Flying IN/OUT of different EU countries - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

EyeHeartFUN · 01-20-2005, 10:45 AM

Hello Readers and World Travelers! I'm new to the message boards and I have a question ya'll might be able to help with...I'm planning a solo 7 week vacation to Europe starting the last week of May '05. The initial plan is to fly out of LAX to Portugal(Lisbon), train-it to Madrid, then Barcelona, then Paris, last destination being London...where I'd like to depart from, back to LAX. My itinerary isn't set in stone, but I definitely want to hit up those cities.

Question is: "What would be the cheapest way to travel considering the destinations?"

Should I book a one-way to Portugal and a one-way from London to LAX? Should I just book a roundtrip to London and once there, fly out from London to Portugal, then make my way back? Should I take the EuroStar from Paris to London or just take a ferry? Should I switch up the city-visit order? I'm full of questions and in despirate need of constructive advice...PWEEZE HELP!

**space virgin** · 01-20-2005, 11:31 AM

Generally speaking, London and Paris are the cheapest european gateway cities. But not always. It's NEVER going to be less expensive to book two one-way tickets though! That's going to cost you an arm and a leg. My advice would be to start with the idea of booking a round-trip ticket to London and then going on to Portugal from there via one of the cheapie airlines like Easy Jet or Ryan Air or BMI. Good luck and welcome to the boards!

**omisan** · 01-20-2005, 12:57 PM

Yeah, what SV said! And I'd like to add to that http://www.whichbudget.com

EyeHeartFUN · 01-20-2005, 03:10 PM

Thanks for the links Space and Omi! I checked 'em out, but there doesn't seem to be any direct flights from London to Lisbon. Considering those cities I mentioned in the previous message, would you take the same route? Any tips about Portugal or about traveling by sea from London to France?

**omisan** · 01-20-2005, 03:20 PM

For London to Lisbon, you'll probably have to take Gatwick or one of the smaller airports (not Heathrow).. for instance, Excel (a charter company) and Air Portugal fly from LGW to LIS. BA does have a flight from London to Lisbon, but it's about £135 after taxes.

I know nothing about Portugal, but there are some folks around here who've been.

Traveling from the UK to France by ferry is pretty common. There are some that leave from the south of England (near Brighton & Bournmouth and all that) and some that leave from the east. It's a pretty long ride, though, and not necessarily cheap, so you might want to look at budget flights for that, too. I like taking BMI from London to Paris - it's usually dirt cheap, and I get airmiles, too

Ryder · 01-20-2005, 04:09 PM

Eu amo Portugal....

I love Portugal, it's amazing! haha, Portuguese is one of the 3 languages I'm studying!

Also, check
ba.com (British Airways)
http://www.tap.pt (TAP Air Portugal)

One way tickets on big airlines are so rediculously expensive...just buy round trip and not take the return one if it's cheaper.

skorch · 01-21-2005, 07:39 AM

I took a hydrofoil (the boat with the huge-ass fin on the bottom) from Dover to somewhere in northern France. It was fairly cheap. 10-15P I believe.

Flying in/out of different cities is the way to go. Who wants to double back?

Amsterdam is getting very cheap to fly from as well as Glasgow.

EyeHeartFUN · 01-21-2005, 11:04 AM

Danke Ryder and Skorch! I've never been to Portugal, but I'm definitely looking forward to it. The HYDROFOIL sounds SICK, so I'm going to look into that too. Is anyone familiar with Mobile Phone rentals for use in Western Europe?

Ryder · 01-21-2005, 01:21 PM

I did it last summer, i had an Orange phone in France. I wouldn't recommend it, it was too expensive. Also, cell phones can't call overseas between noon and 4pm because the lines are too busy or something like that, yea, well it doesn't work. I'd recommend just using payphones their everywhere.