No Middle Seat: Porter’s New Sun Routes From Ottawa Just Got Even Better
Winter in the National Capital Region has its charms. Sunlight before 5 p.m. is not one of them.
Porter Airlines is leaning hard into that reality, rolling out five new nonstop “sun” routes from Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport (YOW) to the Caribbean and Mexico—flown on a jet that removes one of economy travel’s most persistent annoyances: the middle seat.
Every one of these flights is operated by Porter’s Embraer E195-E2 fleet in a 2–2 layout, so your only decision is window or aisle. No center seat roulette. No negotiating armrests with a stranger. For anyone who flies regularly (and anyone who doesn’t want to), that’s a meaningful upgrade—especially on longer leisure sectors.
Ottawa’s Winter Escape List: Five New Nonstops From YOW
Porter’s new YOW departures span Mexico, the Bahamas, Costa Rica, and the Cayman Islands—markets that have historically been more “connect through Toronto or Montreal” than “walk up at home and go.”
Here’s what’s coming online (or just went live):
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Nassau (NAS) – Lynden Pindling International Airport: weekly service (launches Dec. 13)
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Puerto Vallarta (PVR) – Lic. Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport: up to 6x weekly (launches Dec. 13)
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Cancún (CUN) – Cancún International Airport: up to 6x weekly (launches Dec. 17)
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Liberia, Costa Rica (LIR) – Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport: daily (launches Dec. 17)
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Grand Cayman (GCM) – Owen Roberts International Airport: 2x weekly (launches Dec. 19)
For YOW specifically, LIR and GCM are particularly notable additions—thin-but-valuable leisure markets that can be difficult to sustain without the right aircraft size and cost base.
Why the Embraer E195-E2 Is the Secret Sauce Here
Porter’s expansion beyond turboprops has been built around the Embraer E195-E2, and this schedule is a perfect example of why the jet matters.
A few avgeek-friendly details that make the E195-E2 a strong tool for routes like YOW–CUN or YOW–LIR:
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Cabin layout: 2–2 seating means no middle seats, period. Porter configures the E195-E2 with 132 seats, which helps right-size demand without needing 180–200-seat narrowbody economics.
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Powerplants: Pratt & Whitney PW1900G geared turbofans—built to reduce fuel burn and noise versus older-gen regional jets, and a big reason the E2 family can stretch into longer stage lengths efficiently.
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“Big jet” feel in a right-sized package: the E2’s overhead bins and cabin proportions make it feel less like a traditional regional jet and more like a mainline narrowbody—without forcing the airport to fill an A320 every day to keep a route viable.
The result is a rare combination: longer-range leisure flying with a premium-feeling economy experience, but without the capacity risk that comes with larger jets in seasonally spiky markets.
Porter at YOW: This Is What Commitment Looks Like
Porter’s Ottawa growth isn’t a one-season experiment. The airline has steadily built YOW into a core base—now advertising 24 nonstop routes from Ottawa this winter, more than any other carrier at the airport.
The signal that matters most to operations-minded readers: Porter also runs a major maintenance base at YOW, anchored by two large hangars supporting both the Embraer E195-E2 and the De Havilland Dash 8-400 fleet. In airline terms, that’s not just capacity—it’s infrastructure. And infrastructure is what turns “we fly here” into “we’re staying here.”
The Onboard Pitch: Elevated Economy, Without the Usual Fine Print
Porter has been remarkably consistent about product basics across its network, and the E195-E2 routes are where it all comes together:
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Complimentary snacks
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Free beer and wine served in glassware
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Fast onboard connectivity (Porter’s free Wi-Fi is tied to its free loyalty sign-up, so most passengers can access it with minimal friction)
On a leisure route, those details matter more than people admit. Nobody books YOW–PVR (Puerto Vallarta) for champagne service—but small touches and a comfortable seat map can be the difference between “fine” and “I’d fly that again.”
More Sun (and More U.S.) Still Coming From Ottawa
Porter’s winter build-out from YOW doesn’t stop with beaches. Two more notable additions are on the way:
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Miami (MIA) – Miami International Airport: launches Jan. 24, 2026
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Phoenix (PHX) – Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport: launches Feb. 7, 2026
And for travelers heading south, YOW’s U.S. preclearance remains an underappreciated advantage: clear U.S. formalities before departure and arrive like a domestic passenger on the other end—a real quality-of-life upgrade at airports like EWR (Newark) or MCO (Orlando) during peak periods.
Bonus Avgeek Note: Porter’s Hamilton (YHM) Expansion Is Also Leaning Leisure
While Ottawa (YOW) grabs the headlines, Porter has also been building out John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport (YHM) as a leisure-friendly alternative in Southern Ontario.
New YHM launches include:
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Orlando (MCO) – Orlando International Airport: began Dec. 12 (3x weekly)
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Fort Lauderdale (FLL) – Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport: begins Dec. 13 (3x weekly)
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Cancún (CUN) – begins Dec. 17 (up to 4x weekly)
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Puerto Vallarta (PVR) – begins Dec. 18 (2x weekly)
It’s the same playbook: right-sized jet, high-frequency leisure demand, and routes that are easier to sustain when you’re not trying to fill a larger narrowbody every day of the week.
Bottom Line
Porter’s five new “no middle seat” sun routes from Ottawa (YOW) are exactly the kind of expansion that makes sense in 2025: right-sized aircraft, nonstop convenience, and a product that feels meaningfully better than standard economy—especially on longer leisure sectors.
With launches to Nassau (NAS), Puerto Vallarta (PVR), Cancún (CUN), Liberia (LIR), and Grand Cayman (GCM)—plus upcoming adds to Miami (MIA) and Phoenix (PHX)—Porter is positioning YOW as far more than a regional spoke. It’s becoming a genuine winter gateway, and the Embraer E195-E2 is the airplane making it possible.
