Reviews of Cheap and Budget European Airlines

Last Updated 5/30/2016

One amazing thing about Europe is the preponderance of inexpensive air carriers that get people from one country to another on the continent. I’ve taken huge advantage of cheap air travel to get to many places in Europe, and will keep this list of short reviews updated based on my cumulative experiences with each carrier.

WizzAir: this is definitely the most restrictive of the budget airlines in Europe. They remind me of RyanAir before it was voted most hated company (and thus had to change many of their operating procedures). On WizzAir you can only have one small carry on- think small purse size. Anything else, you need to pay extra, usually in the area of 30-50 GBP more. (Often, this makes it worthwhile to fly a different, slightly more expensive, carrier.) I’ve never tried the food, mostly because there are few vegetarian options, but the drinks are super expensive, so come prepared with water. The seat size is extremely small, so be prepared to tell the person in front of you to sit up if they try to recline.

Norwegian: honestly, Norwegian is pretty unremarkable. Small, cramped seats and a few duty free announcements. Otherwise, on trips to Bergen and Copenhagen, I’ve been pretty surprised by how easy things have been with Norwegian. No frills, but no fury at staff or policies, either.

RyanAir: I used to get super nervous about my luggage whenever I’d get on a Ryanair flight, but staff have gotten noticiably more lenient with baggage restrictions. There are still a million duty free announcements and their tea is the literally the worst thing I’ve ever tasted (lukewarm water in a Styrofoam cup), but what else do you expect for 30 GBP tickets to Sicily? Money saved for the holiday itself.

EasyJet: flying out of backwoods airports at the worst times, I often find the cost of getting to and from airports balances out more expensive flights from more central locations. The baggage restrictions have always been lax on Easyjet, though, making them preferred to Ryanair, which can still be tetchy- the lack of consistency if the most nerve wracking thing about it, making Easyjet the preferred option.