Travel: Flights to Toronto Pearson

Pearson International Airport (YYZ) (or LBPIA - Lester B. Pearson International Airport) is about 45 minutes by car from the downtown core and is serviced by most major international carriers. There are two terminals: Terminal 1 hosts all Air Canada flights and a few other international carriers, while Terminal 3 hosts all other airlines including WestJet and Zoom. (There is no Terminal 2 anymore.)

Several options exist for getting downtown from Pearson:

• Airport Express bus service is quick, convenient, and frequent (peak periods: every 20 minutes; off-peak periods: every 30 minutes). It picks up at both terminals, and stops at several major hotels in the downtown core. Adult fares are $16.45 one way, $28.35 for round trips.

• TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) provides public bus services that run to and from Pearson. The best TTC option is the 192 Airport Rocket that runs every 20 minutes or less between Kipling Station on the Bloor-Danforth Subway, in the west end of the city, and Pearson Airport. Kipling Station is the western most subway stop on the Bloor-Danforth line and it takes between 20 minutes to reach Kipling and then 30-45 minutes to reach downtown. One way adult fare on the TTC is $2.75 (or less if purchased in bulk).

• GO Transit, the commuter transit agency, provides express buses that run from the airport to Yorkdale and York Mills subway stations in North York for $4.05. This takes about 35-45 minutes, followed by another 20 minutes on the subway to get downtown.

• Blue22 is an express train scheduled to be built from the airport to downtown Toronto's Union Station. However, it has not yet started construction due to route alignment issues.

Taxis run a flat rate of $40 while airport limousines go slightly higher at $50. Limousines are generally slightly larger (though not stretched) and more comfortable vehicles than taxis. Government approved rates can be found here.

Toronto City Centre Airport (YTZ) (or TCCA, or "the Island Airport") handles much less traffic. It offers short-haul regional flights to neighboring Canadian cities.

A free ferry service makes the short crossing (just 121 metres - possibly the world's shortest regularly-scheduled ferry route) between TCCA and the mainland every 15 minutes, 6:45AM-10:07PM.