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Icelandair's new Economy

Icelandair has introduced a new Economy Light Fare for people who only carry on.

Icelandiar Economy Light

With this fare you can bring a carry on up to 10 kg and reserve your seats in advance.

Checking a bag will not be allowed. And anyway, extra checked baggage charges for Icelandair are as high as $95 each way for flights from North America to Europe (excluding flights to Iceland alone where the cost is $69.)

This move by Icelandair will heat up the transatlantic fare wars currently being won by WOW and Norwegian airlines.

Lee!

Posted by
8934 posts

I fly them anyway with just a carry on to get from Frankfurt to California and back. I quite like them and if it is cheaper, all the better.

Posted by
138 posts

Thanks for the update @meobeouzz92 , I think its a great opportunity for those who travel with backpack only or budget travelers.

Posted by
620 posts

When they're cutting routes and selling or returnlng aircraft, I don't particularly see WoW or Norwegian winning anything.

Posted by
2916 posts

Checking a bag will not be allowed.

So what happens if you have a carry-on that is deemed noncompliant? Do you just have to check it and pay the baggage check fee?

Posted by
1542 posts

The new economy has been going for some time, not just with Iceland Air.

New economy = old regular fare and then some.

Old regular fare = old regular fare plus a fee for checked baggage and then some.

Posted by
12172 posts

I've flown Icelandair my last two round trips. There is also a size limit on the 10kg carry on bag. My bag fits both size and weight. One thing I liked with Icelandair that other economy flights don't typically offer is advanced seat selection. Wow Air (I've flown them for two round trips also) charges a small fee for seat selection, low enough that it's worth using. Wow also lets you pay considerably less for a bag than comparable American carriers. American carriers charge IMO exorbitant rates on their basic economy rates to add either seat selection or bags.

My big gripe today is with United Airlines. They offer a basic economy but it doesn't even allow you to check in online (or at least not if you are carry on only). They sent me a bunch of email/text reminders to check in online. After you go through a number of pages on their web, it tells you online check in is not available for basic economy. You can't use the airport kiosk either. Essentially United makes you stand in line with everyone who needs to check a bag just to prove you don't need to check a bag - both inefficient and a pain.