Porter Airlines

Pros:
— Wifi at the lounges
— VERY convenient location — minutes from downtown Toronto
— Free coffee and snacks
— I was able to switch to another flight (same day) without having to pay any extra fees (YTZ to EWR)
Cons:
— Tiny airplanes… our pilot had to abort landing (at Billy Bishop) on his first try and almost gave me a heart attack :/​Because the planes are so small, you feel every bump
— I haven’t experienced any delays but my coworkers, who fly up to Toronto quite often, tell me delays are not unusual

Terrific flying experience and wonderful gate crews. Highly recommend Pgh-​Toronto flight

Yes, you get the free beverage, WiFi at the airport and you get to fly into City Airport in Toronto, but that’s about where the benefits of Porter Airlines ends.
Prices for Porter flights are consistently much higher than other airlines that fly into YTZ and around 80 — 95% of my flights with Porter have either been delayed or cancelled, even when other airlines were able to fly as normal. Also, as many have mentioned, whenever there is a Porter sale (which seems to be every couple of weeks), the prices are noticeably jacked up and then discounted, meaning that there is not much of a difference between the discounted price and the original price. Whenever my flights have been delayed or cancelled, there was no indication on Porter’s websites and I’ve been told that the flight details on the website are not up to date. There’s been several times where I have simply either received an email asking me to pick another flight within a certain timeframe or lose my money, or I have made my way to the airport only to find out that my flight was cancelled and that the staff had no idea when they would be able to put me on another flight. I once had an EWR to YTZ flight that was cancelled and even though they could not put me onto another flight until 2 – 3 DAYS LATER, I was not given so much as Porter points, food court credit, accommodation credit or even an apology. Any other airlines would’ve given their valued customer a hotel room at the very least. Luckily I have friends in the city and had somewhere to stay, but many others who were supposed to be on the same flight were simply stranded at the airport for two nights. What makes it worse is that the staff at the counter have been extremely unhelpful and downright rude in these situations.
Not sure that the frequent delays and the exponentially higher prices are worth it just for a complimentary beverage and some WiFi, especially now that the Union Pearson Express exists and costs less than $ 40 with a Presto card to get you into the city. By the time you fly into YYZ and take the Union Pearson Express into Toronto with Air Canada, Westjet, etc., there is a high chance that your Porter flight will still be delayed at Newark. Also, flying into Newark BLOWS big time if you’re trying to get into NYC.

If you are looking for that amazing bending over backwards customer service, you won’t find it at Porter. The staffs attitude is similar to a criminal who has just swam across the island waters and is now miserably seeking a place to hide!!! Need I say more, avoid this airline and pay a little more fare to fly out of Pearson, you will thank me at the end!!!

If I could give this a 3.5, I would. I’ve flown Porter a few times now, all within the last year and a half. The flight attendants are amazing. Super friendly and courteous. I love how convenient it is to get to Billy Bishop which is a lot of the reason why I fly Porter in the first place. It’s so fast to get through the tunnel to the actual airport and through security. Not having to go to Pearson is the best feeling. They also offer complimentary coffee, tea, cookies, granola, cold beverages in their Porter Lounge. So rare to find actual «complimentary» items these days! Plus a free alcoholic beverage on the plane. Woo hoo!
With that said, I’ve also yet to fly Porter without a flight delay on the way home. This has really inconvenienced me in the past, causing my arrival to Toronto to be very late before work the next day. Not to mention, if the flights are arriving very late (past 11pm curfew), the flights will re-​direct to Pearson. Not ideal if your car is parked downtown. I was asked for a taxi voucher one time but was denied because it was «not Porter’s fault». Bummer.

Flying from toronto to newark has been a great experience with porter. They have free wifi which was of monumental importance since I am always working on the go. Additionally they provide refreshments consisting of soda, juice, coffee/​tea and biscuits.
I am honestly very torn between giving them a 3 star or 4 star, because on my trip to newark our flight was delayed for over an hour, but on the way back I managed to catch an hour earlier flight…
After riding with porter more frequently I will give a more updated review but for now 4 stars reflect my experience with porter very accurately.

I used to think Porter was wonderful until two years ago when I started travelling with a registered service dog. They promise excellent service, but I have repeatedly been mistreated and disrespected. Worst of all, I wrote a scathing letter to customer services explaining the repeated humilitation I experienced on my last trip to Montréal and they have failed to address my concerns. If you travel with any animal, be prepared.

