Amy McPherson flies with Air Transat to Montreal and back and tries out both Club and Standard classes.
Some say, it’s all about first impressions. The problem with first impressions in today’s world is that someone is always gossiping, Instagram or chatting on a forum even before the event of the first impression, and more often than not, the first impression is already tainted with what has been foretold.
That’s exactly what happened when I mentioned to a couple of Canadian friends that I’ll be flying Air Transat to Montreal.
“Oh we love Air Transat!”
So, I guess, I already expected to like it too, and thankfully my first impression met my expectations.
On checking in
“Hi! Off to Montreal today? Would you like to use one of those machines there or would you like to talk to a human?”
Air Transat leaves from London Gatwick airport to a number of Canadian cities. It wasn’t a particularly busy day at the airport, but even so, there were plenty of Air Transat ground crew to assist with the now-common self-luggage tagging process.
I chose the human, because they all seemed to be smiling and eager to chat. I was checked in and my luggage swiftly tagged and conveyor’ed off. It was extremely quick and surprisingly welcoming.
On this note I should mention that I had been upgraded to ‘Club’ seating and wondered if the friendly interaction was only reserved for the privileged few. However, a little observation revealed that the human crew were equally friendly with the others, and I leave for the security control sufficiently impressed already.
The ‘Club’
Technically, Air Transat is considered a low-cost airline. A quick search of the airfare between them and airlines that fly the same London to Montreal route showed that they were much cheaper than British Airways or Air Canada.
On my way out from London to Montreal, I was sat in ‘Club’ class. In this much smaller plane than the ones flown by full-service airlines, there isn’t much room nor budget for flatbed seats, but what it does have is a couch like seating, with a pop up leg rest which, combined with the back recline gave me enough comfort to relax on.
Club passengers are given a ‘Comfort Set’ which includes, a blanket, a toiletry kit with toothbrush, toothpaste, eye mask and socks, earphones and a little tote bag to put it all in later so you can take it home and reuse them all on the next flight.
It was a day flight, and I couldn’t really sleep, so I made use of the inflight touch screen entertainment system and watched a couple of new films and tv shows to pass the time.
One of the things that usually distinguish between premium seating and the standard seating is food and beverage. As soon as I was boarded I was presented with a choice of glass of bubbly or non-alcoholic beverage. I wasn’t going to say no to the bubbly!
Two meals are served on the Montreal flight, individually introduced and presented by the smiling crew. The food is as good as plane food can get. Ok so I have been in business class of major airlines and it can’t compare but, I enjoyed the Osso Buco and the excellent Merlot served for lunch/dinner, and a cream tea, with proper Cornish clotted cream and Tiptree jam which was so good, I asked for a second helping.
Throughout the flight, the crew continued to look out for guests in Club, and always ready to assist with a smile. I can genuinely say I have not had friendlier inflight crew.
Standard Class
After exploring Montreal, I flew home standard class. While disappointed that I won’t get to experience Club again, I was in fact glad to know that I’ll get to review this part of the journey for the majority who will be flying Air Transat.
And you know what? I was equally impressed.
Checking in at Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport was similar to my experience at Gatwick. The ground crew was approachable, and happily chatted to me about how my trip was in Montreal. Bag was swiftly tagged and I was quickly checked in and sent off to security with a happy “have a safe trip home!”
Flying will never be comfortable. That has nothing to do with the airline more to do with the fact that we are just not built to be sitting long hours confined to restricted space in a restricted position like sardines.
And yet, what makes a difference to the passengers is the service. And just as it was in Club, the inflight crew who took care of the standard class were equally smiley, equally friendly and eager to help with whatever within their control. A main meal and a snack was served as part of the flight, but the standard class passengers will have to purchase the comfort kit if they haven’t already got a set from a previous flight.
The Verdict
Perhaps I was lucky. My experience with Air Transat to Montreal had been excellent with no delays and issues of cancellation. Their planes may not be the most updated models, and there is still that feel of the low-cost airline vibe, but the service both on the ground and inflight, on both sides of the seating class curtain, had been great. It’s no wonder that Air Transat won World’s Best Leisure Airline for the sixth time at the 2024 Skytrax World Airline Awards.
Sure, they are not perfect, but which airline is? The thing is. it’s the people. The crew is lovely and always smiling, and that makes all the difference.
Tell Me More About flying with Air Transat to Montreal
Air Transat has daily flights from London Gatwick to Montreal (and other cities in Canada), with connections to the US, Mexico & the Caribbean
