London to Greece on Easyjet?
 

After three months of trying I finally snagged a FF ticket on USAIR from Los Angeles to London. I'll be away 19 nights in May. I've been to England several times and don't want to spend all my time in England this time around. I've been thinking about where I would want to go, checking airline schedules and prices. I was looking at easyjet.com and found flights Gatwick-Santorini, Mykonos-Gatwick for 144 pounds round-trip. That includes one checked bag each way and priority boarding in one direction. That sounds like a great deal to me. Does this sound too good to be true? Has anyone had experience with this airline along these routes? Will they let me book online in US dollars?

<<< Does this sound too good to be true? >>>

Sounds expensive by low costs airlines standards

<<< Will they let me book online in US dollars? >>>

No, your bank will do the conversion from GBP to USD

<<< and priority boarding in one direction. >>>

Why the need to get on first. The plane gets to the destination at the same time regardless of whether you pay for it so unless you have a great need to be in a certain seat why bother

I fly Easyjet quite a lot and like flying with them. Just make sure that you uncheck the box for travel insurance.
£144 round trip in May to Greece is pretty good.

The price is Ok - not great not terrible.

Easyjet are OK - typical no frills budget airline.

alanRow, it might not be a bargain roundtrip to Athens, but it sounds like a bargain to fly into Santorini and return from Mykonos. If my bank will do the conversion, it sounds like I will be able to book online. I think I'm going to Greece!

One more question about Easyjet. How large are the planes? I'm not fond of long trips in tiny aircraft.

Be aware that the "flying bus" airlines stick to their rules. There's no leeway, except for hard cash. Get yourself to the airport in good time, and don't expect flexibility on baggage weights and carry-on.

They don't fly small planes....737s and Airbus 319s

http://www.easyjet.com/EN/About/Info...fleetinfo.html

"Easyjet are OK - typical no frills budget airline"

I'd say they've got a great deal more pleasant than typical low-costs lately. I was just gobsmacked by the speed the checkin queue moved at Gatwick (it looks at first glance like you're going to be there forever), the pleasantness of all staff and the absence of the smartass huckstering you get with their bigger, Irish, rival

They also do things like let you travel on an earlier flight for no extra cost if you arrive at the airport early....they are bringing in a lot of business travellers now.

They've been bring in alot of business travellers for several years.

Speedy boarding is worth paying for IMO, you get separate check-in at Gatwick, although the lines do move very quickly for the regular check-in. I flew on them to Paphos last year and was very glad to have speedy boarding on the return flight, which was so full. But the plane was scruffy and the cost was not cheap.

luvtotravel

You've got a very good price for the route. In the last few years I've paid a lot more to easyJet for a round-trip ticket on the Gatwick to Mykonos part of the journey. That was booking many months in advance too.

The plane we had these past few years was the Airbus. Nice aircraft, good and helpful staff but more importantly they got me there and back exactly at the published times. GBAirways flew the same route using Airbuses. easyJet bought the company and it could be same planes, now with the easyJet livery.

Check-in at Gatwick was fast (it was 4am and the terminal was very busy), and they had 8 or 9 staff working which speeded up the process. In fact, there was one easyJet guy walking the line and hurrying everyone along to the next available member of check-in staff.

I wouldn't delay buying that ticket.

bill

I was about to hit the submit button when my message disappeared, so pardon me if it shows up twice.

I took the plunge and bought the ticket. With the additional 8 pounds for using my credit card, the ticket cost 152 pounds, or less than $250 U.S. including speedy check-in and one checked bag in each direction.

I'm wondering if I need to change planes in Athens. There is no mention of changing planes. They note Gatwick to Santorini (depart 6:25 am and land 12:15 pm), and Mykonos to Gatwick (depart 2:20 pm and land 4:15 pm). Not sure how the time change affects things. I hope I don't have to go through Athens. Been there four times, and that was plenty.

My first time to Santorini/Mykonos was in 1989, and then again in 2000. It will be interesting to see what changes have taken place over the past ten years.

My thanks to all for the advice. I will report back in June.

good for you luvtotravel

The Mykonos service is direct and it looks like Santorini is too. Flying time to each is around 4 hours or so.

Bill

No changing planes in Athens on either flight. EasyJet is one of the best budget airlines, IMO, but read all the conditions carefully.

Used easyJet on several occasions and found them to be OK.

We have used easyJet between Toulouse and Gatwick several times. Never had any major problems.

For a four-hour flight, I would pay the extra for priority boarding to ensure an aisle seat.

Do heed the caution on overweight luggage--the price per kilo over the limit can add up quickly. We've had no problems with US credit cards.

hi luvto travel,

we have used easyjet loads of times and rarely had any problems [touch wood - we are booked to fly with them to Rome in a month's time].

the priority boarding is IMHO a bit of a con - if you are bussed to the aircraft, it can happen that the people who got on first [the priority boarders] are last off! this happened to us at least once before we decided not to bother with it. I think that they have sorted this out now but be aware it is a possibility.

also watch your weight! they are pretty strict with weight limits and also the "one carry-on only rule" - if you've got a handbag, you can't have a day-sack as well, or even a camera. the way round it is to have a day-sack that you can fit your handbag/camera/duty-free into while boarding. they are also hot on the size of carry-on and if it won't fit in the gauge they have at the gate, they may ask you to put it in the hold, which will cost twice what it would have done if you'd booked to check it in the first place.

all that said, i find them pretty easy to deal with. instead of having separate check-in desks for each flight they amalgamate them, so that that long queue may be for as many as 10 flights, and moves pretty quickly. and if you look like being late for your flight, just say, and they will move you to the front of the queue.

Well...I am a bit overweight, but my suitcase will be less than 20 pounds. :-)

easyjet uses proper airplanes and they are investing in a new fleet.

i like how people are trying to tell you that your fare is too expensive. maybe some people have not figured out that airfare varies wildly depending on when you fly. maybe they have just seen adverts for discount airline fares 'from' £12 so they think your fare is too high. unless someone has checked different options for your travel dates they can't comment. if they have found something cheaper then they should tell you.

priority boarding is your perogative. with easyjet, people will queue up for boarding more ardently than with regular airlines with assigned seats because they want to be able to choose windows or aisles and most importantly they want to sit with the people with whom they are travelling. you may end up at the end of the queue and not be able to sit with those with you. it's much more a matter of this risk than some desire to be first on the plane. if you can't live with being split up then get priority boarding.

easyjet is a pretty well run airline and you'll be refreshingly surprised at somethings as compared to the 'full service' airlines.