For some years now several of the airlines labelled “low-cost airlines in Europe have been taking part in a price war attempting to offer the cheapest fares to a huge number of cities throughout Europe. It’s not unusual to see that one of the leading low cost carriers such as Easyjet or Ryanair has an offer of return flights from Britain to Germany, France or Spain for £1 (approx $1.45). There could be taxes and airport landing fees to be added to the fare, but it’s still a real bargain if you’re looking to visit a number of European cities. The downside of these cheap flights is that they frequently fly to the smaller local airports rather than the more well known majorinternational ones. This sometimes means that a flight that is advertised to a major European city actually lands anything up to fifty miles away. In fact there are a number of advantages with this arrangement, the municipal airports often provide a much slicker service on check-in and luggage since they are catering for a lot less flights. The downside is that public transport serving these airports can be scrappy at best and a very popular alternative is hiring a car from the airport. Here are some of the wonderful cities that we’ve visited with flights from the budget airlines. We are confident that you’d enjoy visiting any of these fine areas, without doubt they have a lot to offer the visitor to their country.
Glasgow, Scotland
Glasgow, once known for its hard, unforgiving living conditions has seen a Renaissance and has become a wonderful, architecturally divine city supporting a vast number of tourists throughout the year. The chic West part of the city is home to the fourth oldest university in the United Kingdom. Situated on a hill in the middle of the Medieval region of Glasgow, the students add a great deal to the fun loving and vibrant atmosphere of the area. The budget carriers utilise Prestwick Airport some 35 miles (51 km) north east of the city centre and you will find an excellent road between the airport and Glasgow city centre. It’s a popular area for sightseeing, so you are advised to rent a car at Glasgow Airport in advance of your journey. An uncrowded half hour journey from the airport along the M77 motorway brings you to the city centre. Glasgow is an ideal starting point for a trip out to the Trossachs National Park. Just 20 km (13 mile) journey out of the city and you could discover sensational countryside seated upon a pony, whilst a 50 km (30 mile) drive eastwards using another excellent motorway will take you to Edinburgh together with its ever popular festivals, Princes Street shopping, the historic Castle and Holyrood Palace.
Florence, Italy
Undoubtedly one of Europe’s most stunningly beautiful locations, Florence is served by Pisa Airport, some 50 miles (84 km) west of Florence. Rent a car at Pisa airport and you’ll be perfectly positioned to explore Pisa with its leaning tower, majestic Florence and some of some of the most picturesque countryside in the whole of Europe, that of the disturbingly beautiful Tuscany. It is therefore not surprising that Florence is one of the most popular historic cities in the whole of Europe. Once you arrive at the city of Florence you will find that most of the city centre is pedestrianized protecting the many ancient architectural treasures and statues from the vibrations and pollution associated with busy roads. The traffic free status overwhelms you with a sense of tranquility as you walk from one fragment of history to the next. You do not need to stray too far before being hit by the ghastly, ear splitting roar of Florence’s legion of scooter riders. Other than the Ponte Vecchio the remainder of the bridges leading to city centre are noisy, polluted places, thus providing a further reason to stay within the narrow alleyways and peaceful sanctuaries of Florence’s beautiful piazzas.
Tours, France
Tours is the ideal centre for discovering France’s beautiful Loire valley and its magnificent chateaux The ideal centre for exploring the Loire Valley renowned for its wonderful selection of palatial residences, the city has a few charms of its own. Although the small airport is but a few miles from town, it’s almost essential that you hire a car at Tours airport in order to explore a selection of the most stunning towns and villages in the whole of France. A host of cultural treasures will be found along the banks of the Loire. The Loire valley is a UNESCO World Heritage site and offers beautiful countryside, historic villages and lots of flamboyant castles. Formerly the “Retreat of Kings” back in the days of the Renaissance and the middle ages, the Loire Valley was a firm savourite of the French monarchy. Originally constructed as working fortified castles, the buildings were transformed into the palatial chaeaux that you will find today. Visitors from around the world are drawn to the historic towns that are situated along the banks of the Loire. Towns such as Blois, Tours, Orleans and Chinon have so much to see and do whilst the most popular chateau is maybe that on the estate of Chambord. Throughout the region you will find small, family owned vineyards offering a variety of great wines at very low prices. Look out for the word “degustation”, which means sampling I guess, and as long as ‘Le Patron’ is not in the middle of a long leisurely lunch you will be made very welcome and he will be more than willing to offer you a tasting of all his wines. Of course, it is strongly advised that you take a non-drinker as your chauffer, some of these tasting sessions can become extremely alcoholic!.