonable premium, I’d absolutely fly PorterReserve again. Obviously for 10,000 Alaska Atmos Rewards points, it was a complete steal, but otherwise, I’d probably pay an extra $100 or so for this over economy for a flight of this length (factoring in the extra legroom, priority services, and improved soft product).
That assumes I wasn’t checking bags, because if I was checking bags, I’d potentially pay more of a premium, since I’d otherwise have to pay for those.
For those curious, if I had paid cash for this flight, the cost (in USD) would’ve been $182 for PorterClassic, and $300 for PorterReserve (there are fare bundles within each of those options. So I’d consider the incremental pricing there to be reasonable fair).
I think Porter is missing an opportunity by not going upmarket
I can’t help but feel like Porter is missing out on revenue based on how it’s selling and marketing this premium product. It’s interesting how the airline explicitly calls this an “all-inclusive economy experience,” when in reality, it’s more than that.
Purely from an armchair CEO standpoint, I can’t help but wish that Porter had chosen to install a “proper” business class cabin on these planes, in a 1-2 configuration. It can be done in such an efficient way, since you could do it with a similar pitch, and you just lose 25% of seats in terms of having just three seats per row.
If they improved the soft product a bit (a properly plated meal, even if it’s cold) and made it a dedicated cabin with a curtain, I think the airline could charge a lot more for this product. Even if the airline didn’t want to install different seats, still upgrade the catering a bit and add a curtain, and then market it as something better. The way this is marketed actually undersells the product, which is rare.
What’s interesting about Canadian aviation is that Air Canada’s business class fares are incredibly high. While US carriers often sell domestic and transborder premium cabins at a reasonable fare, the same isn’t true on Air Canada, where tickets are typically quite expensive. So you’d think Porter could try to find a happy medium there, and introduce something a little more affordable, but still significantly more expensive than economy.
I just think PorterReserve has a confusing position in the market, and the airline is leaving money on the table by not making this a “real” business class, or premium economy, or whatever. But hey, that’s just my take…
Bottom line
I’m happy I finally had the chance to fly Porter Airlines’ Embraer E195-E2, in the PorterReserve cabin. Given what I paid, of course this was an incredible value, and I’d gladly fly the product again. Porter’s Embraer aircraft are nice planes in general, given the 2-2 layout, modern cabin, and free Wi-Fi.
PorterReserve offers a lot of extra legroom and an improved soft product, so it’s a comfortable ride, especially if traveling with someone. With the current Alaska Atmos Rewards pricing, it has to be among the best award redemption values out there.
What do you make of Porter’s PorterReserve product?
Porter is the largest carrier from my city (YOW) in terms of the number of non-stop destinations served, so I end up flying them regularly.
None of the revenue flights I have booked and added my Atmos number to have properly credited to Atmos. Every time I email Alaska about it, they say "give us your boarding pass and receipt and then wait 6-8 weeks." But 8 weeks later, the same thing happens. I will...
Porter is the largest carrier from my city (YOW) in terms of the number of non-stop destinations served, so I end up flying them regularly.
None of the revenue flights I have booked and added my Atmos number to have properly credited to Atmos. Every time I email Alaska about it, they say "give us your boarding pass and receipt and then wait 6-8 weeks." But 8 weeks later, the same thing happens. I will tell them that the flights still havent been credited to Atmos, and they tell me to wait an additional 8 weeks while they look into it. I am yet to see a single Atmos point from a revenue ticket on Porter properly credited to my Atmos account.
PorterReserve is only worth it if the fare difference is low.
For me, it’s essentially a Flex fare class ticket with a bit more legroom, a second checked bag and a meal.
If there’s a promo, Reserve can be about the same price, making it a no brainer. Otherwise I don’t see Reserve being worth much more than $50. I find the service to be pretty indifferent in Reserve, no extra snacks and sometimes drinks...
PorterReserve is only worth it if the fare difference is low.
For me, it’s essentially a Flex fare class ticket with a bit more legroom, a second checked bag and a meal.
If there’s a promo, Reserve can be about the same price, making it a no brainer. Otherwise I don’t see Reserve being worth much more than $50. I find the service to be pretty indifferent in Reserve, no extra snacks and sometimes drinks are still served in paper cups.
Heck, on the shortest routes (sub 2 hours), there’s no meal or improved snack selection. So it’s really paying for the extra bag and the extra 4”.
I've taken YTZ-EWR (Billy Bishop is a cool airport, great views of Toronto) on their tiny propeller Dash 8-400, and booked PorterReserve (seat in-front), priority check-in, boarding, etc. Was it worth the extra charges? Meh.
