TORONTO — Air Canada prolonged St. Paddy’s Day celebrations from the weekend with an event in Toronto last night, during which the airline promoted new routes to the Emerald Isle.

New flights and extra capacity include Air Canada’s new nonstop Toronto-Shannon and Montreal-Dublin routes starting this summer, and the Vancouver-Dublin and Toronto-Dublin routes moving to the mainline Air Canada product.

“It’s been a long time, almost 10 years since Air Canada last flew into Shannon from Toronto,” said Declan Power, Head of Aviation Development, Shannon Airport. “Even by Irish standards, that’s a long courtship.

“We’ve been engaged with them for the last 10 years and now we’re delighted to know that the wedding will finally take place on the 4th of June when Air Canada will come back into Shannon.”

Jim Kelly, Ambassador of Ireland to Canada was also in attendance, and was credited with creating stronger ties between Ireland and Canada in both business and travel. “Connectivity is the lifeblood of trade, connectivity is the lifeblood of tourism, and both have flourished more than ever in recent years,” he said.

The new routes will continue to expand the capacity that Ireland has been enjoying from airlines in recent years. The Shannon route, in particular, will add convenience to many tours that start and/or end on the western side of the island.

For more information, go to aircanada.com.