VIA Rail Canada has entered a partnership with Hainan Airlines, the first agreement of its kind with a China-based carrier. This collaboration is also the first time an airline will sell VIA Rail tickets directly, enabling passengers to book combined air and rail journeys on a single itinerary.
Under the agreement, Hainan Airlines’ ticket offices and affiliated travel agencies can include VIA Rail segments when issuing tickets, producing a single electronic ticket and boarding documents that cover both the flight and the train portions of a trip. This simplifies travel planning for Hainan Airlines customers coming from China who intend to travel by train in Canada, allowing them to reserve both air and rail legs in one transaction. The same convenience will be available to VIA Rail customers connecting in Toronto before continuing on Hainan Airlines flights to China.
“We are pleased to announce our first partnership with a Chinese airline and our inaugural combined air-rail ticket offering,” said Martin R. Landry, chief commercial officer at VIA Rail. “China represents the world’s largest travel market by spending, and tourism between China and Canada has been expanding in recent years. At the same time, many Canadians remain interested in visiting China, so this collaboration brings an exciting new option for travellers on both sides.”
This integrated ticketing arrangement reduces the complexity of multi-segment journeys, streamlines check-in and boarding procedures, and helps ensure smoother connections for passengers traveling between Canada and China. By coordinating schedules and ticket issuance, the two carriers aim to improve the overall travel experience and offer greater flexibility for customers planning combined rail and air itineraries.
Beyond convenience, the partner arrangement can support a broader travel ecosystem by making it easier for international visitors to explore Canada’s rail network as part of longer trips. For travellers, booking all segments together can mean fewer separate reservations to manage, clearer baggage transfer and connection policies, and single-point customer service for combined itineraries.
VIA Rail and Hainan Airlines anticipate that the partnership will attract more travellers from both markets, encourage multi-destination trips, and contribute to the ongoing growth in tourism exchange between Canada and China. The agreement reflects a wider trend in the travel industry toward integrated, multimodal ticketing that prioritizes ease of use and seamless connections for passengers.