Air Canada is expanding its long-haul network for the 2026/27 winter season with three new international routes, adding sun and ski destinations aimed squarely at winter leisure travelers.
Two of the new services will connect Canada with Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Air Canada plans to fly to Tenerife from both Montreal and Toronto using the Airbus A321XLR, operating twice weekly, with the routes launching in October 2026 — the Montreal–Tenerife service is set to begin as the northern winter season opens at the end of October. The airline puts the distance at roughly 3,135 nautical miles, a demanding mission that the long-range, single-aisle A321XLR is designed to fly.
The third route heads in the opposite direction. Air Canada will link Vancouver with Sapporo in northern Japan, beginning December 17 and operating three times weekly using the Boeing 787-9. The airline highlights the service as the only direct North American connection to Sapporo, a destination best known internationally for its ski resorts and winter sports.
All three routes are seasonal, timed to run through the winter and into spring 2027 before the schedules are reassessed. Together they underline a strategy of chasing leisure demand in both hemispheres at once — beach-bound travelers heading for the Canaries and ski tourists bound for Hokkaido.
The choice of aircraft is notable. The Airbus A321XLR gives Air Canada the range to open thinner long-haul markets like Tenerife without committing a larger wide-body, letting the airline test demand at a lower per-flight cost and with more frequency flexibility. On the Vancouver–Sapporo route, the larger Boeing 787-9 provides the range and cabin capacity better suited to a longer trans-Pacific sector.
The additions continue a steady international build-out for Air Canada, which has been adding destinations and leaning into leisure markets over recent seasons. Winter is a natural moment for such expansion, as Canadian demand shifts toward warm-weather escapes and marquee ski destinations abroad.
For passengers, the new routes mean more nonstop options during the coldest months, cutting out connections that would otherwise be required to reach either Tenerife or Sapporo from Canada. For Air Canada, they represent incremental growth in markets where a nonstop can command a premium and where competition on direct service is limited.
Sources: Simple Flying, AirlineGeeks. Featured image: AI-generated by AviationShop. By James Holloway.
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