We will be flying from Nice to Paris at the end of our tour of France, the last week in September, 2014. There appear to be a lot of flights available. Should we purchase tickets now, or can we buy them while staying in Nice? Air France has the most flights, while Easyjet only has two - are there others that people have used?
Mike
Posted by
17 posts
I have not used EasyJet but also have been thinking of using them. I have a friend who used Air France and EasyJet while working and living in Copenhagen for a year. She said she did not have any problems with them.
Posted by
Piedmont Triad, NC
176 posts
I have flown EasyJet a number of times in Europe and never had a problem. The main thing to keep in mind is that luggage restrictions are different - passengers are allowed only one carry-on (not a carry-on plus purse/backpack/etc) and the weight limit for the carry on is much less than the international airlines. And you pay to check your bag, for a soda inflight, for everything That said, I paid $45 for a flight from Prague to Paris, which even with the $25 or so to check my bag, was a bargain. If you decide to go with Easy Jet, I'd probably buy flights ahead as I think they get more expensive closer to the date. Have a wonderful trip!
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32363 posts
Mike,
The trip from Nice to Paris is fairly simple, whether travelling via TGV at 300 kmH (about 5 hours) or via budget flight with EasyJet or others.
I WOULD NOT recommend waiting until you're in France to purchase air tickets. Many budget airlines operate using a "sliding scale" so as the flight fills, the seats become more expensive. Booking early would be a really good idea! EasyJet is my preferred budget airline in Europe and I typically fly with them a couple of time a year. When using any budget airline, it's important to read their Terms & Conditions carefully, especially related to luggage weights. If you'll be checking luggage and it will be over the allowable weight, it's much cheaper to pay the excess weight fee at the time of booking rather than at the gate. Also, EasyJet only allows ONE carry-on item per passenger of the approved size (and they DO check). This doesn't mean "one plus a personal item such as a Purse or Laptop case", it means ONE ONLY!
One other point to note is that EasyJet has been switching to an automated check-in, which only offers a bag drop. You'll print your boarding pass up to a month prior to the flight. I've only used in once so far but it seems to work reasonably well.
Are you taking a RS tour?
Bon Voyage!
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
I flew easyJet this past summer and certainly would be happy to fly them again. However, I just checked fares for mid-September for both easyJet and Air France. Air France had the cheapest fares. As others have said, whichever airline you choose, don't wait until the last minute to buy tickets. You'll pay through the nose if you do. For example, the lowest fare on Air France for a few days from now is $192 US. For mid-September it is $66 US.
Posted by
OP
9 posts
Thanks to all for the information. We are not on a RS tour, but use his information, which has been a great help for several of our European trips. We will have been to Paris, Normandy, Lyon, Provence, and Nice - decided to fly back, instead of retracing where we had come. Flying back to US from Paris on Air France. Will probably go with Air France.
Mike