I have been looking for a flight / company that has consistently good customer service (a 10 hour flight should at least be comfortable with friendly staff) and good deals (not the cheapest, but close). I have tried Air Canada (great service, ok planes, expensive), Air Transat (ok service, ok planes, own screen, some good deals on tickets) and Alitalia (worst experience ever. even my seat was broken, plus staff's English is clearly not good enough, not even mentioning service).

I am looking for advice from fellow travelers for the one or two trips I make a year to visit family and friends. Share your experience, links and offers!

American has fairly new daily service from JFK to Budapest. No personal experience with it, but it is a new option if you're open to transiting the United States. Depending on what your "surrounding countries" are, Hungary's Malev offers connections with that AA flight to and from neighboring countries.

www.airtransat.ca

flies cheap YTO to MUC

then regional or euroecono skyskanner.net

lots cheaper better for me.

Transaat
Economy MUNICH
(July 12 - July 15) $286.28
taxes and fees incl

that is an aweome deal YTO MUC on sale currently

QV, you really need to read the OPs before you post.

I think that was a good suggestion. MUC is a viable gateway to the region, with a low-cost carrier or train the rest of the way.