Thread: Some Canadians cross border to fly in U.S.

Some Canadians cross border to fly in U.S.

By Charisse Jones, USA TODAY

When Jolly Khanna makes business trips to Chicago or Washington, he drives from his home in Montreal to the airport in Burlington, Vt., where he then hops on a flight.

Never mind that he has to drive roughly 90 minutes to board a plane. The trip is usually $300 cheaper than if he'd flown out of Montreal.

"The client agrees to pick up the expenses, but this saves them money," says Khanna, 38, who has his own consulting firm. "It's an hour and a half out of my time, but it keeps the client happy, and if the client is happy, they keep me employed."

Khanna isn't the only Canadian making frequent treks across the border to catch a flight. A growing number come for lower fares, fewer hassles with airport security — because they are flying domestically inside the U.S. instead of coming from abroad — and for the smaller U.S. airports that can be easier to navigate than ones in Canada's big cities.

"We're 30 miles from the border, so there's always been a base of Canadian business at this airport," says Brian Searles, director of aviation for the Burlington airport, where 40% of the passengers are Canadian. "But what's happened in the last few years ... is a significant increase in that business."

The Canadian Airports Council estimates more than 2.5 million Canadians use U.S. airports.

People in eastern Canada can make their way to Bangor, Maine, while would-be fliers in Quebec drive to Burlington or Plattsburgh, N.Y., says Tony Pollard, president of the Hotel Association of Canada. Those living in Windsor can cross a bridge to Detroit, while travelers living in Toronto might head to airports in Buffalo or Syracuse, N.Y.

"It doesn't really matter if you have to travel an hour or an hour and a half, people will do it (to save) money," Pollard says.

A survey by his organization found 18% of Canadians plan to travel to the U.S. to fly in 2010.

U.S. airports make great efforts to woo and welcome Canadian travelers. Plattsburgh International Airport, which says that 85% of its passengers are Canadian, bills itself as "Montreal's U.S. airport" and sometimes broadcasts a Montreal radio station, with songs in French and English, in its terminal.

Others in the travel sector have taken notice. Low-cost carrier Allegiant Air started service out of two airports — Plattsburgh and Grand Forks, N.D. — to tap into interest from Canadian travelers.

Taxes, fees add to higher costs

The Canadian traffic is good for those living in the U.S., says Tom Long, Plattsburgh's airport manager.

"It opens the door for our locals to be able to fly to Florida" and other destinations, he says.

The main reason Canadians make the trek is to save money. Fares between U.S. cities can be hundreds of dollars less than flying directly from a Canadian city.

Even with gas, long-term parking and possibly a night's stay in a U.S. hotel, some travelers say they still come out ahead.

Higher fees paid by Canadian airports and Canadian taxes combine with less competition among carriers to make for costlier plane tickets out of Canada. Also contributing: The traditionally weaker Canadian dollar has been holding its own against the U.S. dollar recently.

Canada's travel industry isn't happy with losing locals who'll drive across the border to fly.

"We're tremendously concerned," says Daniel-Robert Gooch of the Canadian Airports Council. "We have higher fees and taxes. All these things add up to make for a more expensive ticket."

Jay Udow always checks how much it will cost him to fly to the U.S. from his local airport in Toronto. But he frequently winds up driving to Buffalo to head to cities in other parts of the U.S.

Even though Buffalo offers fewer non-stop flights to fewer destinations than he can get in Toronto, Udow says, he checks.

"And then I make a call based on price and convenience as to which way I should do it," he says. "But 50% of the time, I end up choosing Buffalo over Toronto."

Making a trip 'affordable'

It's an open secret in many Canadian cities that crossing the border to fly can be cheaper, says Udow, who does marketing and product development in the toy industry and travels from Buffalo for both business and vacations.

But Udow says he also drives the roughly 60 miles to and from Buffalo to take advantage of a smaller airport that he finds easy to get through. And he says he prefers to avoid the lengthy airport screening that comes with flying from Canada to the United States.

"There's much less hassle and aggravation," he says.

Brandon Smith, 29, also often drives from his Toronto home to Buffalo to fly to such cities as Fort Lauderdale or Las Vegas.

Smith, a trustee in bankruptcy cases, says those Buffalo-based flights have saved him thousands of dollars the past five years.

"At the very least, it made a trip affordable where I wouldn't have taken the trip had that option not been available," he says.

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/flights/ ... 2_ST_N.htm

When I lived in Southern Ontario I used to drive to Buffalo and fly to Florida. Many of my friends and relatives did the same. It was cheaper back in the 80's and 90's as well.