Air Transat Baggage Fees: How to Save Money

If you are a Canadian who enjoys visiting tropical destinations, you more than likely have heard of Air Transat. Located in Montreal, Air Transat is well known for offering chartered flights to many tropical destinations that are often highly desirable to those who are looking to escape the harsh Canadian winters.

In fact, you might be one of many Canadians who have used Air Transat for their vacation packages, making it easy to pay one total cost for your next all-inclusive vacation to Mexico. As with air travel on any airline, being aware of the ins and outs of baggage fees can go a long way in keeping your vacation cheap.

Let’s take a look at Air Transat, their baggage fees, and how you can save money on baggage for your next Air Transat flight.

Air Transat Overview

Air Transat is a Canadian airline headquartered in Montreal that operates chartered flights to over 60 international destinations. While they offer normal flight bookings, a big focus of their operations is vacation packages, allowing customers to conveniently book their flight and hotel in one package for one flat cost.

Air Transat Cabin Baggage Fees

Cabin baggage is complimentary for all passengers on Air Transat and includes one personal item and one carry-on luggage per passenger.

Personal items have no maximum weight restrictions but must be at most 12” x 17” x 5” in size and must fit underneath the seat in front of you. Personal items include things such as laptop bags, purses, small backpacks, and camera bags.

All passengers on Air Transat flights are able to bring one piece of carry-on luggage which must be stowed in the overhead bin or under the seat. While there are no weight restrictions for carry-on luggage, the maximum size is 20” x 16” x 9”. Note that this size does include handles and wheels, not just the main part of the luggage.

Carry-on luggage may be sized at check-in and prior to boarding, so ensure your luggage is within the sizing requirements. While you may be able to get away with a piece of carry-on luggage that is larger than the maximum sizing requirements, there is always a risk so don’t be surprised if you are asked to gate-check your oversized carry-on bag.

Since both personal items and carry-on baggage are complimentary on Air Transat, consider flying with minimal luggage if you are looking to save on baggage fees.

Air Transat Checked Baggage Fees

Checked baggage is typically not free on Air Transat flights, with a few exceptions.

All checked baggage must be a maximum of 50 lbs (or 23 kg) and 62” or less in size (combined length, width, and height). The maximum weight and sizing requirements are consistent with baggage policies on many other Canadian airlines.

There is not one universal price for checked baggage when flying on Air Transat. Checked baggage fees vary based on route and fare type, so passengers should always look into what their baggage allowance is before flying. Some international routes also offer the first checked bag at no cost; the ability to purchase additional checked baggage is available as well.

How to Save Money on Air Transat Baggage Fees

Cabin baggage, including both carry-on luggage and a personal item, is free with Air Transat which means if you are able to travel light, you will be saving money on every flight. If you want to become a smarter traveler, check out our Frugal Luggage Guide.

However, checked luggage is a different story. Since Air Transat does not have a loyalty program with levels of status that offer free checked bags like Air Canada Aeroplan, nor do they offer a credit card with free checked baggage like the WestJet RBC World Elite Mastercard, there are not many ways to save money on Air Transat checked baggage fees.

Before you book a flight with Air Transat, you should check out their baggage allowance and baggage fee calculator here. For example, a quick search of flying Calgary (YYC) to Cancun (CUN) in economy class shows the following checked baggage allowance and fees:

This tool is the quickest way to understand your Air Transat baggage allowance based on your fare type, in addition to what it would cost to add a piece of checked luggage to your itinerary. This simple chart should give you all the information you need to make an educated decision about what luggage you plan on traveling with before your next Air Transat flight.

If you must fly with checked baggage, pre-paying for baggage is always going to be cheaper than paying at the airport when flying with Air Transat.

Conclusion

If you are looking to visit a tropical destination in the near future, Air Transat will most likely come up on your list of possible airlines. Before you book, ensure you understand how baggage allowances and baggage fees on Air Transat work for your desired route to ensure you are not out of pocket for any additional expenses.

Frequently Asked Questions