DALLAS — Air Canada (AC) has announced a new seasonal nonstop flight between Montréal (YUL) and Porto (OPO), set to begin in the summer of 2025. This new route results from a collaborative effort between Turismo de Portugal, ANA Aeroportos, Turismo do Porto e Norte de Portugal, and Air Canada. It marks the third direct connection from Canada to Portugal.

The flights will commence on June 4, 2025, departing from YUL every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The outbound flight, AC928, will leave YUL at 9:55 PM and arrive in OPO at 9:45 AM the next day. The return flight, AC929, will depart OPO at 12:15 PM and arrive in YUL at 2:35 PM, operating every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

This route will be the longest operated by a narrowbody aircraft, with AC utilizing the Boeing 737 Max 8. The aircraft features a two-class cabin layout, offering 16 seats in Business class with a 2-2 configuration and 153 seats in Economy class with a 3-3 configuration.

Enhanced Tourism, Business Opportunities

According to Turismo de Portugal, Canada is a promising market for value tourism in Portugal. In 2023, Canada ranked 10th in terms of external demand for overnight stays in Portugal, with a 2.7% share, and 9th in terms of the number of guests, with a 3.3% share.

Compared to the previous year, the number of overnight stays by Canadian tourists in Portugal increased by 56.9%. In comparison, the number of guests rose by 54.5%, totaling 593.8 thousand guests who generated 1,472.0 thousand overnight stays.

“This is the result of work that aims to continue diversifying the markets that send tourists to Portugal while at the same time reinforcing the focus on deconcentrating tourist attractions in our territory, in line with the vision of having tourists throughout the territory, all year round,” said Carlos Abade, President of Turismo de Portugal.

The new connection between Portugal and Canada strengthens the diversification of airport operations. It creates new commercial opportunities within the Canadian market, where AC remains a key partner.