Hi, I'm planning a trip to London and Paris the first two weeks of September. I'm traveling with a friend who is coming from Chicago. I'll be flying out of DC. The best deal I've found so far is with Finn Air (from Chicago) at $744 with stops in Helsinki there and back. Looks like a longer layover (5 and 8 hrs). From DC I've found a flight with Icelandair for $709. The flight requires a 8 hr layover in Iceland and then a 1 hour layover coming back in Iceland again. I'm a little worried about the 1 hour layover back, but I'm willing to gamble for such a good deal. Can anyone share their experiences with FinnAir and Icelandair? With such a cheap fare am I missing something? Does anyone think I'll find a cheaper fare? Thanks!
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5850 posts
I don't think you will find anything cheaper out of DC. I always take a nonstop flight to London as it is only 7 hours and a connection adds 3 to 4 hours of travel time. However, if saving money is more important than taking a nonstop, then Icelandair is a good deal. You don't need to worry about the short connection time for Icelandair as the airport is very small. I haven't flown them, but my parents and siblings all have with no issues. I have flown Finnair on intra-European flights with no issues. Helsinki is also a pretty easy airport for connections. The downside of course are the very long layovers and the extra flight time as Helsinki is a good 2 to 3 hour flight from London and Paris. Is the transatlantic flight actually on Finnair or is it on one of their partners like American?
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
1525 posts
We have used IcelandAir three times to cross the ocean and each time the experience has been fine and perfectly on time. FYI the airport in Iceland is small and very easy to navigate. IcelandAir is just about the only airline that uses it for large numbers of passengers. So if they had a plane running late they would simply hold the other connecting planes on the ground until everyone made their connection. And hour is plenty. With 8 hours, you could go swim in the famous "Blue Lagoon".