Oh, and I must say: Mr. Porter (the racoon, and his buddies) is the cutest airline mascot around.
If you receive their emails, which often feature the mascot doing neat things, they do regularly include coupon codes for discounts.
Randomly was on a 5th anniversary flight with them and got a small raccoon button with a 5 on it. An enjoyable possession.
Niccce!
Anytime you can walk from your hotel to the airport is a good time. Enjoy that about YTZ. Likewise London City.
That tunnel is pretty cool. And Porter offers those buses into the city, too. They got a good thing going on there.
Kind of miss the pre-tunnel ferry only days. But, eh, kind of not.
I missed my 1 am AC flight form Calgary to Montreal this past October. I managed to find a flight in the morning with Porter. I was sitting in A1 seat, ..lot of legroom,..so...in the PorterReserve section I guess, ....Being my first time and not acquainted with the transporter; the ticket was $834 cad... One way. I could NOT afford not taking it; as I had no carry-ons but only a small personal item. I...
I missed my 1 am AC flight form Calgary to Montreal this past October. I managed to find a flight in the morning with Porter. I was sitting in A1 seat, ..lot of legroom,..so...in the PorterReserve section I guess, ....Being my first time and not acquainted with the transporter; the ticket was $834 cad... One way. I could NOT afford not taking it; as I had no carry-ons but only a small personal item. I loved the ride,the meal,the free drinks, the staff, and the conversation I had with the window seat occupant. I'll see what their rates are the next time I fly westward, with the proper booking timeline.
Does Porter release more than one seat on Porter Reserve on Alaskan. I have only ever seen one seat on Porter Reserve and four economy on flights I have looked at in the past.
Nice review and well worth it to check them out. Porter is one of those airlines that is, more often than not, a pleasure to fly. Upfront, in the back, it's all pretty good. Now that they fly from LGA as well (albeit to Pearson not Billy Bishop), even less reason to go to EWR.
Yeah, LGA on their E195-E2 is probably better than EWR on Dash-8, but YTZ is such a cool airport! And, for those who don't like preclearance, unlike Pearson, there isn't any at Billy Bishop.
Canadians just settle for so much less. Air Canada has had a monopoly forever. WestJet can’t decide what it is. While Porter is making efforts it’s still a very small plane for the routes it flies.
This is the case for the vast majority of countries around the world
FNT Delta Diamond, what are you talking about? Are you just doing anti-Canada stuff on here?
The USA is 9x larger population (340 million people vs 40 million in Canada); our airlines in the USA handle about 1 billion annual passengers; meanwhile, the Canadian market is like 100 million.
Canada has at least 6 airlines Air Canada, Westjet, Porter, Air Transat, Flair, Canada North; the USA has 9 notable carriers AA, DL, UA, WN,...
FNT Delta Diamond, what are you talking about? Are you just doing anti-Canada stuff on here?
The USA is 9x larger population (340 million people vs 40 million in Canada); our airlines in the USA handle about 1 billion annual passengers; meanwhile, the Canadian market is like 100 million.
Canada has at least 6 airlines Air Canada, Westjet, Porter, Air Transat, Flair, Canada North; the USA has 9 notable carriers AA, DL, UA, WN, AS, NK, B6, F9, G4.
There's plenty going on in both places, and things can and should be better, but let's compare apples to apples, please.
And Canadians do demand better; they actually have air passenger rights legislation (APPR), unlike the US. We should be demanding something similar for the USA.
Are you really complaining that it's not expensive enough?
Porter's brand value is something that's affordable, but good quality.
If you aren't checking bags and you already have Pre-Check, I don't really see what this experience is offering. Early boarding, sure. But besides a meal that's worth about $8 and unlimited cocktails, there is no difference. Especially if you can drink non-cocktails for free in economy.
I mean, extra leg room is something that all of the major airlines charge extra for (Economy Plus, Comfort+, etc.).
This was modeled on SAS plus intra Europe concept.
Even SAS is going business class route now.
I think Porter needs a proper J class cabin.
SAS Plus didn't have a blocked seat.
They need another lavatory onboard. Two lavatories for 132 people is painful about forty-five minutes prior arrival on a transcontinental flight.
I fly porter reserve quite a bit. I always book two seats, which is great. It’s an upgraded euro business experience. I’m not worried about airplane food or curtains.
Looks like a low end Euro business product.
Just priced a future trip $250basic vs $716. No thanks!
But nice review and thanks as always!
I fly FLL-YYZ quite a bit, and I think Porter Reserve is very similar to intra-Europe Business Class on BA/LH/LX etc. So to Ben's point, Porter is missing an opporunity to not brand it as such.
Seems like a pretty solid Eurobusiness product.