Sea to Sky Air

What Sea to Sky Air does

Sea to Sky Air is a privately held scenic flight tour operator founded in 2003 and based at Squamish Airport in British Columbia, Canada. The company offers guided aerial sightseeing experiences across the Sea-to-Sky corridor, including the Tantalus Range, Garibaldi Provincial Park, and Howe Sound, using a fleet of Cessna 172 aircraft configured for both land-based and floatplane operations. Its product portfolio spans eight core tour packages ranging from a 25-minute introductory flight ($139 CAD) to a 75-minute customizable Coast Mountain Epic ($719 CAD), supplemented by charter flights to BC destinations, seaplane access to remote alpine lakes, aerial photography and film services, group experiences for up to 9 guests, and a $50 Seasons Pass subscription. The company has been self-described as the "#1 flightseeing company in Canada" by TripAdvisor, with Hall of Fame induction and consecutive Travelers' Choice Awards from 2023 through 2025, and has operated carbon-neutral since 2021.

The business operates on a direct-to-consumer model, selling tours through its website (powered by FareHarbor booking software), phone reservations, and on-site sales at Squamish Airport. Customer segments are diversified across tourists visiting Vancouver, Squamish, and Whistler, local residents, organized groups and corporate retreats, and a smaller commercial segment of professional photographers and film production clients. Revenue is generated primarily through per-flight ticket sales (one-time purchases) with ancillary streams from charter services, gift cards, the Seasons Pass subscription, and bespoke aerial photography commissions. The company employs approximately 11 people, including five named C172 pilots, with ownership held by founder Carlo Galvani alongside Operations Manager and Chief Pilot David Eastwood. There is no disclosed external investment, parent company, or institutional capital backing.

Name

Sea to Sky Air

Legal name

Sea To Sky Air

Website

https://seatoskyair.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sea to Sky Air is a privately held scenic flight tour operator based at Squamish Airport, BC, offering guided Cessna 172 aerial sightseeing experiences, charters, and seaplane trips to tourists, locals, and photography clients across the Sea-to-Sky corridor since 2003.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Scenic Flight Tours and Aerial Tourism Services

NAICS

Other Nonscheduled Air Transportation (481219), Nonscheduled Air Transportation (4812)

SIC

Air Transportation, Nonscheduled (4522)

akta.pro primary industry

Scenic/Tour & Aerial Sightseeing Flights (TLAFABAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Seaplane & Amphibious Air Taxi (TLAFABAI)

Keywords

• Scenic flight tours
• Aerial sightseeing
• Seaplane charters
• Mountain tourism
• Aviation experiences

Headquarters

HQ city

Squamish

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Scenic Flight Tours: The primary revenue stream consists of guided scenic flight tours departing from Squamish Airport, ranging from 25-minute introductory flights to 75-minute comprehensive tours. Tours feature aerial sightseeing of glaciers, mountains, fjords, and the Sea-to-Sky corridor landscape.
2. Charter Flights: Custom charter flights to various BC destinations including Nanaimo, Powell River, Vancouver International, Victoria, and Tofino. Also includes seaplane charters to destinations like Phantom Lake, Chatterbox Falls, and Ganges Harbour.
3. Aerial Photography and Film Services: Commercial aerial photography and film production services for clients including Tourism Squamish campaigns, professional photographers, and video production companies.
4. Gift Cards: Gift cards sold in preset denominations ($200, $400) or custom amounts, enabling customers to purchase flight experiences as gifts for others.
5. Seasons Pass: Seasonal pass offering unlimited flights throughout the year for $50, allowing pass holders to experience changing seasons and landscapes from above.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sea to Sky Air operates guided scenic flight tours and charter services from Squamish Airport in British Columbia, Canada. The company flies Cessna 172 aircraft (both fixed-wing and floatplane configurations) over the Sea-to-Sky corridor, offering aerial sightseeing of glaciers, mountains, fjords, and coastal landscapes, plus charter flights to BC destinations, aerial photography services, and special occasion experiences such as proposals and fly fishing at remote alpine lakes.

