This is part of my ANA error fare. Kickstarting my 3 legged journey to Singapore, I will be flying Air Canada Business Class from Vancouver to Los Angeles. I am kinda excited about this as it is my first time flying on Air Canada. This is one of the better ones in North America and with how premium cabins in these parts of the world work. In contrast to their US counterparts, Air Canada does not name their premium cabin First Class but rather Business Class. This will also be my first flight on the 737 Max 8. It is a rather new aircraft! Let’s see how Air Canada North American flights are!

Checking In

Getting to the Vancouver airport is very cost-efficient and cost-effective. For the train towards the airport, you do not have to pay the surcharge. The train makes Vancouver airport so easy to travel with. Why can’t America have more of this on the West Coast? Look at the Public Transport in LAX! That is so disgusting! I arrived at the airport at around 8.30am. Vancouver Airport is pretty lovely. I went over to the US departures check-in area. Air Canada is located at the front of the terminal. They are pretty easy to spot. Surprisingly, the premium counters are near the entrance rather than where the check-in counters are usually located.

There wasn’t much of a wait since I had access to the premium counters. I was helped by a friendly associate. Checking here is pretty weird and this is my first time experiencing this. The staff only issue you your boarding pass and baggage tag. You then have to carry your bag yourself to the drop-off area. This doesn’t feel very premium! Security is a breeze and I can use the premium lines. There is a dedicated line just for CBP and US departures so you enter the USA as a domestic passenger upon arrival. US Pre Clearance exists in a couple of airports around the world. It was a lifesaver as I got through in just two minutes as compared to 2 hours in San Francisco.

Boarding Process

Boarding is scheduled for 10.50am, roughly 35 minutes before the flight. The gate is just a short walk away from the Transborder Air Canada Maple Lounge which I checked out earlier.

Boarding started right on time. In this part of the world, business class are more or less full since gate-side upgrades are very common. I took the chance to board first to get some nice pictures of the place. Business class is all full. I was warmly welcomed by the crew at the door. I love the finishes of Air Canada Seats. Given the full flight and only with a single aisle, boarding took quite some time. Pre-departure service is very weak given the limitation of the aisle being full of passengers. I love the French and English touch. This is one of the more unique things about Air Canada. The staff then came around with bottles of water, a menu and headphones. I love the Air Canada safety video! It showcases various gorgeous destinations in Canada. I can’t wait to be back!

Air Canada 737 Max 8 Business Class

Air Canada Business Class is comparable to US Domestic First Class when operating in Canada or Canada – US flights. The seats are very sleek and comfortable. Business class on the 737 Max 8 are in a 2-2 configuration. There is a total of 4 rows making it 16 business class seats onboard. The seats are very new and spacious. This is better than United Airlines. I love the sleek grey finishes and the seats are very well padded.

I was seated in 4A! This is the window seat in the last row on the left aisle. The leather seat comes with a movable headrest that you can adjust to your liking. In the middle, you can find a spacious armrest that you can adjust to your liking. The armrest can also be extended for extra storage space. This will come in very handy especially when there is someone beside you.

Below the armrest is some additional storage for small items. This can fit a small bag or laptop well. Here is also where the seat power and controls are. Each seat comes with a power socket.

I love that they had a rest installed on the seat. United Airlines doesn’t have this. The table can be found on the left armrest. It is of a good size and good for eating as well as working. It can be folded in half if you just want to place your drinks or so.

The leg space is very good and I can fully stretch out without having my knees against the seat in front of me.

The seat comes with a good quality TV. The Inflight Entertainment system is decent and comes with a good number of options. There are plenty of movies and shows for the journey. There are even more options than my ANA long-haul flight.

The toilets are nothing memorable but well maintained. It is stocked with Molton Brown amenities. The views are excellent on the way to Los Angeles and I kept myself entertained.

Meal Service

The meal service started shortly after levelling off. The crew also distributed the physical menu while on the ground earlier. You can find a picture of the menu below. It is quite a meal and much better than expected for this routing. There is a three-course meal with two selections for the mains. You might not get your ideal meal choice if you are seated in one of the last few rows. By the time the crew reached my row, they only had the chicken left.

Service started with a hot towel service! Gosh! I miss this so much. I am so glad to see SQ implementing it in the recent days.

The lovely crew soon came by with a cart and offered drinks alongside warm nuts.

Soon the meal was served. Everything is done via a tray. The crew came by with another round of drinks. I enjoyed both the salad and the chicken. The sauce is really good! The warm bread roll was delicious too. I was famished given that this was my first meal of the day.

Coffee and tea were offered to end the meal!

Conclusion

The seat is fantastic. It is comfortable for the flight duration and routing. Air Canada is better than the main 3 US airlines. I travelled comfortably to Los Angeles. I have not tried all of them but between United and Air Canada, this is leaps better! It is downright impressive that they offer a full meal service with drink options. The In-Flight Entertainment is pretty good too! The sub-hours flight went by in no time. The crew was fantastic too. It would be nice if they could offer a pillow. This is one of the better ways to fly to America. I will have no qualms choosing this over other airlines for domestic flights to America.