The good:
Billy Bishop Airport is downtown (alternative is Pearson which is in Mississauga).
Free refreshments in the waiting lounge.
The bad:
Flight timing is unreliable. In the past 3 months alone, I’ve twice had an EWR to YTZ flight delayed 4+ hours (each airport blaming the other), and twice had flights cancelled altogether (one due to bad weather and one due to an «aircraft issue»). My suspicion is that when they do not have enough seats on a flight sold, they modify the times so that they can consolidate passengers from two different flights onto one flight.
The verdict:
I really wanted to like Porter, and I did at first, but from a scheduling perspective, they are not reliable.

Our family had a very rough flying experience in that my daughter was airsick and did not enjoy her flight at all (not Porter’s fault, she’s 4 years old). The staff was overwhelmingly supportive and caring of us. They understood our situation and did everything they could to make it a pleasant ride.
I’ve traveled Porter without the family and had great experiences as well. Free drinks, snacks, and much better service/​attitude than my experiences with American or United airlines.
The planes aren’t the newest or nicest I’ve been on, but the service and people I’ve encountered are more along the lines of European travel that I’ve experienced.

I tried and like Porter when I moved to Toronto but pretty much everything is wrong with this company and their business model — at least from any serious and frequent traveller perspective.
Yes they have free newspaper and glassware on the plane but that’s really not what matters. What matters is getting from A to B with some amount of time predictability and good safety. From a safety perspective I must say it’s OK although their landings can be a bit bumpy.
Time wise they are the worst. We got stranded a family of five coming from Boston trying to get back to Toronto on a Sunday PM. All Porter flights were cancelled one after the other. Some other companies had some delay but Porter was the only company cancelling all their flights. That is due to 2 things:
— they operate antiquated propeller planes
— they operate out of Billy Bishop
Both these things are impacted by a tiny drop of rain or mild wind.
So with all these flights cancelled one after the other you would think:
— they would give you the heads up: NO –they don’t like to intrude with people’s life so the surprise will await you at the gate
— they would put some energy behind smoothing things out: NO — they had one and only one agent working a huge line of complaints on a busy Sunday afternoon
— they would show some empathy: NO — not a single word of apology
— they would help you with accommodation: NO again — the beauty is that it is always weather related for these guys so you’re on your own. They don’t give a damn and why should they, right? Go find yourself a hotel and take that cab again back and forth. It’s all on you! And for us it added up to almost $ 500. Thank you Porter!
So here you go: if you like cheap easy perks and the weather is clear it may work for you. If you want reliability and service so much for that. My advice is go to Pearson and take any company flying out of there and you’ll be better off.
Will never take Porter again.

I’m a frequent flyer between Ottawa and Toronto for work and almost most of the times I travel with Porter. It so easy to get to the Toronto Island Airport and just get on the flight. The service that Porter offers is awesome compared to other airlines in my opinion. I just really like using their lounge especially when I need to log onto my work network or check my work emails. Most of the staff that I have encounter have been friendly, nice and helpful. Keep up the great work Porter!!!

The REAL STORY:
Why is it that 99% of the 5-​star Porter commenter pretty much can only talk about their free drinks and WiFi? Have we as a society become so entrenched with meaningless free «crap» that we overlook the bigger picture? Let me break it down for you all…
1) Barely safe planes: the interiors are falling apart with ripped seats, broken seat handles, loose seat belts, to name a few.
2) Very green pilots, although this is a judging the book by its cover obervation but I think someone looking not much over 25 should not be allowed to fly a SMALL plane that’s already hard to handle landing on a SMALLER strip of land surrounded by water… would you trust your life to a greenhorn?
3) Horrible customer service at the counter (see Matthew H’s experience below) and on my last trip to EWR, a desk clerk (probably the same flamboyant one that Matthew encountered) was red to the face yelling at a meek gentlemen that the airline can’t do anything about delayed flights so go sit down or he’ll call security… that’s the Porter experience.
4) I don’t know what plane Geoff S have been flying in (or if that’s just a Porter pilot speaking up for the crapline, I mean how would Geoff know what AC flights are like lately if he flies weekly on Porter???). I had 2 issues with 2 flights within a month, with the most recent one being cancelled after waiting 6 hrs and then having Porter tries to reschedule me 4 days later to fly out… really???
5) The planes are so bloody loud in flight that you’ll need more than the 1 cheap drink they give you to sedate yourself to some form of peace. Because it is a small plane, it is effected by the slightest turbulance. Speaking of drinks, if you like the cat piss they call Steam Whistle, then enjoy.
6) Good luck taking the ferry back when there is waves in the water because they will NOT drop you off at the terminal, instead it will dock on the side of the marina exposing you to the element.
Now if you would like to trade your life and time for free drinks, WiFi and ‘glass cups’ on the plane (can’t believe some idiot below actually said that), then knock yourself out. It’s just a matter of time before one of their planes go down due to mechanical issues.

