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The flight from San Francisco to Montreal is a long one. When I saw a decent deal for a business-class ticket on Air Canada, I decided to splurge so I could experience Air Canada’s North American business class product. Between the pre-flight service, Maple Leaf Lounge access, and in-flight experience, I enjoyed my time in Air Canada business class from SFO to YUL.
Pre-Flight And Airport Lounge In San Francisco
My good Air Canada experience started long before the flight. Approximately 10 days before my trip, I received an email saying I could select my food for the journey. While many airlines offer this service, not all of them promote it so actively.
You can select your meal up to 48 hours before. In addition to a few regular dishes, Air Canada also offers a long list of specialty meals to suit your dietary needs.
Speaking of apps, I recommend utilizing the Canada Border Service Agency’s ArriveCAN app. This app enables you to submit all your immigration and customs information before arrival. When I arrived in Montreal, I was able to skip the longest queues, since few people had pre-submitted their information. It’s a huge time saver.
I got to SFO with plenty of time to spare so I could check out the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, one of the nicest lounges in San Francisco.
The boarding process was smooth, although we ended up being slightly delayed. The incoming flight arrived at 10:39 am, and our boarding was supposed to start at 10:50 am. Instead, it started at 11:08 am. This delayed the scheduled departure from 11:25 am to the doors closing at 11:34 am, but we still arrived on time in Montreal.
While I was sitting in my seat, prior to putting my phone on airplane mode, I received an Air Canada app notification that my bag had been loaded onto the plane. Again, this is a nice little touch to reassure travelers.
Packed with info, the Air Canada app is one of the best airline apps I’ve used. It also included timelines for the entire travel day.
Air Canada Boeing 737 MAX 8 Business Class Seat And Cabin Layout
My Air Canada flight from SFO to YUL was on a Boeing 737 MAX 8. The business class section consisted of four rows in a 2×2 arrangement.
Air Canada markets these seats as their North American Business Class. Many airlines market similar seating as first class, but it’s basically the same thing. I did find these Air Canada seats to be a little bit nicer than some other North American airlines, although some of that was due to everything being pretty new.
The seat was nice and wide, plus there was also a decently sized storage area with charging.
Bottled water and headphones were already waiting when I boarded.
Unlike most other North American airlines, the Air Canada business class seat also includes a footrest.
In-Flight Entertainment and Internet
Each Air Canada business class seat is equipped with an in-flight entertainment screen. It was decently sized and also provided additional information, such as the approximate time when the in-flight service would be available.
The entertainment selection was decent, including recent Oscar winners, Apple TV, and HBO. My flight did not have live TV. Only some Air Canada flights offer it.
I ended up watching two decent movies, “A Complete Unknown” and “Saturday Night.”
Prior to takeoff, the safety video was shown on the seatback screen. It started with a land acknowledgement. This was the first time I’d seen an airline do this.
The video also featured clips shot in stunning locations across Canada. Any safety video is improved by sled dogs.
As of mid-2025, Air Canada announced that in-flight internet would now be free for Aeroplan members.
Unfortunately, I was crediting my flight to United and thus didn’t have an Aeroplan account attached to my reservation, so I wasn’t able to take advantage of this. However, at just $8 CAD the price isn’t unreasonable, especially on a long flight from San Francisco to Montreal.
The speed seemed decent (or at least decent enough for me to never experience any frustration with anything not loading).
Air Canada North America Business Class Food & Drink Service
The meal service started with a hot towel shortly after takeoff. Our flight path had excellent views of San Francisco and Oakland.
Next was a bowl of warm nuts. I also had a Canadian Club Rye with Canada Dry ginger ale. I wanted to maximize the Canada in my Air Canada flight experience.
Food and drink menus are available in the Air Canada app.
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As I mentioned above, I had preordered the Honey Ginger Sesame Noodles for my lunch. The noodles were pretty tasty, though a little on the soft side. This was understandable for an in-flight meal.
There was also salad and warm bread (actually hot bread!). The carrot cake was also nice.
After that, I settled in for the rest of the long 5+ hour flight, which was smooth. The flight attendant continued to come around fairly often to see if anyone needed any more drinks.
With about an hour and 45 minutes left in the flight, she came around with a snack basket with chips, sweets, and other items.
We landed at YUL on time, and then it seemed we parked at the furthest gate. After passing through immigration and customs, it was time to explore Montreal.
Air Canada North America Business Class Review Summary
Air Canada’s North American business class was a solid experience. The seat is comparable to other airlines’ domestic business or first class, the food was decent enough, and the service was excellent. I also enjoyed the pre-flight communication and access to the Maple Leaf Lounge at SFO.
