urgent flights to Toronto Canada

[daft009]

Hi Guys,

need some help/ideas please

Overnight found out need to go for a funeral in Toronto by Thursday morning.
Trying to find 2 tix in J or 1 in J and 1 in PE.

any ideas please?
The best option i see is the direct flight SYD to YYZ via Vancouver. The 11.20am from SYD will get there ~5pm in YYZ the same evening
Could leave Tuesday as well i guess.

would be great to even get 1 on points and 1 paid if needed.
SQ partners brings up nothing
CX shows no availability
VA did show 1 option, via United
worst case I book Air Canada direct with $$
I have plenty of AMEX, QF, VA, SQ & quite a few pay.com.au points

 

[luxury-lizard]

I'd apply for an ETSA immediately - it may come through in time. I had a quick search and the only award options seem to be via SFO or LAX. AC (Aeroplan) is currently selling points with 80% bonus if you can find award seats - this might be an option (will work out cheaper than buying J / maybe PE).

While I see you need to leave tomorrow - for paid tickets try AKL-YYZ (sometimes cheaper by 1000's) .

Best of luck as paid fares on AC direct this week are sky-high.

 

[daft009]

thanks
i have pay.com.au which can be converted to aeroplan.
yes found 1 way to YYZ via SFO where the SYD to SFO leg is in business

 

[daft009]

hmm, if i buy the Aeroplan points are they credited instantly?

 

[luxury-lizard]

Anytime I've bought Aeroplan points they have credited immediately - but if you don't have an account and need to set one up - I'm not sure - if you think this might be a workable option I'd set up an account then call AirCanada on 0011 800 6699 2222 (toll free number)

 

[kileskus]

They take up to 72 hrs to credit but sometimes credit within minutes.

I also think the SFO option should work, decent reward availability on VA there incl direct and then Aeroplan has availability for SFO-YYZ.

 

[daft009]

thanks yeah had an AC account a while (2-3yrs perhaps), just always with a 0 balance

 

[daft009]

They take up to 72 hrs to credit but sometimes credit within minutes.

I also think the SFO option should work, decent reward availability on VA there incl direct and then Aeroplan has availability for SFO-YYZ.

am trying to book as 1 PNR all the way, SYD to YYZ which shows nothing on VA. that would be easy

 

[luxury-lizard]

You could buy PE ($6000 on AC or $5500 on CX) then try for a paid upgrade .... not sure how good a strategy this would be but at least you'd get there without the ETSA complication - even if you snagged award seats on the outbound you still need return flights.

 

[daft009]

ESTA submitted... in progress
the only outbound flight I found on the aeroplan website is for tomorrow
havent purchased or trasferred points as yet hmm... too many variables gaah
return i guess would have to be a revenue fare in J, about ~6.5k in J

just need 1 J ticket now. 2nd person not going

 

[luxury-lizard]

Wow = $6.5 for J (return I presume) is a great price - I'm seeing > $13,000

 

[daft009]

Wow = $6.5 for J (return I presume) is a great price - I'm seeing > $13,000

Just the return leg I meant.
Outbound still trying to get on points

 

[daft009]

ESTA approved!

hmm, should I book SYD to SFO & SFO to YYZ separately??? or too risky in case one is delayed?

 

[luxury-lizard]

Can't you get a through PNR - as you do doubt know - immigration at SFO can take 1+ hours so allow 3 hours to transfer. If you are not a Canadian citizen you also need an ETA to enter Canada.

 

[daft009]

hmm. aeroplan is selling for 87.5k points but only a ~100min transit.
reluctant to buy aeroplan points if it takes ~72hrs for the points to be credited.

using VFF there is nothing on one 1 PNR

yep, will do the ETA next, thanks for the reminder

 

[luxury-lizard]

you could try calling AC (number above) - agent may allow you to buy over the phone and book flights for you (tell them it's an emergency - funeral) - you may need to wait on the phone to get through to an agent - busy travel week in the US - American Thanksgiving (but not Canadian). One trick to get through is to select French - all agents speak English as well.

100 minutes connection could be very tight if not on a single PNR.

 

[daft009]

87.5k aeroplan points are in my account. used my pay.com.au rewards which was instant transfer (10min).

now waiting for ETA before booking

 

[MEL_Traveller]

ESTA approved!

hmm, should I book SYD to SFO & SFO to YYZ separately??? or too risky in case one is delayed?

Given the urgency of the situation, I would travel as far as you can, when you can.

Once the long leg is confirmed you have dozens of options available for the shorter trip.

I would snap up the award booking… worst case scenario is a $150 cancellation fee if your ESTA doesn’t come through (although it should do in the next few minutes hopefully!)

 

[Lynda2475]

Sometimes it's cheaper to fly to Seattle and then spend $30 on this to Vancouver- another option to look at.