A cheap flight is rarely as cheap as you think it’s going to be – once the various fees have been added – but some budget airlines are cheaper than others.
According to a recent report by flight comparison website WhichAirline, the cheapest lowcost carrier in Europe is Pegasus, a relatively unknown Turkish airline. After comparing 20 airlines, Pegasus came out top with an average total price of €63.19 one-way (including 20kg baggage allowance and a transaction fee). The airline flies to 31 destinations within Turkey and 45 in the rest of the world, including London Gatwick and Stansted, through Turkish hubs.
In second and third place were Hungarian Wizz Air at €75,74, which flies from Luton and Liverpool to various European destinations, and BlueAir which flies from Luton to Romania, at €82.45. Average prices of all flights within Europe were calculated by surveying more than 300,000 prices in October/November 2013.
Ryanair, which is cheapest on basic fares, drops down to fourth place when fees are factored in, with an average price of €83.45.
The report says: “Low-cost airlines make a lot of money on the various fees, and their creativity seems to be endless. For example, when booking your flights with Ryanair, be very careful in every step of the booking procedure. Ryanair hides some of the fees very smartly (eg travel insurance). When adding checked baggage to your booking, think twice before you choose whether you want to carry 15kg or 20kg. If you buy the smaller one and bring five excess kilos to the airport, it will cost you €100! And of course, do not forget to print out and bring your boarding pass, otherwise you will have to pay €70 boarding card re-issue fee.”
EasyJet which has just posted a 50% surge in profits and announced 10 new routes for summer 2014, is in fifth place at an average of €89.97 while the most expensive is FlyThomasCook at €206.76.
Pegasus Airlines: 63.19
Wizz Air: 75.74
Blue Air: 82.45
Ryanair: 83.45
easyJet: 89.97
Air One: 91.00
Eurolot: 97.05
Volotea: 103.75
Vueling: 108.01
flybe: 111.84
Meridiana: 121.27
germanwings: 123.68
Transavia: 132.05
airBaltic: 140.23
HOP!: 140.62
Norwegian Air Shuttle: 142.70
Monarch Airlines: 159.48
Jet2: 165.45
WOW air: 189.39
FlyThomasCook: 206.76
