Canadian Gift Guide

This week’s posts will probably be a little light on the imagery, so if that bores you, I apologize in advance, it’s just the nature of my gift giving suggestions.

Anyway, apparently I live under a rock. Sort of anyway (I actually live on one) – I was vaguely aware of Air Canada’s pass program, I just didn’t realize how expansive it had gotten. If you’re unfamiliar, Air Canada offers several different options that basically give you ‘credits’ on a flight pass within a certain zone over a specific period of time (generally annually). If you work out the per flight cost, it generally averages out to much less than what you’d pay to buy the flights individually.

One of the products they offer is  a student pass, which gives you six one-way flight credits for as low as $875 (for a ‘Western Canada’ pass that lets you take short-haul flights between BC and Alberta’s major cities). If you’re a parent that has recently sent your young un’ off to school, or a spouse doing the long-distance thing while your hubby gets their Masters abroad, this might be a pretty nifty gift to ensure you see your loved one during the school year.

Obviously, this is an extravagant gift. However, many of my friends that have moved abroad – for school or otherwise – often get flights home paid for by their parents, just to make sure their cash-strapped counterparts actually DO come home at some point, other than summer break. Instead of shelling out $1000 for a holiday visit, why not get the flight pass to guarantee your kid comes home, and then some? Whether they choose to use it for a much-needed holiday during reading break or to pop home for a special occasion, the student pass is a pretty swell travel gift, especially if you were planning to splurge in the first place.

Air Canada offers a ton of flexible options in the Student Pass, and with their other flight pass products. If you’re one of those couples that forgoes buying ‘surprise’ Christmas gifts in favour of a trip abroad each year, why not look into the flight pass in your region and see if there’s some nearby destinations you’d like to visit instead? Five round-trip flights a piece could set you back as little as $2,000-$3,000 a person, which again, when you do the math is pretty affordable. They also have options for unlimited flying within a certain zone, if your loved one is doing a project in the not-too-distant-region for a little while and you want to spend weekends together.

Like I said, obviously this is an extravagant gift option, but there are some people out there who really do cherish travelling or will pay to see their kids come Christmas (as brutal as that sounds, when you put it so bluntly). One final suggestion? Parents + wedding parties could pool their wedding gift monies together and buy a pass for the bride and groom to go on a multi-destination honeymoon.