ZIPAIR Tokyo Launches Narita-Vancouver Route, Marking Its Fourth North American Destination with ‘Almost Full Flights’ Until Mid-May

ZIPAIR Tokyo Launches Narita-Vancouver Route, Marking Its Fourth North American Destination with ‘Almost Full Flights’ Until Mid-May

ZIPAIR Tokyo has inaugurated its Tokyo/Narita-Vancouver route today, March 13. Flights from Tokyo/Narita to Vancouver and vice versa will operate three times weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday until July 22, and will increase to five times weekly on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays from July 23.

This expansion brings the carrier’s network to six countries and nine routes, with North American services now comprising four routes with 21 weekly round-trips (increasing to 23 weekly round-trips from July 23), including the currently operational Tokyo/Narita to Los Angeles, San Jose, and San Francisco routes.

One-way fares start from 101,325 yen for the ZIP Full-Flat Value full-flat seats, and from 28,950 yen for Standard Value seats. The U6 Standard Value fixed fare for children under the age of 6 is 10,000 yen. All fares are exclusive of airport usage fees and taxes, and no fuel surcharge is applied.

▲ZIPAIR Tokyo President Shingo Nishida

According to Shingo Nishida, President of ZIPAIR Tokyo, all flights are nearly fully booked from the inaugural flight until mid-May, experiencing “better than expected reservations.” There have been many requests for additional flights due to being fully booked.

When analyzing the bookings by nationality, approximately 50% are Canadian, with the remaining split almost equally between Japanese nationality and other countries. President Nishida speculates that there is a large number of visits to family and friends (VFR) by people with Asian roots.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs statistics, the number of Japanese residents in the Vancouver metropolitan area is 28,305 (as of October 2023), making it the highest in Canada and the eighth highest in the world among metropolitan areas. President Nishida mentioned seeing comments on social media from people saying, “I can finally return,” presumably referring to those staying in Vancouver for studies or working holidays.

The inaugural ZG22 flight from Tokyo/Narita (Boeing 787-8, registration number: JA828J) carried 267 passengers out of 290 seats. As President Nishida and company staff waved banners at the parking area, the plane departed from spot 16 at 4:10 pm. It is expected to arrive in Vancouver at approximately 8:30 am local time.

■Flight Schedule
ZG22 Tokyo/Narita (16:00) to Vancouver (08:30) / Mon, Wed, Sat (March 13 – March 30)
ZG22 Tokyo/Narita (15:40) to Vancouver (08:25) / Mon, Wed, Sat (March 31 – June 30), Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri, Sun (October 1 – October 26)
ZG22 Tokyo/Narita (15:40) to Vancouver (08:45) / Mon, Wed, Sat (July 1 – July 22), Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri, Sun (July 23 – September 30)
ZG21 Vancouver (10:30) to Tokyo/Narita (13:00+1) / Mon, Wed, Sat (March 13 – March 30)
ZG21 Vancouver (10:25) to Tokyo/Narita (12:25+1) / Mon, Wed, Sat (March 30 – June 30), Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri, Sun (October 1 – October 26)
ZG21 Vancouver (10:45) to Tokyo/Narita (12:25+1) / Mon, Wed, Sat (July 1 – July 22), Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri, Sun (July 23 – September 30)

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The translation may not be accurate.