UN-Fair Canada to Hawaii Airfares

At first I was excited to share with our Canadian visitors the “half-price” offer to Hawaii on Westjet. I’ve received numerous requests for Canadian deals, and unfortunately they have been virtually non-existent.

On first glance this sale seemed good though not great. The prices are listed without taxes and surcharges of nearly CAD 100 each way. Unfortunately, that took the steam out of my sails and got me thinking about how this relates to a much bigger picture.

Airlines and customer dissatisfaction.

The greater problem I see in this offer is that because it isn’t a deal, it sets false expectations for Westjet’s customers. While this situation is Westjet specific, it relates to an industry-wide problem. The issue is that customers have become increasingly dissatisfied with airlines. That is true even without regard to ticket prices.

In any event, here’s what the Westjet deals portends:

Details:

• Monday through Wednesday travel
• Ticket by July 23 for travel September 3 through October 31
• One-ways permitted
• Surcharges/taxes extra (add approx. CAD 200 round-trip)
• Good availability to Honolulu, very limited to Kahului

To Honolulu, Oahu (RT)

• Calgary CAD 460
• Edmonton CAD 510
• Ottawa or Montreal CAD 638
• Toronto CAD 610
• Vancouver CAD 388

To Kahalui, Maui (RT)

• Calgary CAD 518
• Edmonton CAD 538
• London CAD 638
• Ottawa or Montreal CAD 670
• Vancouver (unable to find sale availability)

With the addition of their separately priced fuel surcharge, the Westjet deal is in fact no better than the American Airline offer (although the routing is more convenient). Lastly, I find the Westjet website to be among the most difficult to navigate airline sites I’ve encountered.

I promise to keep a lookout for something better, both in terms of price and honesty.