Budget Airlines Land in Eastern Europe
By Cameron Hewitt, Co-Author of Rick Steves' Best of Eastern Europe guidebook
For years, in-the-know travelers have been using cheap flights to link far-flung destinations within Western European countries. Now low-cost airlines have arrived in Eastern Europe as well.
One of the biggest Eastern Europe-based budget airlines, SkyEurope, has hubs in Budapest, Kraków, Košice (eastern Slovakia), Bratislava, and Vienna, with flights to various destinations in both Eastern Europe (including Warsaw, Dubrovnik, and Split) and Western Europe. Wizz Air has hubs in Budapest, Warsaw, Gdansk, and Katowice (near Kraków), but most of their flights go to Western Europe rather than destinations within Eastern Europe. Smart Wings, based in Prague, has a few flights to Western Europe. And LOT, Poland’s biggest carrier, has a low-cost subsidiary called Centralwings.
Several of the more established Western European budget airlines are also expanding their offerings eastward. For example, easyJet now flies from Western hubs to several major Eastern European cities (including Prague, Kraków, Warsaw, Gdansk, Budapest, Bratislava, and Ljubljana) to Western European hubs. And Air Berlin connects Budapest and Vienna to the West. To search several budget airlines at once, check out Skyscanner.
Prices are cheap, but there are some trade-offs: minimal customer service, non-refundable tickets, and strict restrictions on the amount of baggage you're allowed to check without paying extra. In general, you'll be nickel-and-dimed every step of the way (e.g., no free drinks). Also note that you’ll sometimes fly out of less convenient, secondary airports. For example, Wizz Air’s flights from “Kraków” actually depart from Katowice, 50 miles away. Finally, be warned that many no-frills airlines save money by scheduling flights on the same plane extremely close together — so they can pack more flights into one day. But this means that a delay early in the day can trickle down and cause major delays later.
Now that the established airlines in Eastern Europe face more competition, they've been forced to adapt. Many national carriers sell a handfull of seats on certain flights at super-cheap promotional rates, which sell out quickly; for example, check out Croatia Airlines and Slovenia's Adria Airways.
Finally, Europe by Air continues to offer their Flight Pass, charging $99 per leg (plus taxes and airport fees) for flights within Europe. They partner with various well-established airlines, providing good coverage for low prices (most useful for Croatia Airlines flights to and from the Dalmatian Coast; tickets can be purchased only in United States, U.S. tel. 888-321-4737).
Updated for 2008. For lots more information, check out our best-selling Rick Steves' Eastern Europe guidebook — or join us on one of our free-spirited Europe tours!