Kiplinger’s Personal Finance — September 2017

70 KIPLINGER’S PERSONAL FINANCE^ 09/2017

LIVINGLIVING

COURTESY WOW AIR

FOR AS LITTLE AS $200 TO

$400 round-trip, a handful

of budget airlines will carry

you from the U.S. to Europe

and beyond.

The new breed of low-

cost airlines is undercutting

legacy carriers by f lying

newer, fuel-efficient air-

craft, reducing frills and,

in some cases, using smaller,

less-convenient airports.

Norwegian Air Shuttle,

Iceland-based Wow Air

and Level (a new long-haul

carrier based in Spain)

connect cities across the

U.S. to locations across

Europe. Norwegian is also

increasing service to the

French Caribbean, and

Wow begins f lying to Israel

in September. AirAsia X

carries passengers from

Honolulu to Osaka and

Kuala Lumpur.

But your excitement at

nabbing a steal for your next

vacation abroad may take

a nosedive when you realize

that these fares only buy

you a seat—and not one

you can choose, either.

For example, Wow re-

cently offered a round-trip

fare of $470 for a weeklong

excursion from Los Angeles

to Paris in September, with

a stop in Reykjavik each

way. That’s $230 less than

the lowest fare we found

from a full-service airline

(which, incidentally, was

for a nonstop f light). But

when you add in checked

and carry-on baggage (by

upgrading to a higher fare

bundle), the fare balloons

to $682.

Still, for some travelers

the à la carte approach is

a plus. “I like the option

to choose what I value and

what I don’t,” says Scott

Keyes, who rounds up inter-

national airfare deals for his

e-mail newsletter, Scott’s

Cheap Flights.

Do the math. Compare your

options on a metasearch

site, such as Google Flights

or Kayak. If a low-cost car-

rier seems to have the best

deal, head to its website to

check for additional charges.

For example, reserving a

seat in advance could cost

up to $45 each way for direct

f lights, and more for a con-

necting f light. Checking

luggage can add as much

as $70 to $80 if you prepay

when you book your f light,

or more if you wait until you

get to the gate. (Wow also

charges for standard carry-

ons.) Pre-ordering a hot

meal—still free on most

international f lights—can

take a $40 to $45 bite out

of your wallet each way, and

drinks and snacks will cost

you, too.

Upgrading to a fare that

bundles seat selection, lug-

gage, meals and more may

make sense. For example,

we found a nonstop round-

trip f light on Norwegian

Air from Providence, R.I.,

to Dublin in September

for $255. Upgrading to a

“LowFare+” ticket adds

$70 each way but includes

meals, seat reservations and

one checked bag, saving you

$35 each way over purchas-

ing those extras à la carte.

When budget doesn’t fly.

Think twice about f lying a

low-cost airline if you’re on

a tight schedule. Because

budget airlines offer fewer

routes and typically lack a

robust network of partner-

ships with other airlines,

you could be stranded for

days if a storm or mechani-

cal breakdown grounds your

f light. A full-service airline,

on the other hand, could

more easily reroute you.

If you’re f lexible about

where and when you travel,

you can also wait for full-

service airlines’ sale fares,

which rival the prices of the

low-cost carriers. “It’s com-

mon for places all over the

U.S. to see fares to Europe

in the $400s round-trip,”

says Keyes, noting that air-

lines tend to offer these pro-

motional fares in big cities

at least four times a month;

smaller cities might see a

deal once a month. But you’ll

need to book quickly. Sales

on major airlines last an

average of about 24 hours. ■

Fly to Europe

Without the Frills

Fares from budget airlines may not be such a deal

after you add in extra fees. BY MIRIAM CROSS

TRAVEL

■ICELAND-BASED

WOW AIR FLIES TO

EUROPE (AND, SOON,

TEL AVIV) FROM

EIGHT U.S. AIRPORTS.