Review of WestJet flight from Calgary to Paris in Economy

Hello everyone and welcome to this final flight of my journey through Western Canada. It's time to head home after 15 days and over 3,000 kilometers of exploring breathtaking landscapes between Vancouver and Calgary. A quick reminder of the routing:

Before diving into this FR, a quick update on the saga of my girlfriend's suitcase, which never made it to Vancouver. After 6 days with no news and no updates on the Westjet baggage tracking tool, and multiple attempts to contact the WestJet hotline (which only has English-speaking operators, unlike their commercial service that easily handles calls in French!), we finally received good news on July 30th: the suitcase was set to fly to Vancouver. It had inexplicably been stuck at Roissy for six days.

Long story short, the important thing is that it arrived before our departure. Coordinating the delivery wasn't easy since we were changing locations almost daily, but we managed to agree with WestJet’s customer service to have it delivered during our 2-day stay in Jasper starting August 2nd. After traveling from Paris CDG to Vancouver by air, then from Vancouver to Edmonton, and finally Edmonton to Jasper by road, the suitcase was waiting for us in our room upon arrival!

All's well that ends well. A compensation claim was, of course, submitted to WestJet after our trip, and I’ll share the outcome in the conclusion of this FR!

The flight report

Back to the main event. We dropped off our rental car effortlessly at the rental lot, which was easy to locate:

No chance of getting lost and since this is Canada, everything is translated into French :)

To reach the terminal, you simply exit the rental car building, which is right in front of the terminal:

The check-in area is a long corridor:

We naturally headed to the WestJet counters at the far end… only to realize we were heading to the domestic area, which is the complete opposite of the international zone. So, we had to turn around and walk quite a bit ^^:

WestJet feels right at home here, as this ad suggests :)

Calgary is showcased here with the Peace Bridge:

We finally arrived at the right spot:

Under the cheerful gaze of this bear, a species we didn’t encounter during our stay (and I wouldn’t have liked to meet one up close! ^^):

The international area is quite pleasant with its ceiling and skylights:

For baggage drop-off, you can use either the self-service kiosks or a small set of counters, which were completely full. The choice was easy, but the self-service machine was uncooperative, and the lone staff member managing everything seemed overwhelmed…

Everything eventually worked out, but we had a rude awakening regarding the weight of our suitcases, both of which exceeded the allowed limit. The small mishaps with Madam's suitcase forced us to add quite a few clothes. That, combined with souvenirs, meant that even after redistributing our belongings, one suitcase was still well over the limit. We tried explaining our misadventure with the lost suitcase during those 10 days, but it was to no avail, and we had to pay a CAD $100 surcharge:

With these little hiccups, time flew by, and it was time to go through security, which was done without any issues:

A quick stop at the temple of consumerism:

Then, we arrived at the international terminal. All flights are displayed here, with WestJet prominently featured. I’m always puzzled by this alphabetical listing, but it gives a good overview of WestJet’s network:

YYC has a “fun zone,” a small play area for children:

A beautiful piece of art representing Lake Louise can be seen here:

The planes are visible, but only from limited angles, like here:

The space is quite pleasant, quiet, and with high ceilings, the opposite of the domestic side:

You need to stay alert because this sanitizer dispenser could easily be mistaken for a water fountain! ^^:

Several shops are located at the start of the pier:

Boarding began almost on time, just under an hour before the departure time:

"Gate moment," accompanied by passengers ready for the night, featuring what I see as toilet seat  ^^:

A quick glimpse of the premium economy section right after entering the plane, with the business class in the background:

For us, it's towards the back of the plane again, just like on the outbound flight, in this lovely cabin:

Our seat amenities include a pillow and a blanket, while headphones will be distributed for free later:

We still see this stylish trim on the headrests, which has a meaning… but I can’t remember what it is (probably something related to Indigenous culture):

Legroom remains decent:

I chose a row ahead of my outbound seat for a good reason…

…which is this: the presence of two windows instead of just one, as it was the case in my outbound row 33:

We are parked right next to this Air Canada aircraft, with Calgary's skyline visible in the distance:

A WestJet 737-700, seemingly taunting me for missing it on my previous flight:

Rain begins to fall, a sign it's time to leave after 15 days of mostly sunshine:

But the captain informs us that our departure will be delayed due to a technician working on an issue in the lavatories:

To pass the time, let's take a look at the IFE: the flight path will take us over Greenland, where I hope the windows won’t be dimmed as they were on the outbound flight:

A flight duration of just over 8 hours and 10 minutes is expected, while the rain continues to pour:

Meanwhile, our neighbor is pushing back for London:

The maple leaf airline with its maintenance hangar right behind:

WestJet quickly follows suit, heading to Edmonton:

Another member of the WestJet fleet, the Dash Q400, departing for Regina, the capital of neighboring Saskatchewan:

But our turn should be next as the safety briefing has started, over 40 minutes after our scheduled departure time:

We finally leave the gate almost an hour late, but the technical issue is resolved:

To kill time during the delay, I tested the IFE's touchscreen with a quick game of Angry Birds:

The sunset reflecting off the rain-soaked tarmac is stunning:

Taxiing brings us behind this Dash Q400:

It’s a short taxi since we’re not far from this compatriot taking off:

One last look at Calgary with a good zoom:

An Air Canada Express CRJ900 headed to Winnipeg, operated by Jazz Aviation under its own IATA code QK:

Without further ado, we’re in the air:

After a sharp turn, the airport quickly appears in the distance on the right:

We have about 7,300 kilometers ahead:

But the long journey comes with the perk of no neighbor on our row, a real comfort for this overnight flight!

As on the outbound flight, a small snack identical to that served on our domestic flight is provided, this time with both the sweet and savory versions for FR purposes :) :

A Buy on Board (BoB) option is available for snacks, but I didn’t notice anyone around me using it:

The main meal is served two hours into the flight. It’s less flavorful than on the outbound flight, but still far from bad (except for the bread, which doesn’t look very appealing). However, the portion size might leave us hungry during the night (though fortunately, knowing this in advance, we had prepared):

I noticed several people tasting this local beer on the outbound flight, so I decided to test it myself on the return. It was good. I’m not particularly a beer enthusiast, but I can’t resist trying something local ^^ :

Some time after this drinking session, we had only six hours of flight remaining:

The cabin is darkened, but oddly enough, the windows aren’t locked in the dimmed position as they were on the daytime outbound flight. It would have made more sense this time since the night won’t last long on this flight…

This good news from the “natural IFE” (in-flight entertainment) inspires me to stay awake and wait for the sight of Greenland:

I’m fully rewarded about an hour and a half later with these stunning landscapes:

It seems so vast that I don’t want to miss a second. It’s the first time I’ve been able to see Greenland so clearly:

It’s absolutely magnificent, even more so when the window isn’t blocked by the crew :) :

After 30 breathtaking minutes of flying over, it’s already time to leave these landscapes, but I thoroughly enjoyed them:

We leave Greenland’s coastline behind, accompanied by an impressive number of icebergs and ice blocks:

I then try to take a nap, but the cabin lights finally come on two hours later:

About twenty minutes later, breakfast is served— or at least something that resembles it, as the quantity is quite meager:

I’m not very convinced by this “English muffin sandwich,” which isn’t quite to my taste for breakfast:

Here’s the autopsy of the sandwich: egg and cheese aren’t really my preferred combination in the morning:

The French coastline appears near Brittany:

But first, we cross over the British territories of Guernsey and Jersey before officially entering France:

Now we’re officially in the Manche department:

Safety instructions are announced for landing:

The meanders of the Seine are visible (as well as the dirt on my window) as we fly over Normandy and start the descent towards CDG:

The small town of Juilly in Seine-et-Marne just before landing:

Landing:

In the distance, a view of the beautiful architecture of Hall K in Terminal 2E:

A Delta 767-400 arriving three hours late from New York:

Luxair Dash Q400:

An A330-300 Delta landing right behind us:

It’s arriving from Seattle:

AF9 flight on a 777-200 returning from New York:

A nice cluster of 777s patiently waiting at the gate:

Heading to the baggage carousel, hoping our luggage didn’t stay in Calgary ;-) :

This area has the advantage of being spotter-friendly, offering a much better view of our beautiful aircraft than in Calgary:

The rest of the process is filled with luxury, courtesy of the day’s sponsor:

A little ride on the LISA shuttle is necessary to reach our luggage:

Wait, could that be our captain?

Does Paris love us? I’m not sure, but the passage through border control was a bit chaotic. After navigating a maze of chicanes in the lanes for European passports and PARAFE, we ended up in a common line with all passengers, creating some confusion. Fortunately, an ADP staff member quickly noticed this issue and directed us to the PARAFE gates, which we passed through quickly:

Luggage retrieval went smoothly this time, so all’s well that ends well :) :

And here we part ways with Fox-Fox. Thank you for reading! 

The flight path: