This site is excellent for listing all the budget routes between European cities. http://www.whichbudget.comNote that you can sometimes get a great rate on major airlines too, so check those separately.I've flown on Ryanair, EasyJet, and BMI for cheap fares and with no problems.
Traveler
Canada  Sat 10/30/2004

Cheap flights
Keep up with the latest trends everybody! There are currently a myriad of discount air carriers, and nobody should be paying $100 to fly one-way between sizable towns in Europe!Check out the article at this link:http://www.usatoday.com/travel/bonus/fall2004/2004-09-28-european-discounters_x.htmALL of the carriers are listed by country that they serve.
Reed
St Peters, MO   USA  Wed 10/20/2004

London to Paris and back and Rome to Paris and back
To Jann Longman - You can fly from London Heathrow to Paris Charles De Gaulle airport and back on either: British Airways, bmi ( British Midland ) or Air France. You can also go from London Luton to CDG on EasyJet. You can also take the Eurostar train service from the heart of London to the heart of Paris. To jennifer Neves Alitalia and Air France cover the Rome to Paris return routes
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Mon 10/18/2004

Another one bites the dust
Yet another low-cost European airline has gone bankrupt. V-Bird airlines, based out of Niederrhein airport near D?sseldorf, had to stop flying last week when all 4 of its planes were repossessed by the leasing company. As usually happens in these cases, thousands of ticket-holders were left stranded. So as always, the moral of the story is: caveat emptor!
Peter
Amsterdam, NL  Sun 10/17/2004

flying within europe
Hello, I'm trying to find a flight from Rome to Paris in November but, I can't find any carriers. Help!!Thank you for any helpJen NevesSacramento,CA
jennifer neves
sacramento, ca   USA  Thu 10/14/2004

London to Paris and back
This summer I'll be going to Kenya for a safari, but have an 8 day layover in London. I'd like to go to Paris for a good part of that time. Any suggestions on airlines or on which airports to fly in and out of? Thanks
Jann Longman
Issaquah, Wa   USA  Thu 10/14/2004

EU air travel... Madrid, Rome? Amsterdam? open jaws if possible
The reason that EasyJet isn't quoting the route is because it is only part of their winter schedule and doesn't come into operation until 31 October, up until then the summer schedule applies.

From Nantes to Madrid is such a relatively short hop that you may well be better off both in terms of time and money using a train. To go from Madrid to Rome to Amsterdam your best bet is Alitalia purchasing an open jaw with them may well prove less costly than two singles with Iberia and KLM.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Tue 10/12/2004

RyanAir
My wife and I flew RyanAir from Frankfurt-Hahn airport to Venice-Treviso. I booked the flight several weeks out and the fare was about $50 USD for the two of us. RyanAir is no frills and will nail you E7.00 for every kilo over 15 kilos (33 lbs) per checked bag, no exceptions! They weigh each bag at checkin. We packed light (20 lbs/bag) and survived 3 weeks nicely. Everything about their operation went smoothly, and the aircraft was clean.
Gary
Seattle, WA   USA  Mon 10/11/2004

EU air travel... Madrid, Rome? Amsterdam? open jaws if possible
I'm currently in Nantes, France and want to travel to Madrid, then on to Rome then to Amsterdam. Any suggestions on airlines? I've been to most of the suggestions on the wall but Madrid seems to be a tough one. Easyjet.com that I've used before seems to be flying Paris to Madrid but the website will only allow bookings after 10/31/04 and I would like to travel mid Oct around the 19th or so. There are 2 of us and we are fleible as to dates/ times. Any help is welcome and appreciated.
April
Los Angeles, CA   USA  Mon 10/11/2004

London to Amsterdam
Thanks for the info on the flights! I would be going r/t from Heathrow and with taxes, etc., it is running around $120 on any of the airlines indicated. Does this seem correct?
Susan Priore
Providence, RI   USA  Thu 10/07/2004

London to Amsterdam
Hi Susan
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Fri 10/01/2004

LONDON TO AMSTERDAM
Susan~~~try this webpage: applefares.com. ~~~ Keep changing your departure dates because some airlines fly only a few days a week and if you ask for the wrong dates you will see ?no seats available?. ~~~~ . They list a large number of discount European airlines.
WILLIAMSON
OK   USA  Thu 09/30/2004

