Hidden airline and hotel fees in Canada: checked-bag charges, seat selection, change and cancellation terms, hotel resort and amenity fees, booking-site charges, and the Canadian drip-pricing rules that limit how prices may be advertised, with the checks to run before you pay.
Applies in: across Canada
Hidden airline and hotel fees are the charges added after the advertised fare or room rate: checked-bag fees, seat selection charges, change and cancellation terms that cost money to use, hotel resort, destination, and amenity fees, booking-site service charges, and taxes on top. This guide covers what each charge is, the Canadian drip-pricing rules that limit how prices may be advertised, and the checks to run before you pay. This guide was checked November 4, 2026, against the pages in Sources. It states no company recommendation and ranks no company. It states no WestJet bag fee figure, no seat selection fee figure, no change or cancellation fee figure, and no hotel resort, destination, amenity, or booking-site fee figure, because no such figure was verified on an airline, hotel, or booking-site page. Where a figure or term was not verified, this guide states a check instead of a figure.
Drip pricing is the practice of advertising a low price and then adding mandatory fees during the purchase, so the advertised price is not attainable. The Competition Bureau defines it in those terms: when companies offer low prices to attract consumers, but then add mandatory fees so that the advertised prices are not attainable, it affects consumers' abilities to make informed decisions, according to Competition Bureau, Drip pricing. The exception the Bureau states is narrow. The practice raises concerns under the Competition Act, unless the additional fixed charges or fees are imposed by the government on purchasers, such as sales tax, on the same page.
The Bureau's best-practice wording for businesses is direct: never promote an unattainable price, because promoting a price that is not attainable due to fixed charges or fees that consumers must pay is against the law, unless it is a charge or fee only in an amount imposed by an act of Parliament or the legislature on purchasers, according to Competition Bureau, Drip pricing. A variable charge can still raise concerns: if that charge or fee is variable rather than being fixed, it could still raise concerns under the law, on the same page. For a traveller, the Bureau's consumer signs are the practical test. The price you see is not the price you pay. The true total cost of a product or service is not displayed upfront, and you should not have to scroll down or read the fine print to find the total price. There are additional charges you were not expecting, and the only mandatory fees you should pay are the fixed ones imposed by the government on purchasers, such as sales tax, on the same page.
That test applies to a flight fare and to a hotel rate alike. If the advertised fare cannot be paid without a mandatory bag, seat, or service line added later, or the advertised nightly rate cannot be paid without a mandatory per-night property fee added later, the listing shows the Bureau's warning signs. If a listing shows those signs today, the Bureau's page provides a route to report it, according to Competition Bureau, Drip pricing. This guide gives no legal advice about any single quote. As background only, and not as a rule that a fee must appear in the first price shown, a Quebec Superior Court decision dated February 19, 2024 (Lussier v. Expedia) dismissed a resort-fee display class action where the fees were announced early in the booking process. That is a court outcome about the facts of that case, not a statement about any price shown today, and it does not change the checks in this guide: read the itemized total before paying, whatever the first screen showed.
Bag fees are not one price per airline. They depend on the fare you bought, the route, the purchase date, and when you pay for the bag. For Air Canada, the figures verified are for a defined set of fares, purchase window, and routes. For Economy Basic and Standard fares purchased on or after April 13, 2026, for travel within Canada and to or from the U.S. (including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America, the 1st checked bag is CA/US$45 and the 2nd checked bag is CA/US$60. For Economy Flex fares in the same scope and purchase window, the 1st checked bag is free and the 2nd checked bag is CA/US$60. Prices exclude taxes, according to Air Canada, Baggage fee changes. Air Canada's page also lists, as of May 14, 2026, long-haul figures of $90 for a 1st bag and $120 for a 2nd bag on Economy Basic fares; that date and long-haul scope are part of the figure, and it is not carried here as a general rate.
WestJet is covered by mechanism only, deliberately. WestJet's bag fees vary by fare, by route, and by when you pay (prepaying, paying at check-in, or paying at the airport). Check what carry-on your fare includes, and read the fee for your bag at the point where you will pay for it, because no WestJet fare or carry-on rule is stated here from a WestJet page. No WestJet dollar figure was verified on a westjet.com page, so no WestJet figure is stated here. Secondary-site WestJet figures were not carried as fact. The check is to open WestJet's service-fees page, enter your fare, route, and purchase date, and read the fee for your bag at the point where you will pay for it, because the same bag can cost a different amount prepaid, at check-in, and at the airport.
