Booking Flights through HAL

[PasadenaDave]

We just booked our first cruise with HAL Quebec City to Boston September 2022.  We have booked air with Princess and Viking before and have been satisfied.  Quebec City is not a major airport and thus I expect a larger challenge with booking a decent fare.  We plan to arrive a few days early as I have not been to Quebec City for over 40 years and my wife has never experienced the wonder of the walled city.

 

We are flying from Los Angeles so it is a full day experience to get to the northeast.

 

What has been your experience booking air with HAL?  Should we or should we try to wing it (pun intended) on our own?

 

Thanks

[trixiee]

I find it very simple to book through HAL.  On my recent cancelled cruise, airfare cost was included in the FCC. I was happy to have to make 1 less phone call/email.

[VMax1700]

As you will need an Open Jaw ticket (LAX-YQB, BOS-LAX) it may be better to go with HAL.  Maybe even two single flight bookings.  You can book a flight and payment is not due until final payment for your cruise, which will give you lots of time to check out the options.

I reckon look at Flightease and if you see something that looks good, then book it.  Nothing to lose!

[Bostonjetset]

I've found that often times [though not 100%] the prices through any cruise line are less expensive than one can book on their own.  We've had that experience with Princess, Cunard, and HAL.  This past trip we booked through HAL and it was a God-send that we did as our flight on New Years Day was cancelled by Delta along with ALL their BOS-FLL flights.  Because we booked with HAL they got us on an AA flight to MIA that day and we still arrived the day before our cruise.  If we had booked on our own we would've been screwed as Delta had no flights at all that day to MIA or FLL so we would've had to buy our own AA ticket at full cost or risk missing our cruise.

 

If you are flying in 3-4 days ahead you will likely be fine booking on your own but if flying in just 1 day ahead or the morning of, I don't think I will ever NOT book with the cruise line again unless the price is just prohibitive especially until all the Covid disruptions are behind us.  It's like free insurance.

[richwmn]

53 minutes ago, PasadenaDave said:

We have booked air with Princess

FYI Princess Easy Air and HAL Flight Ease are the same people

[Cruise4food]

Just some general advice, in that I have not flown into Quebec City. Flying into Montreal is most likely how they will book you because that is a major airport, then a smaller plane to Quebec City. Be sure to ask HAL if they might fly you to Montreal then on ground transport. 

I have seen that HAL offers flights in to Seattle and ground transport to Vancouver  (or vice-versa). With Quebec City being a fairly new boarding spot for HAL, they might offer similar.

 

Option B you might find some smaller airports, Albany, Hartford that offer flights to Quebec City.

Edited January 13, 2022 by Cruise4food

[jhsocal]

We did the reverse in 2015, Boston to Quebec. Thought HAL did a good job. Suspect you will not have a direct flight Los Angeles to Quebec. We went to Newark, changed planes for flight to Los Angeles.At that time Quebec airport was quite small, very limited seating, few food choices.

[MTAK]

I've booked twice through HAL.  For both trips the FlightEase fares were slightly higher (~$50/pp) than what I could've booked independently. But I like the idea of only having to deal with one party if the trip goes wrong, especially in current times, as  @Bostonjetset posted.

Edited January 13, 2022 by MTAK

[opa&oma]

As far as we are concerned there is no downside to booking through Flight Ease.  

[richwmn]

2 hours ago, PasadenaDave said:

We just booked our first cruise with HAL Quebec City to Boston September 2022.  We have booked air with Princess and Viking before and have been satisfied.  Quebec City is not a major airport and thus I expect a larger challenge with booking a decent fare.  We plan to arrive a few days early as I have not been to Quebec City for over 40 years and my wife has never experienced the wonder of the walled city.

 

We are flying from Los Angeles so it is a full day experience to get to the northeast.

 

What has been your experience booking air with HAL?  Should we or should we try to wing it (pun intended) on our own?

 

Thanks

Another thing to consider. Montreal is also a good choice for an airport and a visit. Canada's Via Rail is a nice way to get from Montreal to Quebec so maybe a day or two in Montreal, followed by the train, then some time in Quebec.

[Navybikermom]

I’m in the Boston to Montreal segment that month. I did it before COVID and had such a good time that I scheduled it again. Of course, it was cancelled and then moved a few times, so hopefully it will stick this time. I wonder why yours doesn’t go all the way to Montreal? Riding the funicular to the Frontenac in Quebec was so cool!

[PasadenaDave]

Thanks for all of the comments.  I fully expect a routing through Chicago, Philly or Toronto or even a combination thereof with a short flight to Quebec at the end.

 

I grew up in Maine and with a mother from Montreal, I know the geography.  We would include Montreal, but with family in Ottawa, a trip including Montreal is a separate trip on its own.

 

We plan on a travel day and a full day on our own which would give us three full days in Quebec as the cruise has a boarding day overnight and then sails at 5:00 the next day.

 

The last time we flew to a ship LAX to Vancouver to sail home in September 2019 the flight through Princess was only $39 each!

 

We would refuse a flight to Montreal with bus or train to Quebec.  Even with a flight from LAX at 0700 the earliest one would get to Montreal would be 7:00 pm which would mean not arriving in Quebec until at least noon the next day.  We aren't flying to Europe!

[cruzn single]

On my cruise starting in Quebec City, my  air booked thru HAL was routed thru Newark.  Was satisfactory.

[Cruise4food]

1 hour ago, Navybikermom said:

I wonder why yours doesn’t go all the way to Montreal? Riding the funicular to the Frontenac in Quebec was so cool!

Basically the first bridge that you encounter upstream of Quebec City determines what size of ship can travel all the way to Montreal. There is also a bridge at the edge of Montreal that limits ship size during particularly high water flow in spring, say May till perhaps June, not every year though.