Hi,

any recommendations on websites to use for airline tickets to Europe and for flying within Europe? any other tips on getting cheap airline tkts are welcome!

Thanks!

Kayak.com is a good place to start

I use http://www.itasoftware.com

www.whichbudget.com

http://www.skyscanner.net

All great suggestions so far. I would also check directly with the airlines, too. Find out which airlines service your destination airport, then visit those airline websites.

Also, be flexible, if possible, with your exact travel dates (and even exact location) which can save you a lot of money. There's a lot of money to save by traveling on a Thursday rather than a Saturday, for example.

For flying within Europe it's hard to beat Ryanair. Just read the directions very carefully. Many people fly extremely cheaply on Ryanair, & usually on time. They have lots of sales, usually about 4-8 weeks in advance. If you register they will email to tell you about their sales. I bought a flight recently for €3.
Especially look for the flights that say "no taxes". If you can travel light it's great, otherwise in July/Aug you'll pay €40 for one 15kg bag & €70 for 2, which is usually much more than a seat for a person.
Spell all names exactly as on passport. Check if anyone has changed their name, perhaps got married recently.
After booking, between 15 days & 4 hours before you fly, make sure you have passport numbers to hand & check-in online (& print it) before you go.
Another trick is to get a pre-paid Mastercard which entitles you to buy without the €5 card charge (per person per flight).
You can buy the flight, and then decide later how much luggage (if any) to check-in. If you already bought a flight there is no card charge for buying check-in luggage later.

Other useful cheap airlines in Europe are listed on
http://www.euroflights.info/ &
http://www.etn.nl/lcosteur.htm
I don't know how complete these lists are. Kayak sometimes seems to include ryanair in its searches, at least it did recently for me, but it doesn't always.
Just don't miss that cheap flight, coz you will get no compensation (unless it's the airline's fault) & you will pay through the nose for a last minute change.

Some others that I have used successfully
www.aerlingus.com
www.easyjet.com
www.bmibaby.com
www.flybmi.com (related to above)
According to the websites I listed previously there are many more. Others I haven't yet tried but which fly to Ireland:
www.aerarann.com
www.flybe.com