London to Amsterdam
Perhaps someone has info on this; we are looking to fly from London to Amsterdam in November any ideas as to an airline? I checked British Air and although the flight was cheap, the surcharges were insane!
Susan
Providence, RI   USA  Wed 09/29/2004

London to Krakow
Thanks for the tips about flights from London to Krakow. I visited SkyEurope.com and found that they are now doing direct service to Krakow on selected days for as low as 17 GBP.
Silas
Dallas, TX   USA  Sun 09/19/2004

Cheap flights in Europe
It is difficult to keep up with all the low-cost air travel options in Europe, and many airlines only fly a few routes. A good guide is Skyscanner Europe which can be found at http://www.skyscanner.net/wings.asp. You can use the site to check who flies where and which days of a month have the cheapest flights.

It is also worth remembering that there are many flights from local airports. If you are at Bath, or elsewhere in south-west England, for example, you can fly from Bristol to Venice, Prague, Madrid, Berlin, Rome and many other places.

The smaller UK airports are also much more pleasant to use than the big London aiports. Check-in times are shorter, and there are no long walks to the gate. You also have the thrill of walking across the apron to your waiting aircraft.
Bob Lawrence
Bristol, UK  Sat 09/18/2004

LONDON TO KRAKOW
Silas.........flying from London to Krakow is quite expensive, as you have probably discovered .....try airbaltic.com, airpolania.com, skyeurope.com, europebyair.com and applefares.com for possible discounted fares.
HAMMOND
BUFFALO, NY   USA  Fri 09/17/2004

London to Krakow ???
Need help with a low cost flight from London to Krakow in January 2005 ??Any ideas---or advice ??
Silas
Mesquite, TX   USA  Thu 09/16/2004

Flying Cheap in Europe
For the best possible deals flying within Europe, I recommend EasyJet (do a google search for EasyJet to find their international website). Tickets are cheap, and the airline is in many ways the European equivalent of Southwest. Book far enough ahead of time (about a month or so) and you ought to be able to fly to most airports in Europe for between 40-60 dollars. This is a quick and often cheaper alternative to taking the train, especially if you are covering a large distance.

For instance, we were able to fly from London to Prague for only $35, whereas taking the train would have been over a day of travel and $150 cost. There is definately something special about the trains, but when you are in Europe your time and money are valuable: fly EasyJet (or some other cheap airline) if it saves you money or time.
Chloe
Geneva, CH  Tue 09/14/2004

DISCOUNT EUROPEAN AIR FARES
I have read so many comments on applefares.com which is a metasearch engine covering 24 European airlines. It will search for the lowest fares between major cities for all lines and save you time. It will cover only the small national air lines; they do not fly to smaller cities.
URBANIC
DALLAS, TX   USA  Thu 09/02/2004

Flight Pass
I too have flown europebyair.com and recommend it eagerly. There are a limited number of cities they fly to, but you can call them at 1-888-387-2479 or 1-888-321-4737. They sell coupons for flights for $99 one way. They have a map on their webpage showing routes. That map may not be up to date; so once you set your itinerary, call to find out if they offer the flights you need. I flew from Moscow to Tallin Estonia and from Milan to Athens and back using the coupons. They claim to serve 110 European cities. They are much cheaper than major airlines.
Carlos
Santa Fe, NM   USA  Sun 08/29/2004

flight pass
Try www.europebyair.com, they have a $99.00 flight pass. You, have to check their map of connecting cities but it works. Just used the flight pass to fly from Geneva to Brussels to connect for my flight home. There was a small amount of confusion from the desk clerk about my pass, she was new to the job, but another agent helped us out. You can book your flight through europe by air or just get the flight pass and book when you are ready through the airlines. Give it a try.
jeri
Denver, CO   USA  Sat 08/28/2004

Airlines
I flew RyanAir, EasyJet, and GermanWings in my recent trip to Europe. All are pretty much the same which is a great deal and you have to pay for any snacks or drinks you get once on board. One recommendation that I have is if you are flying into London Stansted; don't buy their bus tickets wait until you get to the airport and buy a roundtrip ticket via National Express coach it will save you a few pounds and if you haven't been to London; you'll need every pound you can get trust me!
Michael
Las Cruces, NM   USA  Fri 08/27/2004

