In recent times, we’ve seen airlines add all kinds of new destinations in Europe, made possible by both booming premium leisure travel demand, as well as aircraft that can economically serve these missions, like the Airbus 321XLR.
However, virtually all of these route additions are either year-round or summer seasonal, since that’s typically where the demand is. Well, Air Canada deserves credit for adding something that we don’t often see from a legacy carrier based in North America — I’m talking a route to Europe that only operates in winter, and not summer.
Air Canada’s creative new Montreal to Seville route
Air Canada is aggressively taking delivery of Airbus A321XLRs, which the airline is primarily using to add new destinations in Europe. The thing is, we’re largely seeing the airline operate these routes in summer seasonal markets, so where are the planes supposed to fly in winter? The latest idea seems to be Spain!
Air Canada has announced that it will launch winter-only flights between Montreal (YUL) and Seville (SVQ) as of the fall of 2027. Specifically, the route will operate with the following schedule:
AC958 Montreal to Seville departing 8:30PM arriving 9:30AM (+1 day)
AC959 Seville to Montreal departing 12:45PM arriving 2:40PM
Air Canada intends to operate this route up to 4x weekly, with an interesting gap — it’ll operate between September 8, 2027, and January 8, 2028, and again between February 18 and June 3, 2028. In other words, the route is operating except in the dead of winter, and it’s not operating in the peak of summer.
The 3,461-mile route is blocked at 7hr eastbound and 7hr55min westbound. It’ll be operated by one of Air Canada’s new A321XLRs, featuring 182 seats, including 14 business class seats and 168 economy class seats.
This is such a brilliantly thought out route
Air Canada and United without a doubt have the most creative network planners of any airlines in North America. Air Canada Chief Commercial Officer and general network whiz Mark Galardo had the following to say about this new route:
“The addition of Seville further bolsters Air Canada’s growing global network and cements Air Canada as the largest airline by seats offered between Canada and Spain. As the only non-stop service between the city and North America, Air Canada’s new service will unlock more of Andalusia and the world for our customers and Aeroplan Members while delivering a step-change in global connectivity for Seville. Enabled by the next-generation capabilities of our expanding Airbus A321XLR fleet, Seville builds upon recent additions to Palma de Mallorca and Tenerife and marks another unique Air Canada destination in Southern Europe.”
Seville is known for being beautiful, but the reality is that it gets incredibly hot in summer, with highs in the mid-90s.
So while it’s unconventional, it’s very cool to see Air Canada essentially skipping the destination in the peak of summer, and presumably using the A321XLR for a route that has high demand but a short tourist season.
I do find it interesting that the route doesn’t operate for around six weeks between early January and the middle of February. I’m curious if that’s motivated by the rather cold weather in Seville, or just no one traveling that time of year, because everyone is working… or both?
Speaking of weather in Europe in general, I understand many people travel to Europe in summer because that’s when families have time off school. But there is something that cracks me up about the annual exodus to Europe in July, only to then be around endless Americans complaining about how hot it is, and how poorly the air conditioning works. This route shouldn’t have that issue, at least not too much. 😉
Bottom line
In late 2027, Air Canada will launch a new route between Montreal and Seville, which will operate up to 4x weekly, using an Airbus A321XLR. What makes this unique (other than it being the only transatlantic route to Seville) is that it only operates in winter, so it’s essentially a counter-seasonal route.
That’s some very cool creativity to see, given that airlines have all kinds of summer seasonal routes, but then struggle to figure out where to send their planes in winter. I hope this proves to be a success, and that we see more routes like this.
What do you make of Air Canada’s winter service to Seville?
Everyone: Europe is cold in the winter. Canada: Hold my beer while I pack my swim trunks!
Seville is nice. I’m gonna geek out for a moment… Plaza de España is film site for the palace on Naboo in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002).
Those "business class" seats look like very narrow slots. No thanks.
Dick, fortunately nobody will force you to fly them. You’ll still have the option on every alliance to take a widebody to an alliance hub, land and feel miserable at what feels like the middle of the night, then wait a few hours for a “Euro business” economy seat for your flight to Sevilla.
There are plenty of people who will prefer a premium seat nonstop to their destination.
Something for everyone.
I think it's pretty interesting that AC doesn't fly YUL-SAN in winter. But I'd rather go to Sevilla too
The stupidity of Air Canada first NO Premium Economy, next flying from Montreal instead of Toronto where the passengers are. Next the first 6 321xlr were ordered with the WRONG engines for a budget airline with the plane slammed with seats.
