Best domestic flight options within USA and Europe?

Best domestic flight options within USA and Europe?

Hello fellow travelers!

Getting to the USA and Europe via the usual Long Haul Business class routes is fairly easy as there is a decent amount of competition and product out there to choose from.

But when I traveled through Europe earlier this year I had to make some concessions, no wait, many concessions and broke many promises I had made to myself.

There are some people who debate the value in paying for a Premium or Business Class flight when flights within Europe are generally between 1 and 3 hours in duration from city to city.

Add to this the exorbitant prices and I can understand why.

So I searched for a compromise, hoping to find a decent airline that I could book most of my flights with, which runs a decent network covering most of my destinations, and has some sort of upgrade option to increase comfort and legroom without having to pay $1000 business class for a -2hour flight.

I succumbed to my budgetary needs, deciding I was arrogant, and that Easyjet and co would be perfectly fine. To be honest, the inflight experiences with Easy Jet were fine. I flew them about 5 times. I even paid $10-$20 more each leg for those extra leg room seats and was quite comfy for these short flights. But what I couldn't deal with was the operational side of things. I had booked all of my flights from Australia well in advance with 20KG check in. But while in Europe and weeks before many of my flights, I had to up my KG's, and paid for the upgrade online. However, when I presented my Baggage For Check in, almost each and every time they had no record of the increased allowance I had paid for and discussions had to take place with management to delve into the booking/records. So annoying!

I can accept once or twice. But always?

Then when my parents flew home without me, they were stung $99POUNDS despite my folks insisting I had paid for more KG's.

It took 3 months while back in OZ to get this money back and it left me wondering if it was worth using Easyjet.

So now that I am planning another trip, I think I would rather spend a little more, and am always happy to do so, if the airline chosen is more reliable and has some options for extra comfort in Economy that don't cost the earth. I'd even go business if it wasn't around $700-$1000.

I have discovered a neat well rated Airline called "Air Dolomiti" that has Premium Seats for less than $500 most times.

Same goes for the USA. What are the options? Thanks :)

A very broad question.

In Europe and the US there are so many more airlines and routes, and it is really route dependent.

I only really fly with BA. Have flown twice with SqueezyJet, not to bad, but for all the bother involving checked Bags, BA is just easier to deal with.

On top of this, wife and I have a BA credit card and get £60 off our bookings using some avios, so it ends up being cheaper.

BA are the pick of the litter, then Iberia in Europe.  I would say Lufthansa for those with*A ff cards and I must say they serve Europe on a par with BA and also offer good interconnecting flights.  

Love vey the fact you called easyjet squeezyjet. Another favourite of mine is sleazyjet. Lol

All three of the airline alliances offer 'Visit Europe' type of add-on fares when booking a return ticket to Europe. They work on a flat-fee / zonal basis, which allow guarantees some stability in pricing when hopping around the continent. Though these must be booked together with your intercontinental return ticket and you'll be stuck in Economy for these European flights, however you won't need to worry about the hassles of easyjet or Ryanair.

I don't do much European flying these days.  Whenever possibleI I use BA as part of One World.  In USA, there are United (poor), Delta (Poor), American (not quite so poor), Alaskan (don't know), Southest (don't know), plus other regionals.  They're all poor in comparison to full service airline like Qantas domestic.  So you pay your money and take your chance.  And it really depends on the route - as they all operate out of "Hubs".  Depending on where you're going, you might not have much choice.  One piece of advice, if at all possible, avoid Denver Airport as a connection point as the weather there can be very unpredictable - resulting in lots of missed flights, cancellations, etc.

Forget the "legacy" carriers. JetBlue is very highly regarded in the U.S.  If Virgin America go where you want to go then they will be your first choice.  The Virgin business ("first" in the U.S.) seats make QF equivalent look more like economy - take a look at the websites. Agree about Denver.  ORD can be a nightmare.  DFW, MSP and SLC all seem to work well.  If you must use legacy carriers, beware extensive use of codeshares - know whose metal you'll actually be aboard and consider carefully.

I agree wih Wilsoni providing Jetblue and Virgin will get you to where you neen to go.I would also suggest Southwest,fares are generally cheaper and easier to change if needed.And a much larger network to boot,no baggage charges and for an extra US$10 get early boarding and all the leg room you require fo a US domestic flight.