I will never fly this airline again, first and last time. Took a quick weekend trip to Montréal from Chicago to see a concert for a belated birthday present. The outbound trip Saturday was fine, the return trip on Sunday was a total disaster.
Saturday’s flights were nearly empty, but the flights Sunday were packed so it seems that if there is a rush this airline has no idea how to handle it. There were no weather issues or anything to cause multiple delays on Sunday and I really was never given a clear answer as to why all of my flights, among others, were delayed. It was a mix of «technical issues» and «delays at other airports». I have flown often enough to never have experienced anything like this before on what should have been a normal flying day.
Sunday started out at the Montréal airport where three outbound flights near my gate were all being delayed by about twenty minutes. Ok no big deal, except in the end they turned out to be 45 – 60 minute delays. I was leaving Montréal for Toronto, then had a connecting flight to Chicago. When booking my tickets all I was offered was a 30 minute change over between flights, for the flight home. Porter airlines in Toronto has a small terminal, so on a normal day this should be no problem.
In the end I missed my connection in Toronto to Chicago because of the original delay of 45 minutes in Montréal and my new second flight (an hour and half after my original flight) was also delayed by an hour and a half. I was suppose to arrive home around 3:30pm and didn’t until 7:30pm that night and I also missed a work opportunity, which the airline personnel seemed to not give a hoot about (I freelance so anytime I can pick up some work I need to).
In the end I was offered nothing in terms of a refund/​credit or even a clear reason as to why all of these delays were happening. After complaining about the second flight being delayed I was given a $ 15 food court credit?! Gee thanks, doesn’t make up for a horrible customer service experience and the work and potential new client I lost.
Simply, never, ever again. The worst.

Very disappointing experience — first time flying Porter Air.
Trip from Newark Airport to Toronto was fine. Old prop planes — no wifi. No big deal — short flight. The B Gates where Porter is located at Newark is rather sad but adequate. Decent first experience flying to Toronto — not wow but not disappointing.
Flying back was very disappointing. Flight delay information in email differed from what was on the website. Tried to get clarification at Check-​in where a very unprofessional gentleman behaved inappropriately. He refused to give his name and said he was sending me for additional security screening (SSSS) — I was shocked by his behavior. I asked an agent in the lounge area to give me the check-​in agents name so I could file a complaint and she said all she’d give me is his agent ID (3121) and she said more than once that I was having a bad day and she hoped my day would get better — I felt that too was unprofessional (and she too wouldn’t provide any identifying information — nobody wears name badges or anything).
I’ve always had very good experiences with Air Canada and I have elite status with the variance alliances so all in all while City Airport is nice, I prefer to fly on a more professionally run airline.

I like flying with Porter because of their waiting area is nice and packed with snacks and drinks to keep my kids happy. When they’re happy, I’m happy.
Staff were generally friendly and helpful especially when we travelled with the kids. Security check was wonderful! Fast and efficient even I was selected for further checking, still it didn’t take too long.
Yes, we will fly porter again.

I have not flown any of their routes other than the one to EWR. For me Porter is a joy compared to the United experience. A dedicated lounge at both sides and, yes, you have access to it as long as you have a Porter ticket.
With a number of flights during the day it seems, sometimes, anyway travel can be flexible. Coming back from Toronto I went to the desk for the passport check and they asked if I was on flight 129. I said, no, I am on 131. The answer back was, «Do I want to be on 129?» I was prepared to get some work done at the airport with free WiFi access as I knew I was early — but getting home an hour earlier, heck, I will take that any day.
Bottom line — for someone that has flown a lot of United flights in the past several years — is Porter is a breath of fresh air. It may not have the mood lighting of Virgin America but at least the staff treats you as well.
The only downside of flying out of Billy Bishop is customs is in EWR. Get Global Entry, however, and this downside goes away.

