Air Canada is giving Canadians another great link to one of the most popular destinations in the U.S.

Air Canada recently launched a new seasonal direct service between Phoenix and Montreal.

The direct flights to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport from Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau on Air Canada Rouge will operate through May 28, three times per week. Air Canada says the flights will resume on Sept. 6 and continue through May 2019.

Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton and nearly a dozen other city and tribal leaders from around Arizona gathered late last week to mark the launch of the new service, which provides easy access to both Phoenix and neighboring Scottsdale, a favourite winter destination for sun-seeking Canadians.

Arizona is justifiably popular with folks in Western Canada, who can get there in as little as three hours. But it’s not much longer from Toronto or Montreal.

Phoenix has a growing downtown with lively restaurants and lovely hotels, including the Kimpton Hotel Palomar, with a fine rooftop bar and pool, good food and chic rooms. Nearby Roosevelt Row is great for independent shops, book stores and funky food options.

Scottsdale is home to some of the top resorts in the U.S., including The Phoenician, The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess The Boulders, the sexy new Mountain Shadows and The Four Seasons.

The golf in Scottsdale is legendary, but you’ll also find fabulous shopping and cool coffee shops in the downtown/Old Scottsdale area, as well as outstanding desert and mountain hiking. Architecture fans won’t want to miss a visit to Frank Lloyd Wright’s desert home, called Taliesin West. The Heard Museum in Phoenix is wonderful, as is the Musical Instrument Museum.

Tucson is a fabulous, bike-friendly city that’s less than two hours south of Phoenix. You’ll find a booming downtown with wonderful restaurants and cool hotels, as well as a slew of terrific craft breweries. Top resorts include The Westin La Paloma Resort and Spa, with a series of fantastic swimming pools, and Hacienda del Sol, which has sensational food and great horseback riding opportunities.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is a fine spot outside Tucson, with wonderful displays about desert animals and plants. The drive to get there is almost as good as the museum itself, with winding roads and towering Saguaro cactus lining the hills on both sides of Gates Pass.

The area south of Tucson is growing wonderful wine these days, and you’ll find tasting rooms in several areas. A number of wineries have tasting rooms in Scottsdale, which makes it even easier.