I am going to Vancouver in Sept (first time in Canada)
We are flying from London Gatwick, can anyone tell me how long the flight is?

I have had varying answers from friends, ranging from 9 hours to 11!

Just so I can prepare myself with books, mags, chocolat and wine for the journey.

Thanks.

Have you booked already? If so presumably you have a departure and an arrival time!

Vancouver direct can be eight or nine hours depending on route, if you're going via Calgary with a charter, expect ten or eleven hours total time.

Cheers, Iain

Thanks for getting back to me.

We are going via Calgary. Not got our tickets and my itinery is somewhere filed away tidily where I cant get my hands on it.

It was just the time zones I wasnt sure about.

We are flying with Zoom Airlines. Im crapping myself, I have heard good and bad about them, Im choosing to believe the good until I hear otherwise

Regarding Zoom, at the end of a day you're flying a charter airline because they're cheap. Don't have expectations of silver service and luxurious seating arrangements and you'll be fine. I've not heard anything particularly bad about them myself, nor have I had any reason to complain flying other cheapies to Vancouver previously (Air Transat, JMC, MyTravel, Thomas Cook). Make sure you pack some water, snacks, and enough to keep yourself amused between meals. If you're tall, consider an upgrade or an exit row seat booking.

All the flights I've had that have gone via Calgary have normally been stationary on the ground there for between 45 minutes and an hour. The hop to Vancouver is about an hour, and it takes about eight to get to Calgary.

Re: Timezones, Vancouver is normally minus eight from the UK.

Cheers, Iain

Hi Iain

Im just going to have a glass of wine and sleep. Its all part of the holiday


I think the seat pitch is 31 inches. Japan Airlines are 32, so it shouldnt be too bad.

Calgary is mountain time (GMT -7), Vancouver is Pacific time (GMT -8).

Charter is fine if you're not too tall - I don't know about Zoom, but I've had to pay 5 bucks for a beer on a charter airline.

Flying direct to Calgary is neat - you have to fly over the arctic. If you fly during the day, it can be light outside for the entire trip.

With regards to alcohol with Zoom, you get an alcoholic drink with your meals and after that, you pay £2.00 per drink. That's fine for me, that's quite cheap.

Im 5ft 6 and my husband is 6 ft and there is only an inch difference from when we flew to Australia with JAL, their seats were 32.

You have to pay £2 for your headphones, so again, not too bad.

Is it cheap to eat in Vancouver, we are staying in the town centre.

The flight from London to Calgary can be anything from 8 to 9 hours, depending on tailwinds/headwinds/payload/cruise altitude.

Vancouver is another hour or so from Calgary, but be prepared to be sitting on the plane at Calgary for 45 minutes to 90 minutes.

Not sure what Zoom has in terms of in flight entertainment, but I'm sure they are a decent enough airline. However, they have not been around long enough to build a reputation, good or bad.

Depends where you're from. For Canadian standards, Vancouver city is amazingly pricey - not just food, but everything from shopping to accomodation. The suburbs of Vancouver are more moderate. Again, I don't know where you're from - if you're from London you might find Vancouver prices a real bargain, but if you're from somewhere in the north of England you might find Vancouver expensive.

I've put some specific sample meal prices (along with a whole lot of other Cost of Living data) here

http://www.discovervancouver.com/for...?TOPIC_ID=4511

Hope that helps you.

Anything else you are interested in finding out about Vancouver, BC - I'd suggest giving that Forum

(Discover Vancouver http://www.discovervancouver.com/for...p?TOPIC_ID=456 )

- a specific search with Google (or manually if you must! ) and you might well find some helpful info.

Red

Thanks so much for that.

Its the flight that I am getting worried about. Terrified of flying and I have just got use to getting on a huge plane - Japan Airlines. Zoom aircraft seem really small.:scared: