PORTER AIRLINES Passenger Reviews and Passenger Trip Reports

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  16 March 2010 by A Boltwood   (Canada)

I enjoyed flying Porter out of Toronto into New York. Friendly staff and civilized service. The disappointment was flying back in foggy weather. My flight was redirected to Hamilton, because the Island airport doesn't have good navigation systems for landing in fog and Porter's terminal at Pearson doesn't have Customs agents. Porter arranged buses from Hamilton to Toronto, so they handled the situation well, but the trip took much longer than planned. I would use Porter again for domestic flights, but not rely on them for on-time arrival from the US.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  26 January 2010 by Bob Meldrum   (Canada)

I had a chance to try their service in order to get to Chicago. The flight had a four hour stopover in Toronto, but still it was outstanding in every way. The Border officer at Midway Airport was efficient but welcoming. Certainly much better than the experience I had had at O'Hare.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  19 December 2009 : by D Howe   (Canada)

Return flight from Ottawa to Toronto. The lounges at both airports are a nice touch, with high quality snacks and gourmet coffee. Outbound we got offered the same snacks as served in the lounge with our beverages. Complimentary wine was served in a real glass. Returning (same time of day) we got a lunch box with a half sandwich and cheese and crackers. I would still prefer to fly in a jet than a Dash 8. They claim it to be quiet, but its really only quiet compared to other propeller planes. All in all, nice service and a good product. But really 20 years ago all the airlines offered a snack lunch, free drinks and in a jet. The Toronto Island Airport is a great location, but it will be nice when there are some facilities before security to allow people to visit before going through security. One concern is that with the amount of overwater flying Porter undertakes using this airport on Lake Ontario (and now they fly to Newfoundland too) I would have thought that the seat cushions would at least double as flotation devices.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  29 November 2009 : by Steve Ord   (Canada)

Porter Airlines - not for nervous flyers. I recently flew Toronto-Montreal return and was extremely impressed with the new Toronto terminal, efficiency of service, quality of the new aircraft, on board service and also the very business like passengers. All good. On the return flight, the first sign of trouble was at the Montreal terminal when the staff were working hard to fill up the earlier flights due to fog coming in to toronto. I got on the last flight out. As our plane approached Toronto Island airport, it was clear visibility was at best a hundred meters. The pilot aborted the first landing attempt. He then tried again. The second landing attempt was also aborted. As we came in on the second time, we were higher than the airport terminal so the aircraft seemed to have been way too high; it felt more like a fly-by and not a landing attempt. We then flew around Toronto for half an hour and eventually we were told that we were landing at Pearson Airport which was welcome news. Porter Airlines did organize buses at the private terminal where we landed without incident. Door to door five hours. A few questions came to my mind: why was the Island Airport still open when visibility was clearly an issue due to fog? And, don't these aircraft have navigation systems to guide the plane to the right spot on the runway. I felt like I was flying on a 3rd world carrier trying to land on a small airstrip in a jungle - except the Porter Aircraft are brand new and not 30 year old planes (it reminded me of a scary Comair flight in Swaziland, Africa I was on when the passengers cheered because we cleared the trees). I would not recommend Porter Airlines for people who are nervous flyers during inclement weather due to the apparent small runway at the Island airport which is clearly hard to find in fog.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  5 October 2009 : by Paul Cormier   (Canada)

I have been a Porter fan right from day 1. My recent trip from Ottawa to Halifax and return was seamless, comfortable and speedy. As an improvement, I would recommend to Porter allow passengers to change flights without charge and making a huge marketing fuss over it. To change my flight on my last return trip due to an early end to my meeting cost $100 and, while my time is worth a lot more, it was and is an unnecessary administrative hiccup and nuisance.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  22 July 2009 : by A Gagnon   (Canada)

