Planning a trip to Europe on a budget is totally realistic and especially with the influx of new airlines popping up all over the place including Wizz Air, Pegasus and others. Flight prices are going down and more people are heading off on a trip to Europe. Last month I posted all about train travel in Europe and this month I am looking at Budget Flights in Europe.
Many people assume that flying around Europe is the most expensive way to get around but that is often not the case, and depending on the type of trip you want to do, often it’s a great alternative to using the train, buses or taxi. With a little bit of research, and a lot of time spent finding the best routes, it can be the most affordable way to travel around Europe.
Here are a few tips for beginner’s booking Budget Flights in Europe!
Read More: The Beginner’s Guide to Train Travel in Europe
Booking your flights
I personally use Skyscanner as my first search option and cross-check with other flight comparison sights and/or the actual airline’s website to make sure I’ve been given the best price. However bare in mind research takes time and even though it might take you a day or two to find those cheap flights, it’s certainly worth it in the long run. The £50 you saved on the flight will then give you food budget for 2 days in Paris – so it’s worth it!
Be flexible with dates
I mention this below too, and it’s just a relevant – try and be as flexible as you can with dates. Europe take holidays throughout the year and during those time prices sky rocket. August is a no-go if you are looking to travel anywhere in Europe as UK holidays are in full swing and the airlines hike their prices to coincide. If you have even a few days of flexibility, it can end up saving you a substantial amount of money. If you can’t be too flexible with your dates or destinations, check out flying into another airport. One of the best websites for finding the cheapest flights from your location to a specific country is Skyscanner. Simply enter your location in the “FROM” field and type in a country in the “TO” field and you’ll get a list of the cheapest airports in the country to fly into. You can also enter a time period to search instead of a specific date, such as “in a week” or “entire month.” TRY IT OUT HERE
Read more: 5 European Destinations for Female Travellers
Be flexible with destinations
When travelling to Europe it’s likely you’ll be doing multiple countries in one trip therefore if you can, try to be flexible with your itinerary and plan your trip according to when you can get cheap flights. If you can get cheap flight to Paris in September but not in October, go to Paris first, then head over to Amsterdam in October (and vica versa). One of the least expensive ways to travel Europe is to book the cheapest flight to anywhere and roll with the unknown. I use Skyscanner for browsing the cheapest flights from my location to “anywhere.” Simply enter your location in the “FROM” field and type in “Everywhere” in the “TO” field and you’ll get a list of the cheapest destinations to fly to. I’ve booked some of my most favourite trips using this wonderful feature… TRY IT OUT HERE
Setup email alerts
Whenever I am looking at travelling to a specific destination I will go to Skyscanner and put in a price alert which send me emails every few days with the best price of flight for that day. I’d recommend always booking in advance as the cheapest seats always sell out fast but it’s also worth signing up to email alerts for when they do flash sales – sometimes flight go as low as £9.99 from London to Amsterdam
