theBasics:
WestJet 1754
Vancouver to Santa Ana/Orange County
Boeing 737
Cabin: Economy
Seat: 18A
Short Review:
(score out of 5, 5 being the best)
WestJet’s Service at the Airport 4/5
Plane Atmosphere 4/5
Service In- Flight 3.5/5
In- Flight Amenities 4/5
Seat Comfort 4/5
Background:
For my first cruise, I needed a flight from Vancouver back home to the LA/OC area. Our cruise was a “repositioning” cruise from Los Angeles ending in Vancouver, Canada. I normally fly to LAX because it’s almost always cheaper than Orange County but this time I was pleasantly surprised. WestJet popped up $130 for Vancouver to Orange County, 11am departure, and it’s on a Boeing 737!
Booked!
The cheapest LAX counterpart was $125 on a regional jet and super early in the morning. No thanks!
Twenty four hours before the flight I went to check in and choose seats. If you want to reserve seats ahead of time there is a fee but you can select seats for no charge 24 hours before the flight. I think for our flight it was $12 for the normal economy seats to reserve ahead of time. Bags cost $25 CAD at the airport and at online check in.
Day of Flight:
Vancouver Airport is super nice with probably one of the cleanest bathrooms I’ve been in. Check in was very quick! The only fuss I have is the limited food selection in Concourse E (the US Pre Clearance terminal). Our flight was a tad delayed due to the inbounding aircraft from Edmonton arriving late but the pilot made up for the lost 30 minutes.
The cabin itself was nice and it reminded me of Southwest with the leather seats, but the seats on WestJet were black. The legroom was pretty good, due to the slim seats. You could stream movies and shows to your personal device. On our flight (April) all TV shows and movies were free “for a limited time only”. I’m not sure when they will end the complementary streaming. On the app it said “regular price $6.99”. And wifi was available at a pretty good price. I remember it being about $8 for the whole flight (Canadian Dollars). There are also power outlets at every seat, 110 V.
Reminder: To stream movies and TV shows to your device you must download the WestJet app before the flight because streaming will not work on the web browser. With regards to the app, for international flights including Canada to the US, mobile boarding passes are unavailable.
The crew was decently nice and flight announcements were made in French and English. Beverage service came once and included Oat Bran Sesame Sticks and Biscoff cookies (*cough* Delta’s snack).
The flight landed at the airport with one of the shortest runways in the United States (thanks Orange County). It was actually a smooth landing, yet I did feel the brakes kick in more than normally. Bags came out relatively quick for my standards but then again Orange County is a much smaller airport.
The Verdict:
Overall, I enjoyed my two and a half hour flight on WestJet. If the price is right I would fly them again in a heartbeat. And in regards to frequent flyer miles, I credited my flight to Delta and I booked one of the lowest travel classes (D) and got 50% of the miles flown.
Cheers,
theresorttraveler
5
4.5