Air Canada offers a fulsome lounge network across eleven different Canadian Cities. With Canada being such a broad country, it’s admirable that they take care of their customers given that their flights are in much smaller capacity than our neighbours to the south. On a visit to the Prairies, I stopped by the local Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge which has to be among the smallest in the overall system.

Review: Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, Regina International Airport, Canada

This is one of these visits that form no part of any greater trip. I was passing through the area on a not so exciting economy ticket. The unusual part about this lounge, is that I believe it is the smallest Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in the whole lounge network. Since many aspire to a large luxurious space to relax in, the small apartment size of this place makes for an unusual lounge experience.

About Regina International Airport:

Regina, Saskatchewan is in the middle of Canada’s flat prairie belt and there isn’t too much airport traffic to and from this small place. The airport served 1,200,000 passengers in the year 2018. Although it’s an International port of entry, the facility is only designed to handle one hundred and twenty passengers at any one given arrival time. If there are any larger aircraft, they have to unload the aircraft in stages. At the moment, the airport only offers international seasonal flights to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and Phoenix and Las Vegas in the United States.

Locating the Maple Leaf Lounge:

I checked in for my flight on the main floor of the Regina International Airport in Saskatchewan. I am usually a face to face check in guy over a kiosk where at all possible. However, it’s especially important here as the lounge itself is not manned and there is no reception agent. The check in counter will provide a door code for the entry door if for some reason the bar code on your boarding pass isn’t coded to provide you with access.

After checking in, I headed up to the second floor to the departures level.

The lounge itself is situated after security on the right hand side. After security, there is a choice of Tim Hortons, Skyway Bar and Lounge or the Maple Leaf Lounge if you have access.

Accessing the Lounge:

The lounge was accessed today courtesy of Air Canada Aeroplan Elite / Star Alliance Gold Status. Access is also granted for customers travelling in Star Alliance Business Class or Star Alliance Gold card holders from a reciprocal frequent flier program. Per the exact terms and conditions:

• Maple Leaf Lounges are reserved for customers departing on flights operated by Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge, Air Canada Express or a Star Alliance member airline. Exception: Aeroplan Super Elite, Aeroplan 75K and 50K Members as well as their qualifying guests may access the domestic Maple Leaf Lounges at airports in Canada and the U.S. upon arriving on an Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge or Air Canada Express flight.
• At the reception desk, eligible customers must present their same-day ticket or boarding pass on a departing flight operated by Air Canada, Air Canada Express, Air Canada Rouge or any Star Alliance member airline. They may also be required to present their Aeroplan Elite Status or Star Alliance Gold membership card.

Access is also provided through select Canadian Credit Cards issued by American Express, or by holding an Air Canada Maple Leaf Club annual lounge membership.

Inside the Regina Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge:

This has to be the smallest Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge in the system. While many aspire to large relaxing spaces in order to spend their time, this one was decidedly modest in square footage.

It offered the usual deep blue Air Canada Maple Leaf Loungers, spread out in a rectangular formation.

Food and Beverage:

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges usually offer a reasonable level of catering. This was no different at this location, save the much smaller volume that was passing through this place. There were breakfast items at the time I passed through, which included muffins, toasts and other pastries.

Entertainment in the Lounge:

In terms of entertainment, there were some old school Canadian published magazines that didn’t appear all to exciting. There was also a flight information monitor that recorded all departing flights.

I didn’t stay too long. Unfortunately, the lounge itself had all the excitement of a library without your favourite books. I ended up venturing over to the gate for my propellor flight on Air Canada Express to Calgary.

In summary:

The Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge met my needs and expectations for a lounge. Although it was small and compact, it offered wifi, some light snacks and a place to relax before your flight. It is probably also entertainingly so the smallest lounge in the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge network. If you visit, make sure you stop by the check in counters before going through security to ensure that you access privileges are sorted out (especially if accessing using a partner credit card) as the lounge isn’t regularly manned.

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