Toronto's Best Airports: Which One Should You Choose?

Toronto is a cosmopolitan city with a range of attractions for tourists, including beaches, nightlife, and food. The city and its surrounding areas are served by several airports, with Toronto Pearson International Airport being the largest and busiest airport in Canada. Located in Mississauga, it is around 22.5 kilometres from downtown Toronto. Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, also known as the Toronto Island Airport, is another option, situated just offshore downtown Toronto on the Toronto Islands. Hamilton International Airport is also an alternative, located an hour outside of Toronto, and is a good option for those visiting the Niagara Wine Region.

Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ)

Toronto Pearson International Airport (IATA: YYZ, ICAO: CYYZ) is the largest and busiest airport in Canada. Located in Mississauga, Ontario, it is the main airport serving Toronto and its metropolitan area, situated 22.5 kilometres (14.0 mi) northwest of Downtown Toronto. The airport is named after Lester B. Pearson, the 14th Prime Minister of Canada and 1957 Nobel Peace Prize laureate.

Toronto Pearson International Airport has two active public terminals, Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, which handle domestic, transborder, and international flights. Terminal 1 is a large facility with 58 gates, covering 346,000 square metres (3,724,000 sq ft). The former Terminal 2 was closed and demolished in 2008 to make way for the expansion of Terminal 1. The airport has five runways and covers a total area of 1,867 hectares (4,613 acres), with numerous cargo, maintenance, and aerospace production facilities.

As of 2023, the airport handled 44.8 million passengers, serving international travel with various airlines. Combined with Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport and John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport, Toronto's airport system served over 53 million passengers in 2018, making it the 31st busiest in the world.

The airport is accessible via various transportation options, with ongoing studies to improve connectivity. Metrolinx is considering an extension to connect the airport to Midtown Toronto, Scarborough, and Downtown Toronto by 2030-31. Other potential connections under consideration include the Line 6 Finch West and the Mississauga Transitway to link the airport with nearby city centres.

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ)

Toronto has two airports: Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) and Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ). Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is located on the Toronto Islands, southwest of downtown Toronto. It is a regional airport that was previously known as Toronto City Centre Airport. The airport is accessible through a pedestrian tunnel at the foot of Eireann Quay, which has moving sidewalks and elevators at both ends. The airport is named after Billy Bishop, a Canadian World War I flying ace and World War II Air Marshal.

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is just minutes from downtown Toronto and has convenient locations, making it easy to get to and get out of. The airport is open daily from 5:00 AM to 11:00 PM, with check-in and security processes in place. The airport provides a number of services to ensure a smooth and convenient travel experience, including complimentary baggage carts, nursing pods, and a secure Lost and Found. It also offers duty-free shopping for luxury items, gifts, souvenirs, and travel essentials.

The airport has one main east-west runway, a shorter runway at a 20-degree angle, and a seaplane base called the Billy Bishop Toronto City Water Aerodrome. It is used for regional airline services, general aviation, medical evacuation flights, small charter flights, and private aviation. Jet aircraft are banned from the airport, except for MEDEVAC flights. The CBSA officers at the airport can accommodate aircraft with up to 90 passengers, but it does not have United States border preclearance.

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport has been recognised for its quality, being named the "Best Airport in North America" in two categories in 2017 based on customer surveys. However, in 2019, it was ranked 124th in the world and the worst in Canada by AirHelp, with ratings of 5.8/10 for on-time performance, 8.1/10 for service, and 7.0/10 for food and service.

John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport

The airport opened in 1940 as Mount Hope Airport, primarily serving as a Royal Canadian Air Force base. After World War II, the base closed and the airport began catering to regional and international passenger services. Today, it serves the city of Hamilton and adjacent areas of Southern Ontario, including the Greater Toronto Area. It is the third-largest cargo airport in Canada and the largest overnight express cargo airport in the country.

The airport has undergone several operational changes over the years, with different airlines commencing and terminating services. In 2023, Icelandic airline Play announced plans to introduce flights between Hamilton and Reykjavík, although this route is scheduled to end in April 2025. Hamilton Airport is a base for low-cost carriers offering domestic and transatlantic routes.

Niagara Falls International Airport

Toronto has two airports: Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) and Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ). However, you also have the option of choosing Niagara Falls International Airport, which is located 4 miles (6.4 km) east of downtown Niagara Falls, in the Town of Niagara in Niagara County, New York, United States.

History

The airport opened in 1928 as a municipal airport with four crushed-stone runways. During World War II, Bell Aircraft established a manufacturing plant next to the airport, where it built over 10,000 P-39 Airacobras and P-63 Kingcobras. After the war, the plant was the development site of the Bell X-1, which was used by Chuck Yeager to break the sound barrier in 1947. The airport's main runway was extended to over 9,000 feet (2,743 m) in 1959 to accommodate larger military aircraft and was extended again in 2003 to its current length of 9,829 feet (2,996 m). A new terminal building opened in 2009, with the previous one now occupied by the Niagara Aerospace Museum.

Airlines

Several airlines have served Niagara Falls International Airport over the years. American Airlines operated until 1956, while Air Niagara, a post-deregulation airline, flew to Newark and Kennedy Airports with Boeing 727-100 jetliners from 1982 to 1984. Empire Airlines served the airport in the mid-1980s, flying to various destinations using Fokker F28 Fellowship jets and Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner commuter propjets. In 1998, Kiwi International Air Lines briefly provided service to Newark Airport with Boeing 727-200 jets. Direct Air initiated nonstop jet service to several destinations, including Myrtle Beach, Palm Beach, and Lakeland Linder International Airport in Florida, but ended all service at Niagara Falls International Airport in March 2012. In December 2010, Vision Airlines began jet service on behalf of People Express Airlines to Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport, but this service was discontinued in 2014. Spirit Airlines operated jet flights from the airport starting in January 2011 but suspended all flights in October 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Considerations

While Niagara Falls International Airport is located in the United States, it is notable for serving a significant number of Canadian passengers from over the nearby border. This airport could be a good option if you are coming from or connecting through the northeastern United States, as it is served by Porter Airlines, which serves several airports in Canada and the US. Additionally, transportation options between Toronto and Buffalo, which is about 2.5 hours away from the airport, are excellent and may provide an alternative for those travelling on a budget despite the inconvenience of the border crossing and the extra commute.

Buffalo, New York (alternative airport)

Toronto is served by Toronto Pearson International Airport, Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, and John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport. However, Buffalo Niagara International Airport in Buffalo, New York, is a viable alternative airport option for those travelling to or near Toronto.

The airspace above Buffalo is often busy with flight traffic due to its proximity to Toronto's airports. Buffalo's airport is the largest in Upstate New York by passenger traffic, averaging 4.5–5.5 million passengers per year. The airport is served by the Kensington Expressway (NY Route 33), which ends at the airport and continues directly into downtown Buffalo with a drive time of approximately 10–15 minutes.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Buffalo regularly hosted wide-body passenger jets. Today, Buffalo still hosts many mainline passenger jets, but scheduled flights are usually narrow-body (single-aisle) aircraft. The airport offers nonstop service to 31 airports across the United States and seasonal international flights to the Dominican Republic and Mexico.

The proximity of Buffalo Niagara International Airport to the 9.2 million residents of the Golden Horseshoe region in Ontario, which includes the metropolitan areas of Greater Toronto and Hamilton, makes it a popular airport for Canadians travelling to the United States. The airport is easily accessible by road, and public transport options are also available for the journey from the airport to Toronto.

Frequently asked questions