I’m a bit surprised UA/AA (maybe even DL?) don’t try to do more winter seasonal flying to ski resorts (eg, Newark/Philadelphia/JFK to Lyon). Obviously that would be a very leisure oriented route, but as often covered here and in other blogs, leisure travelers are frequently paying premiums to travel in comfort these days. I would think such routes could work in winter.
Agree fully. There's plenty of demand from the luxe leisure crowd for ski vacations in Europe. Why just focus on summer leisure travel?
It's my lucky day. Hello world, goodbye Columbus.
Well - it is smart idea. It’s Andalusia/Andaluz - in winter it is still warm - it’s well connected to Malaga, Cordoba, Granada, Alhambra, Marbella or Jerez (Sherry) etc. - so a great base to use the high speed train or rent a car and doing great day tours. I would not go in summer again but for winter it is a perfect place to have moderate temperature. Great place to enjoy food.
I agree. Unless you have to follow the traditional school year because of kids, being a student or work at a school, I don’t understand the appeal to always travel during the summer season especially to Europe. It’s hot and crowded. Spent winters in Spain, Croatia and Greece and it was mild, sunny and half the crowds. Not to mention if you’re flying out of the East Coast and the Midwest, the entire ATC system collapses from one rain drop.
A super development! I've travelled from Toronto to the Andalusian region twice over the last few years in late Sept/early Oct - arguably one of the best times of the year to visit Seville, with daytime highs approaching 30 Celsius, and little of that region's oppressive mid-summer heat. Can't wait to try the A321XLR's cool business class seat...
Certainly a cool route and no shade intended, but this has “burning cash” written all over it
Am I missing something or is there no natural winter draw to SVQ? No snow. No mountains. No warm beaches.
I guess AC truly can run out of random Mexican runways in winter (lord knows they’re at every single runway with a beach nearby) but I don’t really understand the draw to svq in February and march?
¡¡ Ignorance is Bold !!
No mountains and no snow? You’ve got both nearby, especially mountains and hiking trails. If you want snow you can drive to Sierra Nevada or take a train to Granada and go on the bus later… Beaches (although not warm, I agree) under 1.5h by car… Still believe it’s “burning cash”?
Ahhh yes.
The world famous snow skiing of Seville, Spain
Enough to lure even Canadians in winter
Cmon now. You know what I meant ;)
And yes. I still think it’s burning cash. Many hub to hub routes in winter lose money in winter and somehow YUL-SVQ is going to work?
I mean if Canadians are travelling to Spain to ski, they really should be looking to travel elsewhere… If you want to got to the only ski destination in Southern Spain you can definitely use SVQ or AGP with TS, it definitely is nowhere near like those Swiss and Italian ski resorts…
Btw, isn’t YYZ-FAO burning cash too in winter? Cold beaches, cold weather, and dead towns? Still Air Transar flies there…
The route is interesting. But from YUL the best nonstops are on Air Transat. While their Club class is better than domestic first, it ain't like flat. But we get 3 Club tickets for the price of one on AC or AF to France on a nonstop.
Has anyone writing here actually been to Andalucia in the Spanish winter? While it may be hot in summer, the weather is not really nice between November and March and I don’t see the appeal to travel to mainland Spain (or the Balearic isles) in this season. Most of the time, it would not even be warm enough to use an outdoor pool during that period and most hotels close them anyway.
I fail...
Has anyone writing here actually been to Andalucia in the Spanish winter? While it may be hot in summer, the weather is not really nice between November and March and I don’t see the appeal to travel to mainland Spain (or the Balearic isles) in this season. Most of the time, it would not even be warm enough to use an outdoor pool during that period and most hotels close them anyway.
I fail to see how this route is “brilliantly thought out” completely.
Apart from the Christmas and New Year Season (when the flight does not operate, brilliant!) this is the lowest of the low season in Spain and you get flight tickets on the LCCs from more Northern parts of Europe for less than EUR 100 rtn. and rental cars for next to nothing during this time. It’s very badly thought out, full stop.
Oct-Jan and Mar-June is actually Seville’s high season and hotels definitely don’t close in the city in winter. LCCs flights are usually pretty cheap from SVQ because it’s a strong Ryanair and Vueling base… And coming from a local, trust me that the heat from late April/May to early October is unbearable.
A Hyatt Thompson has recently opened in Seville, with a Kimpton set to open by 2027 and a Four Seasons by 2028; soon, we will likely see United launch a Newark–Seville route, and American Airlines a Miami–Seville route. The cultural and gastronomic tourism is simply wonderful.
It seems like a decent idea if you can easily (nonstop) get to Montréal to connect. If not, it's pretty much not useful as one can connect from many European hubs with a single stop.