Product overview

Sea to Sky Air operates as a scenic flight tour company offering a portfolio of eight distinct guided aerial sightseeing experiences departing from Squamish Airport, BC. The core portfolio includes the Sea to Skypilot (entry-level, $139, 25 min), Squamish Explorer (Tantalus Range, from $344), Prehistoric Glaciers & Peaks ($456), Whistler Backcountry Air Safari ($419), Introduction to Flight Experience ($489, hands-on flying), Coast Mountain Epic ($719, customizable), and mid-week Glacier Express. Specialized offerings include Phantom Lake by Seaplane (remote alpine landing), Seaplane Introduction to Flight (amphibious), and a Seasons Pass ($50 unlimited flights). Add-on services encompass Charter Flights to BC destinations, Aerial Photography & Film Services, Group Flight Experiences, Fly Fishing at Phantom Lake, and Proposal/Photoshoot Packages. Gift cards are available in preset and custom denominations. The company has operated since 2003 and operates carbon-neutral flights using Cessna 172 aircraft.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sea to Skypilot

Quantifiable outcome

• Operating completely carbon neutral since 2021 with no additional fee to customers

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Tourism SquamishcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerTourism Squamish has commissioned Sea to Sky Air for promotional content, including the Hardwired For Adventure campaign featuring air-to-air videography of the company's aircraft in flight. This partnership positions Sea to Sky Air as a featured activity in regional tourism marketing.
• Whistler BlackcombminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWhistler Blackcomb commissioned Jeff Thomas Creative to capture photography content featuring Sea to Sky Air aircraft, specifically for a story about landscape photographer Dan Carr who insisted on using small planes for intimate aerial perspectives.
• Local Experience PartnersminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSea to Sky Air offers local experience add-ons connecting customers with preferred local partners including restaurants and rafting operators, enhancing the overall visitor experience.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Harbour Air Seaplanes: Harbour Air is the largest scheduled and charter seaplane operator in BC, with flights between Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, and Whistler. It is a broader incumbent in the same seaplane category, competing for charter and tourist passengers with significantly greater fleet and route scale.
• Helijet International: Helijet operates helicopter charter and scheduled services between Vancouver, Victoria, and other BC destinations, plus VIP and tourism flights. It is a larger incumbent in BC rotary-wing passenger services with overlapping charter/tourism customers.
• Canadian Helicopters: Canadian Helicopters is the largest helicopter operator in Canada, providing charter, tourism, and utility services across BC and beyond. It is a broad incumbent offering aerial tourism services in overlapping regions, but at corporate/utilitarian scale rather than small-operator boutique positioning.
• Pacific Coastal Airlines: Pacific Coastal Airlines is a BC regional carrier offering scheduled and charter flights across Vancouver Island and coastal BC destinations including Tofino and Powell River — overlapping with Sea to Sky Air's charter route network at much larger scale.

Regional players

• Whistler Heli-Skiing: Whistler Heli-Skiing is a regional helicopter operator focused on heli-skiing packages in the Whistler backcountry. It shares the same Sea-to-Sky geographic base and customer pool but serves a winter ski segment, with limited overlap to Sea to Sky Air's summer-leaning sightseeing business.

Direct peers

• Blackcomb Helicopters: Blackcomb Helicopters offers scenic helicopter tours, glacier landings, and heli-hiking experiences based in Whistler/Squamish. It competes for the same tourist wallet in the Sea-to-Sky corridor, differentiated by rotary-wing aircraft and access to alpine landing zones Sea to Sky Air reaches only by floatplane.
• Glacier Air (Vancouver): Glacier Air operates seaplane scenic tours from downtown Vancouver, including tours to Whistler and along Howe Sound. It is a directly comparable scenic/sightseeing flightseeing operator in the same BC market, with similar Cessna floatplane equipment and overlapping tour routes.
• Mountain View Helicopters: Mountain View Helicopters provides scenic helicopter tours and heli-experiences in the Whistler/Squamish area. It is a direct competitor for the same sightseeing tourist demand in the Sea-to-Sky corridor, differentiated by helicopter platform rather than Cessna fixed-wing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/seatoskyair
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCKPCFE98IQcQKvINVLhinVw
• Facebookfacebook.com/seatoskyair
• Instagraminstagram.com/seatoskyair
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sea-to-sky-air

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sea to Sky Air