From Stewart International to Europe and back for less than $300
A clip from Norwegian's online map showing destinations from Stewart (many of these routes include connections)
Noted: Norwegian Air flies to Europe from Stewart International Airport in the Hudson Valley. And it has a sale right now in which it's offering one-way tickets from SWF to three destinations for as low as $100 during the winter. (Roundtrip total of roughly $250 after taxes and whatnot.) Those destinations: Dublin, Shannon (Ireland), and Edinburgh.
That sale also covers other Norwegian Air airports in the Northeast such as JFK, Newark, and Boston. Those one-way tickets are more in the $150 range (about $350 roundtrip), but they include destinations such as Amsterdam, London, Paris, and Madrid.
Norwegian started flying out of Stewart last summer. It flies to five European destinations direct from SWF, and 15 in total -- among them Barcelona, Copenhagen, Paris, and Prague. Scanning through the roundtrip tickets for the next few months, it looks like a lot of those flights are in the $400-$500 range.
Have you taken Norwegian from Stewart or caught one of its fare sales? We're curious about how it was.
Stewart is about 90 miles south of Albany on I-87. It's been trying to carve out a space as the low-cost option for the New York City metro area.
We get the impression Norwegian is a bit like Southwest. It flies point-to-point routes and tends not to have a lot of frills. Here's an account of flying out of Stewart on Norwegian in June 2017.
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Comments
Be careful- Norwegian has low prices but they make up for it in their baggage fees which they are super strict about! Paid almost $500 in overweight luggage the one and only time I flew them #ohthatswhyyourticketsaresocheap #foolmeonce
... said Ali on Aug 28, 2018 at 2:31 PM | link
I dunno, they don't seem bad to me.
https://www.norwegian.com/us/booking/booking-information/optional-service-charges/#Baggage_allowances
... said ethan on Aug 28, 2018 at 3:42 PM | link
We've been telling our friends about Norwegian Air flights out of Newburgh for awhile now. We flew Norwegian to Edinburgh, Scotland last fall and to Bergen, Norway in February (yes, February - the weather was better there than in Albany!). We couldn't believe how good the fares were, and we didn't have to deal with driving to JFK or Newark.
If you're concerned about the extra fees on a base fare, just plan ahead. Between the two of us, we checked one bag and we each had a carry-on. Granted, we weren't going on a weeks-long trip. We also brought food from home.
We will definitely fly Norwegian again.
... said Ellen on Aug 28, 2018 at 5:34 PM | link
I flew them last year to Edinburgh and came back via Shannon. It is no frills. It is clean the flight attendants were nice. We traveled with a backpack each.
... said Veronica on Aug 28, 2018 at 8:08 PM | link
Somewhere in my bookmarks, i have a promo on the 737-?? that Norwegian Air uses. The crux of this post is that the promo pushed that the addition on yet another row of seats would yield what I cannot recall but a lot more revenue per year. We fly Aer Lingus and spend a bit more and it costs no more to store luggage and they even throw meal in. One of our friends took that route to Amsterdam via Norwegian and even a bottle of water costs. they have obviously copied Ryanair's marketing program. No thanks, you get what you pay for as is always the case.
... said ravioliollie on Aug 28, 2018 at 8:28 PM | link
I flew Stewart/Edinburgh RT last year. Around $350 RT booked about two weeks in advance. Absolutely no problem! We expected no frills and were prepared. Brought a purse and backpack (carry-on) only. Bought snacks at the airport for the flight. Seats weren't the comfiest but I had no problem napping. Staff were friendly. Will fly Norwegian again to be sure!
... said Pam Lacy on Aug 28, 2018 at 8:39 PM | link
I flew Norwegian from SWF to DUB. It was 99.. each way.
It was fantastic!!!! Reasonably comfortable , lovely flight attendants
.
and unbeatable fare! All this and heaven too? All I
Can say is THANK YOU!! Stewart is a pleasant little airport, like Albany,
easy to get around, parking right outside the door. Life Advice :Never check a bag EVER. On any airline. You don’t need all that shite. ????
... said Lovemesometravel on Aug 29, 2018 at 7:47 AM | link
The fares are legit, though as Ali points out there are rules which, if broken, can be costly. Frankly, had better experiences on Norwegian than the US Legacy carriers I tried for the same journey. Norwegian is akin to Southwest---great fares, but you may end up "close" rather than exactly where you want to be (ie they sometimes use secondary airports (like Orly instead of DeGaulle). But it doesn't matter, air fare between european cities is ridiculously cheap. (prague to Madrid in 2017 $49!)
