Review: Air Canada Premium Rouge Montreal to Quebec City

Background

The second leg of my trip to Quebec City (YQB) was this flight from Montreal (YUL) to Quebec City (YQB) on Air Canada Rouge Premium Rouge Business Class aboard the Airbus A319. I had flown from New York (LGA) to Montreal (YUL) the day prior on an Air Canada Jazz Embraer 175 and stayed overnight at the Marriott Montreal Airport. The only nonstop to Quebec City from the New York City area is from Newark on United, but it was quite expensive, so I booked this flight with a combination of Aeroplan points and cash. Business class only cost 1,000 extra Aeroplan Miles than Economy so I decided to take the splurge.

Air Canada has 3 commercial service operating divisions. The mainline carrier is Air Canada, Air Canada Express (Jazz) is the regional division that uses smaller planes and lastly Air Canada Rouge is the low-cost vacation division. The Montreal (YUL) to Quebec City (YQB) route is currently served by all 3 divisions, depending on which flight time.

Flight Details

Air Canada Rouge Flight 1972
Montreal (YUL) to Quebec City (YQB)
Date: May 2024
Scheduled Departure: 9:05 AM (Actual 10:05 AM)
Scheduled Arrival: 10:00 AM (Actual 10:46 AM)
Actual Duration: 41 minutes
Aircraft: Airbus A319
Cabin: Premium Rouge (Business)
Seat: 3A

Day of the Flight & At the Airport

Around 2 hours before the flight time, we got an email that our flight was delayed 1 hour and 15 minutes, and it was because our inbound plane was running behind. Not preferred, but it did allow me more time to pack at the hotel.

Once at the airport, the security line was rapid, and I checked out the Maple Leaf Lounge in the Domestic Terminal. It’s a bit of a dated lounge, but the only one located on the domestic side of the terminal. On the plus side, during the Saturday morning visit, it was on the emptier side. You can check out my review of the lounge here if you’d like.

Boarding & Air Canada Rouge Premium Rouge on the Airbus A319

Boarding started at 9:40 am, 40 minutes before the scheduled departure. Shortly after getting settled, the flight attendants came by to hand out water bottles.

The Air Canada Rouge A319 has 3 rows of Premium Rouge, which features 36 inches of pitch and 21 inches of width in a 2-2 configuration, which is more spacious than the 3-3 configuration Economy Class Cabin. I took a window seat, 3A, in the last row of the Premium Rouge (Business Class) Cabin.   

The Flight

I ended up having the whole row to myself which was cool, and something I don’t see often these days.

The boarding door closed at 10:04 am, and we pushed back shortly thereafter. It was nice that we were able to make back some of the delay time. Once we took off at 10:20 am the pilots said we would be landing in just about 20 minutes.

I’m astonished that they came by to do a drink service. And in real glassware. A US Carrier would be shocked…(I’m talking to you Delta- who did no beverage service on a 2+ hour flight of mine recently). I feel like people are so used to carriers just getting away with lackluster service. I’ve even got to a point where I think it’s normal for a flight sub 2 hours to not expect a service, which should not be the case. My friend in the Economy Cabin also got a drink service too.

We touched down at 10:45, just a mere 25 minutes in the air, and got to the gate quite quickly.

There was free wifi available for premium rouge customers, and it even worked on the ground when we landed in Quebec rather than disconnecting at a certain altitude. Bravo!

For other guests, there is free texting sponsored by Bell for Aeroplan members, and if you want to buy a WiFi pass, the streaming pass is CA $10.25, and an ultimate flight pass is CA $13.75 which supports higher quality streaming all flight. Also, entertainment on demand is available with movies and TV shows.

The Verdict

Overall, my short flight on Air Canada Rouge’s Premium Rouge Cabin was solid. It was a short flight, and I appreciated the beverage service as well as the complimentary Wi-Fi for Premium Rouge passengers.

Have you flown on Air Canada Rouge Premium Rouge (Business Class) before? How was your experience? Comment below!

Cheers,

Ty

Have any questions? I’ve also started working with a travel agency, Fora Travel, and can assist in booking hotel stays or planning trips. Comment below or email me at takeofftotravel@gmail.com. You can also view all my other posts here! Thanks for stopping by!