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Why Are Flights So Much Cheaper in Europe Than In the U.S.?

MULTIZ321

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Why Are Flights So Much Cheaper in Europe Than In the U.S.?
By Rick Noack/ World Views/ Analysis/ The Washington Post/ washingtonpost.com

"BERLIN — In Europe, simply getting to the airport is often more expensive than the flight itself.

Many flights here can be astonishingly cheap, and not only for those who spend hours searching the Internet for the best deals. On a recent day in September, travelers could book $17 flights from London to Berlin on 14 different days in October — or even the next morning. On the same day, the roughly 1,000-mile flight to Barcelona typically cost about $22, and the slightly longer trip to Rome ran about $34, almost too expensive for European standards...."
airlines_graphic.jpg



Richard
 

LannyPC

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Do those prices include or exclude applicable taxes and fees? If they do not include such taxes/fees, I wonder how the final prices would compare.
 

Passepartout

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In Europe, in many cases, the airline's competition is a subsidized train.
 
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Do those prices include or exclude applicable taxes and fees? If they do not include such taxes/fees, I wonder how the final prices would compare.

The flight prices include all taxes and fees including carry on baggage. A few weeks ago Ryanair were offering flights from the UK to various locations in France for £5, fully inclusive of all taxes and fees. That's probably what I use in petrol driving to my local supermarket and back!
 

geist1223

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Ryanair isn't that the airline that was recently was cancelling a bunch of flights?
 

x3 skier

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With EasyJet losing tons of cash and Air Berlin going out of business, financial reality might be bringing prices closer. After all, fuel, labor and other fixed costs are similar in the US and Europe so cash collected per flight will eventually reach parity or close to it.

Flying to some boondocks airport and traveling by bus/train/pony cart to get to the "real" city never appealed to me.

Cheers
 

"Roger"

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"Ryanair isn't that the airline that was recently was cancelling a bunch of flights?"

170 flights one weekend with 40 or 50 more per day until the end of October. So what's the big deal. As Ryanair has explained, less that 400,000 passengers have been affected. (All said tongue in cheek.)
 

bizaro86

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"Ryanair isn't that the airline that was recently was cancelling a bunch of flights?"

170 flights one weekend with 40 or 50 more per day until the end of October. So what's the big deal. As Ryanair has explained, less that 400,000 passengers have been affected. (All said tongue in cheek.)

That's pretty uncommon though for them. Delta stranded more people when they switched computer systems awhile back. And Jet blue fell apart during a storm a few years ago. That doesn't explain the huge price differences, imo.
 

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I once considered using Ryanair. This was Summer 2015. Once I added up all the additional fees it was basically the same price as my British Air ticket.

Then they had this additional scam, yes scam. If you were not an EU member you had to go to a separate Ryanair desk to get a stamp on your ticket. But they wouldn't tell you this when you first checked in at the airport. They would tell you when you actually attempted to board the plane. By that time it was way to late to go all the way back to get the stamp and you totally forfeited your ticket.

But what really sent me over the edge is that I would have had to pay $80-$100 for each of my kids violins. My daughters were small at that time. Both of their violins together fit under one seat. I would still have to pay the instrument fee even though this was their only carryon. There is or was a Facebook page "Musicians against Ryanair."

Ryanair often doesn't fly into to major airports. They often fly into airports an hour and a half away from the city. Then there was the couple who Decided to check their carryon suitcases to be on the safe side. You're allowed 1 checked suitcase each for a fee. Additional suitcases fall under a difference pricing scheme. Because they traveled together, Ryanair weighed all three suitcases together and the couple was charged by the total kilogram. The cost was $900. The woman said had she thought about it she would have taken out a few choice pieces and tossed the 3rd suitcase as they were on their way to Paris.

So basically Ryanair makes up their money in other ways. Sometimes you can beat them at their own game and sometimes you can't. Only last week I was trying to figure out an inexpensive fast option for getting from Morocco to Spain. So for a moment I considered Ryanair and I just decided that I would make changes elsewhere and stick with more reliable modes of transportation.
 
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Flew Ryanair Bournemouth to Palma in May this year. Paid a bit extra to check luggage and it was still significantly less than BA. No hidden extras, no mounting fees and no surprises. The flight was no different to a previous BA flight and I'd have no qualms flying with them again.
 
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