Smoking at Toronto Pearson International Airport – YYZ

Yes, you can smoke at Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) — in around 10 designated outdoor smoking areas spread across all levels of both Terminal 1 and Terminal 3. They are landside (before security) on the curbsides, marked on the ground and on the columns, and set back from entrances, exits and loading areas. The terminals themselves are smoke-free and vape-free inside at all times.

Pearson is the busiest airport in Canada, handling well over 45 million passengers a year, so the two terminals are large and the walk from a gate back out to the curb can take a while. The plan is simple: your last chance to smoke is at one of the marked curbside areas landside, so allow a few minutes before you head to screening.

Terminal 1

Terminal 1 is the larger building, home to Air Canada and its Star Alliance partners. It has three airside concourses: Concourse D and Concourse E handle domestic and international flights, while Concourse F is the United States transborder concourse behind US preclearance.

• Designated outdoor smoking areas run along the curbside on every level, including the upper Departures level and the lower Arrivals and ground-transportation level
• Look for the painted ground markings and the signage on the columns, and smoke only inside the marked area
• There is no indoor smoking area and no smoking after security anywhere in Terminal 1

If you are being dropped off at Departures, the curbside area outside your entrance is the handiest spot. If you have just landed, the Arrivals-level curb by the taxi ranks and ride pick-up is the nearest option before you head to parking or ground transport.

Terminal 3

Terminal 3 serves WestJet, Porter, Delta and a range of international carriers. Concourse A handles US transborder flights and holds the terminal’s US preclearance facility; Concourses B and C handle domestic and international flights and are connected airside; the satellite Infield Concourse is reached by a short shuttle-bus ride.

• Designated outdoor smoking areas sit on the curbside at every level, on both the Departures and Arrivals levels near the exits
• Same setup as Terminal 1 — stand inside the ground and column markings, clear of the doors
• No indoor or post-security smoking area exists in Terminal 3 either

US Preclearance Flights

Passengers flying to the United States clear US customs and immigration at Pearson before boarding — at Concourse F in Terminal 1 and Concourse A in Terminal 3. Once you enter the preclearance zone you are in a sterile airside area with no smoking, and stepping back out means re-clearing the whole process. Have your last cigarette at a curbside area before you go inside and start preclearance.

Transferring Between Terminals

Terminal 1 and Terminal 3 are linked landside by the free Terminal Link train, running 24/7 (the old Terminal 2 was demolished after closing in 2007). The train sits outside security, so a transfer on it puts you back landside where the smoking areas are — smoke at the curb before you ride, then re-enter and clear screening at your departure terminal.

Vaping and Cannabis

Vaping and e-cigarettes follow the same rules as cigarettes: use the designated outdoor curbside areas at Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, and never inside the buildings. Ontario’s Smoke-Free Ontario Act keeps the terminals smoke-free and vape-free, so just stay within the ground and column markings outside. Cannabis smoking and vaping are prohibited everywhere on airport grounds, including the outdoor smoking areas — recreational cannabis is legal in Ontario, and the airport is a federally regulated site where it stays banned.

Summary

For Canada’s airport smoking rules and vaping law, see our Canada airport guide.

Useful Links

Toronto Pearson – Designated smoking and vaping areas (official)