Flights Involving the U.S. and Edinburgh for $69 each way. Or, for the Exact Same cost, fly into Bristol, Stockholm, or Copenhagen. Or how about Barcelona flights for $149?
Those are just a couple of the introductory fares for Europe flights available in the likes of WOW, Norwegian, and LEVEL, the European carriers which are currently shaking up the marketplace for transatlantic travel.
The latest headline-worthy deal comes from Norwegian, with today’s announcement that flights are now available for three new U.S.-Europe routes, for as little as $189 each way.
Frequencies the routes, and launch dates are as follows:
- Newark-Rome, four flights a week, starting November 9
- Los Angeles-Rome, two flights a week, from November 11
- Oakland-Rome, two flights a week, from February 6
The $189 fare will be available on some flights from Newark; in the West Coast cities fares will start at $229 every way.
The Rome flights will operate with Premium cabins and both trainer, using recently acquired Boeing B787 Dreamliners. Premium service will feature expedited security clearance, dedicated check-in, lounge access, priority boarding, sleeper chairs, free meals and drinks. Fares for the upgraded service will start at $539 each way about the Newark flights.
With the accession of the newest Rome flights, Norwegian will soar 52 nonstop routes between 12 U.S. cities and 13 cities in Europe.
Norwegian Air works according to the business model as Frontier and Spirit, offering rock-bottom airfares but charging extra for everything to bags from advance seat assignments. Even factoring in the additional fees, however cheap Europe airfares are truly disruptive, and will induce carriers to adjust their transatlantic fares to keep market share.
Bottom line: The combination of lower airfares and a more powerful U.S. dollar makes Europe a comparative travel bargain for U.S.-originating travelers.
Reader Reality Check
Europe anybody?