16 VISITING EASTERN AND CENTRAL EUROPE
FLYING TO EASTERN AND
CENTRAL EUROPE
Visitors travelling from a
major international airport
will find that a signif icant
number of cities in Eastern
and Central Europe are served
by direct flights. National
carriers offer ing direct flights
from North America include
Austrian Airlines to Vienna,
CSA Czech Airlines to Prague,
LOT Polish Airlines to Warsaw
and Cracow and Aeroflot to
Moscow. Malév Hungarian
Airlines also flies from major
cities in Europe and the US.
Most of the major North
American airlines such as
Delta, Air Canada, American
and Continental offer one-
stop flights to the region in
conjunction with their
European partner airlines,
usually involving a change of
flight in a city in Western
Europe. From Australasia,
Qantas and Air New Zealand
offer one- or two-stop flights
to the region in partnership
with other airlines.
The biggest choice of flights
is offered by airports in the
UK and Ireland, and trav ellers
from North America and
Australasia may find it con-
venient to break their journey
there before proceeding to
Eastern and Central Europe.
National carriers connect
London directly with most of
the capital cities in the region.
In addition, budget airlines
such as easyJet, Ryanair
and Wizzair fly direct from
London and many other
regional UK and Irish airports
to several destinations in
the region. Capitals such as
Warsaw, Prague, Budapest
and Rīga are well covered,
along with a host of regional
cities in Poland, the Adriatic
resorts of Croatia, and a
handful of desti nations in
Slovakia, Romania and
Bulgaria. Travellers should
bear in mind that flights with
budget air lines do not provide
pass engers with much legroom
and do not offer any compli-
mentary food and drink.FLIGHT TIMESAs a rough guide, flights from
New York to Eastern and
Central Europe take between
8 and 9 hours. Flights from
Sydney will involve at least
one change and are likely to
take 23 to 25 hours. From
London, flights to Austria, the
Czech Republic, Slovenia and
Croatia take around 2 hours
and 30 minutes; flights to
Poland and the Baltic States
take around 3 hours and
30 min utes; and flights to
Romania and Bulgaria take
around 4 hours.BUDGET TRAVEL
AGENCIESAs a rule, European air fares
are at their cheapest between
November and March, with
the exception of Christmas
and Easter weeks. The high
season is from June to mid-
September. A “shoulder
season” of moderate prices
exists between these periods.
It is always advis able to travelmid-week, when tickets are
cheaper and air ports less
busy. Many of the cheapest
fares from North America
or Australasia involve flights
with more than one stop
en route and long stop overs.
While this may be an eco-
nomical way to travel, it
can also be tiring; it is best
to check timings carefully
before booking.
Whichever season visitors
travel, there are several ways
of saving money on air fares.
A good way of finding out
about cheap fares is to
contact a travel agency
that special izes in budget
travel, such as STA Travel
or Trailfinders in the US
and the UK respectively.
Youngsters (under 25),
students and senior citizens
will usually find that they are
eligible for reduced fares.
Generally speaking, the
cheapest are return (round-
trip) tickets, which have fixed
dates rather than an “open”
return. Depending on the
distance, round-the-world
(RTW) tickets can some times
work out cheaper than a
stand ard long-haul return.
These enable travellers to fly
around the world on specified
routes, providing they do not
back track. The number of
Eastern and Central European
cities that feature in RTW
packages is relatively small,
but it is always worth enquir-
ing with esta blished travel
agents to see what is available.
Standby tickets are also
economical, but visitors
need to be flexible about
the date and time of departure.
Travelling this way may
involve a wait of several days
until a cancellation comes up.PACKAGE DEALSOne of the easiest ways to
arrange a visit to Eastern and
Central Europe is to opt for a
package vacation. They nor-
mally include flights, transfers,
accommo dation and some-
times, side trips and meals.
Package trips often work out
cheaper than if travellers were
to book these deals separa-
tely. The down side is that
such trips usually involve
travel ling in a group withWith a good network of international flights, the whole
of Eastern and Central Europe is easily accessible by
air. Most European nations have well-respected national
carriers operating flights to Western Europe as well as
North America. With the recent addition of budget
airlines offering “no frills” flights in the area, several
new destinations have opened up, resulting in an
increase in the number of flights within countries
in the region. Competition between various airlines
ensures that air fares are relatively low, espe cially for
travellers who book ahead over the Internet. Package
tours and travel agencies help keep costs down as
well and ensure great trips.
Eastern and Central Europe
by Air