Flights out of Buffalo: cheaper than Toronto?

[louise67]

I've heard of people taking a bus across the border and flying out of Buffalo to take advantage of cheaper flights. I was wondering what your experience has been. Is it worth it?

[sinecure]

All depends how close to the border you are

Reason that American City can be cheaper is due to the taxes that airlines have to charge in Canada. Also a consideration is if there are a Canadian company or not. It pays to look around at all your nearby airports as each airport will charge different fees for landing/takeoff etc.

We can fly cheaper to Mexico from Vancouver than from Seattle. So it's not always the rule

kayak.com and others give you the opportunity to compare nearby airports.

[Endless Journey]

If you ask me, not worth the hassle. One time, I was ruuning late and had to take the cab from downtown Buffalo to the airport. Ended up paying more for if I had comfortably flown out of YYZ. (If destination is US, better to go through customs at Pearson).

On the other hand, if you're catching a ride from a friend/plan a stop in Niagara Falls or so, and in the journey-not-the-destination state of mind, why not, eh?

[fyrestorm]

It generally is cheaper from Buffalo and if traveling to the US...from Canada, you get to clear customs at the bridge which speeds things up at the airport...

One year I traveled to North Carolina, Vegas and Tampa and found Buffalo significantly cheaper. The next year is was cheaper to fly to NYC from Toronto.

We are looking at Buffalo to get to Bangkok in January 2010 but despite being $150 cheaper, it's connection connection as Buffalo is not a 'hub' and Toronto is...saving us about 5 hours of travel time is worth paying a few extra $$.

So as a rule, check both then decide what works best for you in individual circumstances...

Dann

[Reditor]

It can be worth it sometimes. I've flown out of Buffalo before.
The last time I flew out of Buffalo, two of us saved more than $300each...so $600 savings for a direct flight vs a connecting flight from Toronto. The parking was cheaper at the Buffalo airport too. So the overall time/cost was worth it to us. The extra few hours it took us to drive there/back...was made up by not having to switch planes anywhere.

With that said....most times I've checked, the price difference hasn't been worth it...you just get lucky sometimes.