One point for price, one point for comfort, one point for airport location in Toronto. Minus 7 points for the way we were treated after my bags were lost. No one apologized to us or even seemed to care how much we were inconvenienced. We had to call every few hours for 2 full days, to get our bags back. No compensation. Not a good way to spend your first two days on vacation. Very bad service.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  22 July 2009 : by Scott Patterson   (Canada)

I took a trip to New York with Porter Airlines in April 2009. The shuttle bus to the island was great, lounge with free refreshments, snack and wifi top notch. My only complaint with what I agree with other reviews dealt with cancellations. They called us in New York five hours before our flight to tell us that it has been canceled and we have to take a flight the next day, and tried to get off the phone. We told them that's not possible we need to get back to Toronto tonight. After strong words were exchange than they offer $50 credit each to both of us for our next purchase. They basically tried to leave us stranded. They wouldn't pay for a hotel for the extra night. Granted, airlines do not control the weather but come on you can't just leave people stranded without some assistance. To make a long story short, their was an earlier flight that we pleaded to get on and they got us on their. We rushed like hell to get our stuff from the hotel to get to the airport. We got there. That flight was delayed and it basically left New York the same time as our originally schedule flight. I don't know what happen to the rest of the people who didn't get to make it out.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  3 July 2009 : by E McGinty   (UK)

Return Toronto to Halifax, via Ottawa. The service was excellent, comfortable planes. The Toronto lounge was very nice, not business class, but you are not paying for that and the overall experience at the airport is fantastic.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  27 May 2009 : by E Boutin  (USA)

Like I can see on this forum, we haven't been the ones to experienced flight cancellations with Porter Airline. I tend to agree with “Kevin O'Doherty” below, that the reason behind was because of the amount of passengers on our flight was under their “brake-even” point. The reason involved in this case is possible thunder storms in New York. Porter called us in the morning, at around 7:30AM to advised us that they have canceled our flight (6:15PM) and the one after. The reason given for the cancellation by Porter Airline is questionable and does not justify the cancellation of the flights. At the most, it could explain delays, but in this case, it can’t be predicted 10hrs before departure. I understand that weather is considerate to be a reason beyond airlines control, but in this case, this reason has been used in bad faith. Because we had to be in New York that evening, we had to purchase new tickets and hopefully we were able to get to New York, under a partly cloudy sky on time – Thanks to US Airways.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  11 May 2009 : by M Verge  (Canada)

Toronto to New York. The round trip fare was less than $300, this included shuttle service from Union Station in Toronto, lounge access with free WiFi, snacks and drinks. The aircraft was spotless and leather seats comfortable. Complimentary light lunch served with a selection of soft drinks, beer, coffee etc. Crew friendly and attentive.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  27 April 2009 : by F Murphy  (Canada)

Toronto-Newark return. I live close to the TO downtown core and wanted to experience both the convenience of a 5 minute taxi ride to the Toronto Island Airport as well as Porter's "flying refined" service. I was delighted with the convenience and service of both. The Porter lounge (minus alcohol and serious food; snacks, a bottomless selection of hot and cold drinks are complementary) rivals many business class lounges I have visited. Its ambience, appointment, and business center make for convenience and relaxation. I really felt that the environment made passengers feel valued. And all of this is offered just minutes away from the heart of Toronto. The excellent inflight service is presented in spotless and brand new turboprop aircraft that feature leather seats. A snack box, hot and cold drinks as well as beer and wine are all complementary. The white wine was even chilled. The return into Toronto gave us a magnificent of the Toronto skyline. Getting through customs took but a few minutes. Passengers actually seemed to be happy and relaxed as we made our way back to the city via the short ferry ride from this great little airport with its great little airline.

PORTER AIRLINES customer review :  22 April 2009 : by P Smith  (Canada)

YYZ-YUL return. Porter provides a very easy, relaxed way to travel. Toronto City Centre is a great little airport for business travellers, Porter's service is friendly and efficient, and the planes are brand new and comfortable. You can show up 30 minutes prior to your flight and you will have no problem making it. You also get great views of the Toronto skyline flying in and out. It is a great little airline that is expanding.