Ryan Air
We flew Ryan Air in Ireland and to Rome and Paris. All went very well. They did not weigh our carryons as long as they were within the size requirements. The staff was friendly, organized and on time. London Stansted was fun,lots of great stores, just be sure and check out the screens to find out where you check in....about 1 1/2 hours before the flight.....security took no time at all....all in all a fine experience....we booked everything online here
Triston
USA  Wed 08/25/2004

Flying standby
Flying standby, or sub-load as it is more properly called in the airline business, is not for the faint hearted. Having said that I fly everywhere sub-load. The real trick is to know when flights are going to be busy and when they are not. As a general rule Friday, Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoon and evening are no go areas for sub-load travel. So is first thing on a Monday morning. Tuesday and Wednesday are normally the golden days and so is Thursday morning.

First check that the airline you wish to fly on actually sells standby tickets. Then ask them how the loads are looking. Then ask them if the ticket can be endorsed to another airline (this is vital - a sub-load ticket that can't be endorsed for use on another airline is almost worthless ). Then ask what the lowest confirmed seat price is and work out if the saving is enough to justify the hassle you are going to face at check-in and departure gates.

The golden rule of sub-load travel is this: 'The airline staff get to decide those who fly and those who do not.' To be successful at sub-load flight you will need charm, politeness and good manners to travel as a sub-load passenger. It also helps to dress smartly, for men a shirt and tie are the minimum essentials, no jeans, no sneakers, no sweat shirts. Power dressers get to fly sub-load, people who look like tourists or who always want the last word don't get to fly.

Do not be surprised if you are in a queue with other sub-load passengers and some of them get on and you do not. There are different priorities for sub-load travel, you may have a low priority ticket while someone else has a higher priority. If there is one seat left and three people on standby as a general rule the best dressed, most polite passenger gets to fly. It's sort of a reward by departure gate staff for not giving them a hard time. The final golden rule is this - never show up drunk or smelling of booze. It's a simple rule but you would be amazed at the number of passengers who have not made one flight and are waiting for the next one who choose to spend waiting time at the bar - big mistake !
Al Bishop
UK  Wed 08/18/2004

British Midland - two hour checkin, not more
bmi ( The airline formerly known as British Midland ) is hardly unique in it's policy of not checking bags prior to the two hour barrier. In the post 9/11 aviation world this is an obvious and very necessary security measure. Having said that it is a policy that has been in place for over ten years not only with bmi but also with most of the major European carriers - it was a lesson that was learned from the Lockerbie air disaster, which as you will all remember was caused by a terrorist getting a bomb checked into the hold of an aircraft. I'm sorry your breakfast was rushed but there are plenty of places at Dublin airport where you can get breakfast prior to check-in. These measures may seem annoying but they are in place for passenger safety and national security.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Tue 08/17/2004

Pricing of Inter-Europe Flights
I am trying to book an airline ticket from Frankfurt to Rome and back to Frankfurt from Florence. If I lived in Europe the ticket would cost about $300 but since I live in the U.S. it costs $750! Does anyone know a)why and b) is there a way around the difference in flying prices. None of the cheap airlines in Rick's book fly the routes I need. I'm posting this in traveler helpline, too....TIA!
Kristen
San Mateo, CA   USA  Mon 08/16/2004

British Midland - two hour checkin, not more
If you fly British Midland Airways within Europe, don't count on checking in baggage early. In Dublin, I tried to check in my luggage more than two hours prior to the flight departure to London Heathrow, but the luggage checkin counter did not want to check in anyone other than the specific flight that they were checking in, which was a flight to Paris. I had to wait about half an hour until I was allowed to check in and get boarding passes. That did not leave much time to get breakfast but that was fine, the flight departure was delayed anyway. I do not recall any such a thing happening with other airlines.
Josh Hanz
Frisco, TX   USA  Sat 08/14/2004

Cheap Intereuropean travel -- depends on the carrier!
Just returned from my "grand tour" of Europe (wanted to take one before I turned 40!). Anyway, I flew about nine times for under $100 and had a wide experience. Some carriers are good, some awful. My first flight was on SAS, which flies some cheap flights in Scandinavia. I flew from Bergen, Norway to Copenhagen for $86. Then I flew from COP to Tallin for about $100 on Estonian Air. Both of those flights were good. Travelled by boat to Helsinki then Stockholm, then the disaster -- Ryanair to Rome. Not only was the Skavksa (sp?) airport in Stockholm an hour and a half way from the city, but they charged me the equivalent of $160 for excess baggage. The interiors of the aircraft resemble a bus. Anyway, I would fly them again only if I had no luggage and I was sure the airport was convenient.