Three further bag checks apply to any airline. First, confirm whether the bag fee is charged per bag and per direction: if it is, a return trip with two bags is four bag charges, not two, unless your fare says otherwise. Second, the fee on the airline's page for your fare and purchase date is the figure that binds you, not a figure quoted for a different fare or an earlier purchase window. Third, confirm whether an overweight or oversized bag carries a separate charge on top of the standard bag fee, and read the weight and size limits for your fare before you pack. This guide states no overweight or oversized figure for any airline, because none was verified on an airline page.
Seat selection is a separate purchase from the fare on many tickets. Seat fees vary by seat and by fare: a standard seat, an extra-legroom seat, and a preferred seat can carry different charges, and some fares include seat selection while others charge per seat. This guide states no seat fee figure for any airline, because none was verified on an airline page. The check is to open the seat map for your flight, read which seats are free and which are paid under your fare, and add the seat charges to the fare before comparing it with another ticket.
Change and cancellation terms are where a cheap fare can become expensive after purchase. Basic fares often exclude changes or refunds, or allow a change only at the fare difference plus a fee. This guide states no change fee or cancellation fee figure for any airline, because none was verified on an airline page, and it states the mechanism as a fare-terms check, not a figure. The checks before paying are: whether your fare allows changes at all, whether it allows refunds at all, whether a change costs the fare difference alone or the fare difference plus a fee, and the deadline for making a change. A fare that cannot be changed is not a hidden fee, but it is a cost if your plans change, so read the terms as part of the price, not after it.
A hotel's nightly rate is often not the nightly total. A resort fee, destination fee, or amenity fee is a charge the property adds on top of the room rate, commonly described as covering amenities or services at the property. It is charged per night at the property in many cases rather than once per stay, and it may be collected at booking or at the hotel. This guide states no dollar figure for any resort, destination, or amenity fee, because none was verified on a hotel or booking-site page. The checks are: the itemized total, whether the fee is per night or per stay, whether it is collected at booking or at the hotel, and whether taxes apply on top of it. Multiply a per-night fee by the number of nights before comparing the stay with another property, because a small per-night line becomes a large total over a week.
A booking-site service charge is a separate line from the property's fee. A booking site may add its own service charge on top of the room rate and the property fee, and taxes sit on top of some or all of those lines. This guide states no booking-site service charge figure, because none was verified on a booking-site page. The check is the itemized total at the final payment screen, with every line named: room rate, property fee, booking-site service charge, and taxes. If a line appears only at the final screen that was not in the advertised total, the listing shows the Competition Bureau's warning signs in section 1. Compare stays by the itemized total for the same dates, room type, and number of guests, not by the headline nightly rate.
Before you pay for a flight. Confirm the fare family and the purchase date, because both decide the bag fee. Confirm the bag fee for each bag, in each direction, at the point where you will pay for it. Confirm which seats are free and which are paid under your fare. Confirm whether the fare allows changes and refunds, and whether a change costs the fare difference alone or the fare difference plus a fee. Add the fare, the bag fees, and the seat charges together, and compare that total with the total for another fare or another flight.
Before you pay for a hotel. Confirm the itemized total: room rate, property fee, booking-site service charge, and taxes. Confirm whether the property fee is per night or per stay, and whether it is collected at booking or at the hotel. Confirm the cancellation terms for the room, including any deadline, because a non-refundable rate is a cost if plans change. Compare stays by the itemized total for the same dates, room type, and number of guests.
What to screenshot. Screenshot the advertised price, the itemized total at each step of booking, the fare terms, and the hotel fee lines, including whether each fee is per night or per stay and where it is collected. Keep the booking confirmation and every receipt. If the total charged differs from the total shown, or a mandatory fee appeared only after the advertised price, the reporting routes are the Competition Bureau's report route for drip pricing, according to Competition Bureau, Drip pricing, and, for a dispute with an airline itself, the Canadian Transportation Agency complaint route covered in the related guide below. This guide states no refund or cancellation terms for any airline or hotel, because none were verified on the pages; the refund and cancellation terms for your booking are a check to read before paying, not a fact stated here.
