Before You Go: Discount Air Travel

Find an affordable single-ticket flight through one of the major booking engines listed below. If this doesn't get you a flight at a price you can live with, see PLAN B below.

If you are a full-time Student or Faculty member, STA offers discount flights for teachers and students.

Find a cheap flight from your departure city to somewhere in Europe. (For example, discount flights to London are often available even during high season.) Then find a connecting flight to Italy using one of Europe's many discount airlines.

Example: On our last trip to Italy we flew directly from San Francisco into London's Heathrow airport. We had a taxi waiting for us that took us to Stansted Airport for our connecting flight to Rome on RyanAir. The taxi ride took a little over an hour and cost about $150 dollars. But we saved over $300 per ticket for ourselves and for our two children. You do the math...

If you wind up passing through London, we can recommend Carriageways as a taxi service that has always been dependable for us in the past. They will have a driver waiting for you as you exit from baggage claim. You can contact gordon@carriageways.com with your flight info. You might ask for "Mike the Pubman" for your driver; he's a lovely fellow who can engage you in intelligent conversation about the effects of globalization on English culture during the hour-long drive or let you sleep if you prefer. Say 'hi' from Sam and Pam in Italy if you cross paths with him. Meanwhile, here are links to a few of the major Europe-based discount airlines:

Opodo was formed by a consortium of several major European Airlines through which they offer budget flights and other low-cost travel services.

RyanAir is the leading European discount airline with amazing prices, no frills service, and flights to an ever-growing number of destinations.

EasyJet is another major player is the European discount travel arena with flights to various cities that are not serviced by RyanAir.