If you’re living in Canada and planning a trip outside the country, do you consider flying from an airport in the United States?

Если это так, you’re not alone.

Недавний Глобус & Почта статья, “An ominous flight pattern: Canadians opting for U.S. airports,” Сообщалось, что “За последние десять лет, the number of trips taken at U.S. airports by Canadians has more than doubled.”

What’s driving airport-bound Canadians to drive over the border? That’s easy — saving money.

Как Глобус & Почта article explained, “one in six Canadians flying to a U.S. destination are now turning their backs on Canada’s airports and taking advantage of cheaper American fares.”

But what makes Canada’s fares so high? Here’s the Глобус & Mail’s анализ:

С только Air Canada и WestJet offering coast-to-coast service, Canada lacks the fierce competition among smaller airlines что сбивает тарифы в США.

But direct and indirect government levies remain the biggest reasons for Canada’s sky-high fares. Ottawa charges millions of dollars in rent on the federally owned land that major airports operate on; it also imposes security charges, fuel excise taxes and sales taxes.

The various levies and charges have steadily risen in recent years and now account for up to 70 per cent of the total fare on domestic flights.

Так что же это значит для канадских путешественников?

Ð’ Ванкувере, it means they’re braving the traffic and border line-ups to drive to Seattle, где discount airlines like Джет Синий и Virgin America have a growing number of flights from Sea-Tac International Airport.

Это также означает, больше B.C. travelers are considering flights from Bellingham, Вашингтон, где Allegiant Air whisks snowbirds south to Las Vegas, Phoenix, and several California cities.. Как сообщает CBC, “The number of people flying out of Международный аэропорт Bellingham увеличилась с 68,000 в 2001 до примерно 400,000 в 2010 and more than half of those are Canadian.”

Toronto-area travelers are flying from Buffalo, and other southern Ontario residents book flights from Детройт.

К югу от Монреаля, New York’s Международный аэропорт Платтсберг even bills itself as “Montreal’s U.S. Аэропорт,” luring Canadian travelers with cheap flights on Spirit Airways.

It’s not all gloom and doom for Canadian travelers. Кроме Air Canada и Westjet, some smaller carriers are beginning to make inroads in the Canadian market, notably Toronto-based Porter Airways. Porter flies between eastern Canadian cities, including Toronto, Монреаль, Галифакс, и Санкт-. John’s, and to a few American destinations.

But in the same way that Canadian shoppers look for other bargains south of the border (увидеть наш недавний пост, “Покупки в Канаде, или Почему США Русские Мисс Целевая“), it seems like driving south to fly is a Canadian migration that will be with us for some time.

Sea-Tac International Airport photo by prayitno (Flickr)