Ultimately because I don't pack light and bought so much I would have been better off buying a round trip on Alitalia then ditching the return trip. From Rome I flew Alitalia to Athens for about 100 euros. Surprisingly they weighed my luggage and I was able to get away with the excess only because I met a friend there who had virtually no luggage.

From Athens I flew Aegean to and from some islands. Again no problem with my excess weight. Very nice cheap airline -- 50 euros a flight. From Athens I flew GermanWings to Cologne for about 60 euros and suffered no excess charges.

From Cologne to Palma Spain on Hapag-Lloyd I ran into a problem. A witch of a check in lady who was going to charge me 70 euros for my excess baggage. I told her that rather than do that I was going to throw out some of my belongings. I then proceeded to redistribute my baggage so that the bulk was carry on and paid only 20 euros for the excess. When I tried to enter the aircraft, however, the lady threw a fit in German as I was entering the plane. Finally after a call to a supervisor I was able to board. My final flight from Palma to Brussels was on Virgin Express. No weight problem, and no objection to two rather substantial carry ons.

Another companion who met me in Palma had a bit of a problem on Volare -- his flight from Venice was delayed nine hours! A representative who was sent to mollify the passengers in Venice actually told them that the flights are usually two or three hours late, but they had never been nine hours late before. Cold comfort. During all this time, he was given no information, and only a small piece of toast and some water. Beware Volare!
Gregory
New York, NY   USA  Sun 08/01/2004

Arrival Time Requirements
Get to the airport EARLY. We had no idea that there were any specific timing requirements. We arrived at Brussels at approx. 9:10 AM for a 10:30 AM flight. By the time we found where to check in for our Continental Airlines flight, it was between 9:25 and 9:30. There was a supervisor present and the agents were surprised at our arrival. 1 agent was on the phone and when she hung up, she advised that the flight was CLOSED. We asked why the requirement was a full hour before the flight and when this requirement had been communicated in any of our bookings. I still haven't found that. Worse yet, we found you have very little chance of getting back to the USA from Europe at the end of July. In fact, the 1st flight they could "confirm" seats on was 2 weeks later!!! Luckily, we were able to squeeze on the flight the next day via standby. It was close and LOTS of stress and strain in the interim. Had we known the consequences, we clearly would have been at the Airport 3 hours in advance (like we were the next day) just to make sure. They really should do a better job of communicating these deadlines when the consequences are so severe.
Paul
Cincinnati, OH   USA  Fri 07/30/2004

Frankfurt Carry-On Restrictions
I was in Frankfurt a couple of days ago - security is very high. I came in from Birmingham, England so I was well within the EU area. Nevertheless on four seperate occasions I had to produce my passport. My briefcase was subjected to very minute searching. Currently you should expect noticable security check delays at Frankfurt. Carry on baggage limitations for Lufthansa ( this applies to all airlines which are part of the Star Alliance ) is 115 square cm or 45 square inches. So multiply the height of your bag by the width and by the depth and if it is more than 115cm or 45 inches the airline is not obliged to accept it in the cabin. Because of security issues many full service European Star Alliance airlines are enforcing this very strictly and Lufthansa is definitely enforcing it. Other Star Alliance airlines may ( as a concession ) allow you to take larger carry on luggage but they are not legally obliged to do that. Also the carry on weight must not exceed 7 Kgs no matter what the size of the luggage.

As for the low cost airlines they can, and do, change their luggage policy on a daily basis in order to keep weight and fuel requirements to a minimum. This is part of how they are able to operate at such low fares. The low cost airlines baggage allowance for both the hold and the cabin is whatever they say it is on the day you travel ( check the small print - it is on their web sites and you do have to click on it to say you have read it, but hey how many of us read all the small print right down to the very end of the page ? Not me - I admit it. )Also note that the low cost airlines charge a very high rate for excess baggage ( again this is how they are able to keep the fares low ). A good rule of thumb regarding low cost airlines is to consider 20Kg as a maximum total baggage allowance. So both your carry on baggage and your hold baggage should not weigh more than 20Kg in total ( unless you are burdened with hard cash you wish to give away to a low cost airline ) and your carry on baggage should be very small and very light. You are normally allowed only one piece of baggage in the hold so if your carry on baggage goes into the hold they can, and often do, charge you excess baggage.

One final thing - often in order to make their time slots at airports low cost airlines will not unload all baggage if they are running late. Instead they will deliver it the next day or the next time they are running on schedule at the airport the luggage should have been unloaded at. They have no legal requirements to get the luggage to you. You have to collect it ( again this is in the small print ). Where do I get my knowledge ? I work for a European airline that is part of the Star Alliance - for once I really DO know what I'm talking about.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Thu 07/29/2004

Frankfurt Carry-On Restrictions
I'm also looking for information on the new carry-on bag limitations out of Frankfurt. Lufthansa's website says 8" maximum depth, while in the US it's 9". Of course, *all* of our bags are 9" deep! I'd love to hear from anyone who's been through there recently.
Walt Hubis
Louisville, CO   USA  Wed 07/28/2004

Germanwings
We needed to fly one way from Paris to Vienna, and most of the flights we found on our own and through our travel agent were about $1,000. We discovered Germanwings, and were able to book a flight on-line for under $100. As we had to change planes in Cologne (their hub) on a very tight schedule, this was the part of our trip I was most nervous about. But everything went smoothly. One thing to be aware of: baggage is not checked through to final your final destination. You need to claim it and then check-in again, so they suggest that you allow 90 minutes between flights. We only had 55 minutes, but we made it. I would use them again.
Debbie
Medina, OH   USA  Wed 07/28/2004

Sterling Air - Denmark to Italy
We flew from Copenhagen to Bergamo on Sterling Air in June. At 120 euro, it was much less than any other airline and the quality was about the same. The only difference we noticed was that there was a charge for all food and beverages.
Nita
Brighton, MI   USA  Mon 07/26/2004

Condor airlines shine.
Please look at Condor airlines. Their flights are many and their prices are cheap. They fly to places like Bourgas, Bulgaria which is a great place to visit.
Rus Martin
Minford, OH   USA  Mon 07/26/2004

European Travel Search
I've found "mobissimo.com" to be a comprehensive website for comparison-shopping among all the booking services. It was started by a woman from California who traveled to France for business every month and was frustrated by the traditional websites. The site has been refered to as the "Google of travel searches".
Eileen
Seattle, WA   USA  Thu 07/22/2004

Watch Out For Bargain Fares!
These days many European Low Fare Airlines just have or will be giving you the chance to book tickets from the winter schedule ahead - so is Easyjet with new routes to Poland.

I would strongly recommend you register with their newsletters so you will be informed about new routes to book and special fares, e.g. Germany's Hapag Lloyd Express (www.hlx.com) offers a bunch of extra 19 Euro tickets on Tuesdays and Germanwings has this kind of "event" taking place every 2nd or 3rd Thursday.
Flo
Berlin, GER  Tue 07/13/2004

Heathrow to Milan
Try bmi the airline that used to be called British Midland

www.flybmi.com
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Tue 07/13/2004

Inexpensive Airline Alternatives to EasyJet and RyanAir
Does anyone know of an inexpensive airline (besides easyjet and ryanair) that flies between London and Milan or any other northern italy city?
Deanna
Seattle, WA   USA  Fri 07/09/2004

Cheap, convenient travel
We could use a Ryanair type airline in the state, even more so than Europe needs one! We had a group of 10 and saved literally thousands of dollars by taking busses and flights with Ryanair. London Stansted - Rome Ciampino, total with taxes $30/head. Frankfurt Hahn - Stansted, $19/head. Add the bus expense for London's National express and you tack on an extra $10 on average and it got us exactly where we wanted to go. Hahn, Stansted and Ciampino are all small but full service airports where we were able to pick up and drop off rental cars. If I could fly to San Francisco for $30 I'd go there just for dinner!
Larry Lemanski
Maple Grove, MN   USA  Fri 07/09/2004

Ryanair news
According to news reports, Ryanair is considering eliminating checked baggage entirely. Because of increased competition in the low-cost sector, they're trying to cut costs any way they can, and Ryanair's attitude is "our prices are so low, people can just buy what they need at their destination." So, at the risk of repeating what people have already said a hundred times: read the fine print!
Peter
Amsterdam, NL  Fri 07/09/2004

Good experience with low fare airlines in Europe
Just got back from three weeks in Europe. Flew Ryanair London to Treviso (Venice)--Virgin Express from Rome to Amsterdam ---Bmi Amsterdam to London. All three flights were good considering the low fares. I was worried about the weight of luggage, especially with Ryanair and had NO problems. The luggage was not even weighed at Ryanair desk as we checked in. The 4 people in front of us had 6 carry on bags and nothing was said to them. Bmi was the only flight that served complimentary drinks. The leg room was better too.
Cindy
Bakersfield, CA   USA  Thu 07/08/2004

Good Ryanair experience
Just finished hopping around with Ryanir and it was quite pleasant: London to Rome to Barcelona to London. The small airports are so restful I felt much less fatigued than I expected. Kind of funny seeing your airplane taxi-ing to you, letting out passengers, gassing up, then going on board.
Marguerite
Newark, DE   USA  Wed 07/07/2004

trains
Try traveling on a night train ( NOT). No AC/no service. Two train strikes while we were there for 2 wks. Almost kept us from getting to Paul McCartney concert in Paris...not fun...be ready for any and everything to happen, so you can roll w/ it...
barbara
houston, tx   USA  Fri 07/02/2004

OPEN JAW FLYING
Jan: My experience with open jaw is that the fare (one way) to your destination city is added to the fare from your return departure city (one way) to make your fare. I have not experienced any saving.

The best way to get the lowest fare is to call the airlines flying from Philadelphia to Gatwick and ask each one for the open jaw fare you have chosen. Ask about the round trip fare from Philadelphia to Glasgow and compare.
A I S
ANDERSON, NJ   USA  Fri 06/25/2004

RyanAir - better than I expected
In late May, I used RyanAir for from Paris to Rome and Rome to London. Traveling lightly with just one bag, I had no problem with excess baggage fees (don't Rick Steves readers use just one bag?!?).

The Paris/Rome flight actually left 30 minutes before scheduled. You really must show up the recommended two-hours ahead of departure. And don't be afraid to board the plane from the back -- break from the pack! I wish we could load/unload planes twice as fast in the US with that system!

I definitely would fly with them again, and the longer the distance the better. Even having to travel to an airport an hour outside of the city at both ends beats an overnight, and then some, on a train.
Kara Catherwood
Stillwater, OK   USA  Thu 06/24/2004

RYANAIR - BAD; EASYJET - GREAT!!
Hi Eric - to be fair how much did you pay to travel with Ryanair ? They have fares starting from GBP1.00 plus tax. For those kinds of rates you aren't going to be treated like the Duke of Westminster. Neither Ryanair or EasyJet are currently posting profits both are running at a loss and EasyJet has been for over two years. Ryanair is famous ( or notorious if you prefer ) for it's lack of customer care, surely you could not have been unaware of their reputation ? They take the line ( rightly some may say ) that at the prices they offer they can't afford the niceties of travel. I'll bet they took off around about the slot time and landed at around about the slot time. At Ryanair prices that's all you get and it's all you can expect. You say you do a lot of travelling, good, and may I say how much Europe values your custom. Next time, however, might I suggest you choose to pay just a few more pounds and travel on an airline that values your custom and offers just a little extra. Both Ryanair and EasyJet are low cost airlines and both have notoriously bad customer relations. Sometimes the cheapest isn't always the best.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Wed 06/23/2004

RYANAIR - BAD; EASYJET - GREAT!!
I've flown close to a million miles over the past 8 years, so I think I've become a fair judge of airlines. On our recent 10-day vacation thru the UK, we flew Ryanair from Gatwick to Dublin and later onto Edinburgh. We were all treated rudely by several attendants on both flights. They were only concerned about being ontime and treated customers like trash. Since they load people from both ends of the plane, the near freezing howling winds were a real delight. One local Dubliner argued with an attendant while others cheered.

On the other hand, we flew Easyjet from Edinburgh to Gatwick and were treated very well like all other airlines. Since Ryanair does not accept email complaints and charges for the phone call, this is the first forum found to complain. Several websearches revealed that many others have had terrible experiences with Ryanair.

Easyjet is thriving and growing and respects customers. But we will never ever fly RYANAIR again.
Eric
boulder, co   USA  Mon 06/21/2004

Ryanair
Used Ryanair from London (Stansted) to Rome. No problems, excellent service would use again. It didn't hurt that we got the 1 cent rates either (just paid taxes totalling about $30 US dollars).
Janet
USA  Wed 06/16/2004

TRAVEL WITHIN EUROPE FRANKFURT
Nate...I have had that experience of landing at an airport and wondering how to get to the RR station.....I have found it best to ask ANYONE and then ask someone else for a second opinion and then find the Tourist Information Office and ask again. ...usually the bus is cheapest.....once I asked the flight attendant on the plane and he told me how he gets into town....it worked great.

As you may know the International Frankfurt airport has a RR station in the basement where you can arrive and also depart if you are going on by rail.
HARDY
CAIRO, IL   USA  Tue 06/15/2004

SkyEurope
I just returned from 3 weeks in Europe and wanted to give a recommendation for SkyEurope Airlines(www.skyeurope.com)--an airline that is based in Hungary, but flies many routes in Western and Eastern Europe. With just a couple days advance, I needed to get from southern Croatia to Vienna. For 99 Euro I was able to get a quick flight from Split to Bratislava, with a SkyEurope shuttle(10 Euro)on to Vienna. The shuttle usually takes you to downtown Vienna, but the driver dropped us off at the Vienna airport for our flight home. Very nice! The staff was professional, the airplane was clean, the flight was smooth--and I would fly with them again.
Richard
Seattle, WA   USA  Wed 06/09/2004

Three budget airlines
Transavia: I flew on Transavia on a "scheduled charter" from Amsterdam to Antalya, Turkey. The plane was completely full of Dutch package tourists (so the in-flight announcements were in Dutch only), and somewhat dirty, but given the low fare (120 euros) what do you expect? Food and drink were reasonably priced compared to some low-cost airlines. Transavia, which flies mainly to Mediterranean destinations, is the parent company of Basiq Air, which connects various Dutch airport to the UK and other northern/western European destinations. Not great, but not horrible either (though the screaming kid behind me certainly didn't help).

Onur Air: I flew from Antalya to Istanbul for 44 euros. Again, nothing remarkable, except that they provide free drinks and snacks (though it's such a short flight, I don't know why they bother). The only glitch was that the toilets were locked for the entire flight; I don't know why. And like many other low-cost carriers, they don't have access to "normal" gates with jetways; you have to disembark onto the tarmac and take a shuttle bus to the terminal. And my luggage took an eternity to arrive. Still, this is a good low-cost solution for covering large distances in Turkey; infinitely preferable (IMO) to spending the whole night on a bus, and not that much more expensive.

And finally, I flew on corendon.com from Istanbul to Eindhoven. The fare was 84 euros including taxes. The on-board catering was overpriced, but a good way to get rid of leftover Turkish liras. The only problem I had was in Eindhoven when I tried to buy a train ticket back home to Amsterdam; there's no ticket office, and the ticket machines don't accept paper money or foreign bank cards! So I had to make some pointless small purchases in order to accumulate 15.50 euros worth of coinage.
Peter
Amsterdam, NL  Sun 06/06/2004

travel within europe
Any advice on getting from Ryanair's airport in Frankfurt to the main train station? thanks
Nate
chicago, IL   USA  Sat 06/05/2004

ryan air
my wife, sister-in-law and myself just returned from the uk where we used ryanair to fly london to dublin/dublin to prestwick. we had absolutley no hassles and would fly with them again. our total fares were $90 canadian
hugh lamont
vancouver, bc   canada  Sat 05/29/2004

STO-PRG / FRA-PRG
Stockholm to Prague ? You realistically have two choices; either SAS (Scandanavian Air Systems) or Czech National airline. Both are excellent full service airlines, neither are low cost 'no-frills' airlines.

Frankfurt to Prague ? It's either Lufthansa or Czech National, both excellent airlines but neither of them are low cost airlines.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Wed 05/26/2004

flying frankfurt to prague
any advice on flights from frankfurt to prague?
Nate
chicago, IL   USA  Mon 05/24/2004

flights within Europe
Any advice on airlines from stockholm to prague?
Nate
chicago, IL   USA  Sat 05/22/2004

Flying from Frankfurt to Vienna?
We are planning on taking a trip to Frankfurt in November. We are thinking of going to Vienna. Does anyone have any thoughts on if we should drive or fly, and if flying which airlines are the best? Thanks for any help!
Carole
Ripon, CA   USA  Fri 05/21/2004

Flights within Europe
Just returned from 6 weeks in Europe, with more than average amount of luggage, as my daughter was on way home from 12 months working in Dublin. Ryan Air - we paid big time for excess baggage, as expected. British Airways, London, Prague return - very, very accommodating - no excess. Easy Jet - London/Naples - the biggest crooks of all!! They even included the weight of our carry on bags in the excess (just what we needed!!!).

Air Portugalia - fantastic airline, food service, exceptional. Allowed us 25 kgs.each. Singapore Airlines back to Oz - nil. I booked our Air Portugalia flight from the Europe by Air website and would highly recommend this site when searching for flights in Europe. In hindsight, it would have been cheaper for us to fly with the major airlines.
Judy
Adelaide, SA   Australia  Thu 05/20/2004

Reply regarding Ryanair and Iberia
For Marie in CA regarding Ryanair luggage allowance: as a general rule Ryanair are very very strict regarding excess baggage weight. As you know they are a low cost, no frills, airline. Making passengers pay handsomely for excess baggage is a legitimate means of keeping their ticket prices low. Do not expect them to show you any leeway regarding any excess baggage.

Regarding Marie's comment about Iberia. This is only true for travellers in economy. Other sections of the aircraft still get full service as part of their ticket price. In Spain you do have an alternative, if you think the service on Iberia is not to your taste try flying Spanair. Spanair still provides catering in economy class - it's basic but I always find it very acceptable.
Al Bishop
Nottingham, UK  Wed 05/19/2004

Iberia/Air France Food Service
This is small potatoes compared to stranded passengers on bankrupt airlines, but note that Iberia now charges for all food and drink, including water, on virtually all flights. We recently flew from Spain to London, a 2.5 hour flight, and paid nine Euros for the worst sandwich I have ever eaten bar none. OTTH, Air France puddle jumper from London to Paris provided better food for free, and drinks.
Jean-Marie
Sevilla, SP   SP  Tue 05/18/2004

Smartwings Cancelled Flight
My wife and I booked a flightfrom Zurich to Prague on Smartwings on May 1, 2004. The flight was cancelled. There were no signs, announcements or ticket agent to tell us of the cancelled flight. A ticket agent of another airline made calls to verify the cancellation. We were fortunate to be able to book a flight with another airline. Air. I am currently trying to get a refund.
Charles R. Rhyner
Green Bay, WI   USA  Fri 05/14/2004

Ryanair Baggage
I will be flying on ryanair this summer and read the posts on luggage limits. I have also read their conditions so I know that only one bag at 15kilos or less is allowed. Obviously two bags would be a red flag but my question is for those who have flown ryanair recently, how strictly is the weight and/or size limits for one bag imposed? Thanks for the help.
Marie
CA   USA  Thu 05/13/2004

Caveat Emptor
Today a new Irish budget airline called JetGreen (hmm, something about that name sounds familiar!) went out of business, just one week after its first flight -- and after having sold about 40,000 low-cost tickets. As a result, about 400 Irish tourists are now stranded in Spain.

The moral of the story is: buyer beware! And try to have a backup plan in case your low-cost airline goes belly-up.
Peter
Amsterdam, NL  Thu 05/13/2004

^   USA   Mon 05/10/2004

USA  Mon 05/10/2004