Porter is feeling the squeeze of competition, and I have some fear that if their plan to expand the Island Airport doesn’t pan out, and they can’t expand their routes and range because of a bunch of monied NIMBYs, they may be in trouble.
The differences are subtle, but things are changing at Porter. I recently flew YTZ-​MDW-​YTZ, and the aircraft seemed a little less «immaculate». Gone are meals from flights, now you’re just getting snacks, so make sure you eat before flying if it is over a meal hour. Complimentary beverages still are in play though. Gone also is the often interesting, but surely expensive to produce Re: Porter magazine. That was actually what made me notice things have changed a bit.
I don’t think they’ve ever made a profit, which isn’t a good thing either.
I hope that «Porter Plans» work out, because Porter’s flights, even the less awesome ones now, are still far and away better than their competitors, and I can’t speak highly enough of how great it is to be able to fly to Midway instead of O’Hare, and to be able to do it from downtown instead of Pearson.

Porter has rolled back virtually every single attribute that earned them my admiration — and loyalty — from their start.
They have begun to nickel-​and-​dime customers, charging $ 25+tax for a 1^st checked bag within Canada.
They have stopped serving boxed meals during meal time.
Their PREVIOUS customer service excellence has disappeared.
Their 45% off sales are BETTER than their 50−60% off sales, which calls into question their integrity in advertisement.
In the last 3 trips, I have had issues that required interaction with their customer service, and have left with a feeling each time that the agents are saying just about anything, without regard for truth. They just want to get out of trouble, so to speak. Honesty no longer matters.
Same thing for their Twitter and social media staff, who are (presumably following orders) but completely ignoring customer complaints and responding with irrelevant and insignificant comments that have nothing to do with the issue being raised.
Along with all of the new fees and cutbacks in service (huh?), they no longer have any agent on the mainland side of the Toronto Island Airport.
So, to sum up, they are charging more money, giving customers less, and everything we loved is gone.
Porter used to be geniuses at achieving competitive advantage. Now they have become just another airline, no better than Air Canada. Yikes.

It’s always a delight to fly with porter. We cab it from Yonge and Bloor, pay the driver $ 20 bucks and you’re at the ferry socks. No need to make a 1 hour trek to Pearson, no need for buses, no TTC! Wowza, it’s quick. The ferry to the island is 5 mins and check in and security was about 15 minutes. Once you’re in the lounge, it’s like you’re in a top class hotel. Spacious layout, complimentary drinks and snacks. I love their shortbread cookies. They are heavenly and I always snatch a few for the flight. Free wifi and there’s even a computer lounge for you to use. Their flights are always comfortable and you feel like you’re flying first class. This is my favourite airline. Stay classy Porter Airlines!

3.5÷5
I had my first experience with Porter Airlines this past long weekend, flying to and from Quebec City.
In terms of flight comfort, reliability and overall experience, my flight heading back to YTZ from YQB was a lot better than the flight to YQB. The flight heading back departed on time, encountered pretty much zero turbulence, and we landed on time in Toronto. However, heading to Quebec City we had a 20 minute delay boarding, which became over an hour delay. The explanation given was that our plane was coming from Newark and there was a delay departing there, but I kept an eye on the gates and noticed the gate which we boarded had a plane sitting there all along (I arrived about 30 minutes before departure). Perhaps the plane at Newark was ground stopped so they had to send another plane, and that was the spare plane?
One unique thing I like about Porter is that the announcements are mostly automated, with the whole system controlled by the flight attendant. Even the safety demonstration segment is done by the flight attendant, instead of everyone having to watch a video.
Will I fly Porter again? Costs aside, it’s definitely an airline to consider if you’re flying to the destinations Porter serves. I wouldn’t be too crazy about it though if you’re not living in Toronto, because the commute is quite long.

J’ai présentement volé 2 fois sur les ailes de Porter et j’ai adoré! Personnel attentif et très amical! Vols en temps!
Sur la connexion Toronto-​Québec, je né m’attendais pas à recevoir un souper à bord, mais j’ai été agréablement surprise, on nous a servis un excellent sandwich jambon et brie dans une jolie boîte à lunch très invitante! :)