This guide states no WestJet bag fee figure of any kind, no seat selection fee figure for any airline, no change or cancellation fee figure for any airline, no overweight or oversized bag fee figure for any airline, no hotel resort, destination, or amenity fee figure for any property or booking site, no booking-site service charge figure, and no tax rate for any province, territory, or destination. It states no general airline or hotel fee terms beyond the pages cited in Sources. The only fee figures stated are the ones verified on the Air Canada page: the Economy Basic and Standard 1st bag CA/US$45 and 2nd bag CA/US$60, the Economy Flex 1st bag free and 2nd bag CA/US$60, all for fares purchased on or after April 13, 2026, within Canada and to or from the U.S. (including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America, with prices excluding taxes, plus the May 14, 2026 long-haul Economy Basic figures of $90 and $120 stated with that date and scope. Each figure is labelled with its fare, purchase window, and route scope, and none is presented as a market rate. For every check in this guide, read the fare terms, the hotel fee lines, and the itemized total for the booking in front of you.
Advertising a price that is not attainable because mandatory fees are added later is the practice the Competition Bureau calls drip pricing, and the Bureau's position is that promoting an unattainable price is against the law unless the added amount is imposed by government on purchasers, such as sales tax, according to [Competition Bureau, Drip pricing](https://competition-bureau.canada.ca/deceptive-marketing-practices/drip-pricing). The Bureau's consumer signs are that the price you see is not the price you pay, the true total cost is not displayed upfront, and additional charges appear that you were not expecting, on the same page. This guide gives no legal advice about any single quote. If a quote shows the Bureau's warning signs, report it through the Bureau's report route on the drip pricing page, and keep a record of each screen you saw.
For Economy Basic and Standard fares purchased on or after April 13, 2026, for travel within Canada and to or from the U.S. (including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands), Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America, the 1st checked bag is CA/US$45 and the 2nd checked bag is CA/US$60. For Economy Flex fares in the same scope and purchase window, the 1st checked bag is free and the 2nd checked bag is CA/US$60. Prices exclude taxes, according to [Air Canada, Baggage fee changes](https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/book/travel-news-and-updates/baggage-fee-changes.html). Those figures apply only to that fare set, purchase window, and route scope. A fare bought earlier, a different fare family, or a different route may carry different fees, so confirm the bag fee for your own ticket on the airline's page before you pay.
WestJet's bag fees vary by fare, by route, and by when you pay (prepaying, paying at check-in, or paying at the airport). Check what carry-on your fare includes, and read the fee for your bag at the point where you will pay for it, because no WestJet fare or carry-on rule is stated here from a WestJet page. No WestJet dollar figure was verified on a westjet.com page, and secondary-site figures were deliberately not carried as fact, so this guide states a check instead of a figure: open WestJet's service-fees page, enter your fare, route, and purchase date, and read the fee for your bag at the point where you will pay for it. Do not carry a figure from a secondary site into your budget, because the fee that binds you is the one on the airline's own page for your fare and payment point.
It is a charge the property adds on top of the room rate, commonly described as covering amenities or services at the property, and it is charged per night at the property in many cases rather than once per stay. This guide states no dollar figure for any resort, destination, or amenity fee, because none was verified on a hotel or booking-site page. The checks before paying are: the itemized total, whether the fee is per night or per stay, whether it is collected at booking or at the hotel, and whether taxes apply on top of it. A booking-site service charge is a separate line from the property's fee, so read both lines, not just the nightly room rate.
Do not assume seat selection or flexibility is included in the fare. This guide states no seat fee, change fee, or cancellation fee figure, because none was verified on an airline page. The checks are: whether your fare includes seat selection or charges per seat, which seats are free and which are paid, whether your fare allows changes or refunds at all, and whether a change costs the fare difference alone or the fare difference plus a fee. Read those terms on the fare page for your ticket before paying, because the cheapest headline fare can be the fare with the least flexibility.
Screenshot the advertised price, the itemized total at each step of booking, the fare terms, and the hotel fee lines, including whether each fee is per night or per stay and where it is collected. If a mandatory fee appeared only after the advertised price, or the total charged differs from the total shown, the Competition Bureau's drip pricing page provides a route to report it, according to [Competition Bureau, Drip pricing](https://competition-bureau.canada.ca/deceptive-marketing-practices/drip-pricing). For a dispute with an airline itself, the Canadian Transportation Agency complaint route is covered in the related guide listed below. Keep every screenshot and receipt, because a dispute turns on what was shown and when.