The other "surprise", is that Aer Lingus often has great sales. They used to fly out of Bradley once or twice per week.
... said jsc on Aug 29, 2018 at 9:21 AM | link
I've heard you have to be willing to be flexible with dates, as flights frequently get canceled if not full enough. This is my only hesitation. Can anyone confirm or deny from personal experience?
... said Sarah on Aug 29, 2018 at 10:12 AM | link
I flew Newark-Barcelona on Norwegian a few months ago (SWF to BCN must not have been in place yet). The new 787s that fly on that route are a bit quieter which is nice. You definitely want to read up on the fees and understand them. They have a slightly-better-than-bare-bones upgrade that gives you a checked bag, seat selection, a meal and drinks. I believe it was only a little more than paying for just a checked bag. So, if you're traveling with anyone else and want to ensure seats together, it's not a bad deal.
You might not get a 787 flying from Stewart, but the convenience of not having to get to Newark is probably worth it.
... said Blergh on Aug 29, 2018 at 10:19 AM | link
I took the flight from Stewart to Bergen, Norway, in February and have nothing but good things to say about it. It was the first time I'd been to Stewart and I loved it. So convenient. You can park so close to the entrance, it's more like parking at a mall than an airport. Security was very quick. Everything is still very small and quaint inside, the best kind of airport.
The flight itself was bare bones. It's cheap for a reason. They charge extra for any food, even water. Don't be scared off by baggage fees. I didn't pay going out, but had to pay $40 coming back because of all the Norwegian food I bought back.
It was $240 round trip (not including the bag fee), a 6+ hour flight. And Bergen is incredible. I'm dying to do it all again.
... said Ryan H on Aug 29, 2018 at 10:45 AM | link
Flew to Edinburgh last year on Norwegian and had a good experience. The planes, while newish, lack some of the in-seat conveniences so bring a book. Stewart reminds me of what Albany Airport was like 30 years ago.
... said Rob on Aug 29, 2018 at 1:22 PM | link
I flew Norwegian Air out of JFK to Oslo back in June, and the flight was pretty cheap (around 400 dollars round trip). Like others have mentioned, the reason it is affordable is because many of the in-flight services like food are not included, and because they do charge extra to check luggage ($100 per bag was what they had quoted us). That being said, these aren't necessarily problems as long as you are aware and plan ahead. We brought food for the flight with us, and packed light enough to not have to check bags. And it seems more and more airlines are moving toward paid check luggage anyway, so this isn't really an outlier.
Even when one of our carry on bags was over the weight limit on the return flight, the woman at the check in counter was able to work some magic to get us out of having to check the bag, thus saving us the fee and extra time having to wait for one check bag out of our party of 4. I would have no problem flying them again, especially out of a closer airport - and hope to soon; Norway and Sweden were absolutely gorgeous countries.
Side note - I think my father had a flight to Bergen for one of these special deal prices a year or so ago, but I think he flew out of Albany
... said Paul on Aug 29, 2018 at 1:41 PM | link
I've flown Norwegian several times, and I highly recommend them. Boston to London Gatwick, Stewart to Shannon 2x, Stewart to Bergen, Newark to Paris then Rome to Newark, and Providence to Guadeloupe. They've always been reasonable about carry-on size and weight, plus they allow a backpack as a personal item. I've gone for as long as 2 weeks without needing to check a bag, although I sometimes choose to check a bag coming home so that I can bring souvenir wine or liquor. The planes out of the bigger airports (Boston, Newark) are nicer, but I can't complain about what you get out of Stewart considering the price and location. It may help that I'm a millennial, and I've only enjoyed old-school flights amenities like free luggage and meals a handful of times. I'm good packing light, buying a sandwich at the airport, and saving my money to spend on the vacation itself. I've never had a cancellation and only minor delays.Can't wait for my next trip this fall!
... said Katie on Aug 29, 2018 at 2:42 PM | link
I flew a round trip to Dublin in December 2017, and I have nothing but good things to say about them. At the time they were doing one daily flight, but volume picked up so much, they are now doing two. The plane was only a few months old (know this by looking at the build date cert. right inside the door). It was clean and had enough room for a 6 hour flight. They are definitely no frills, so anyone who expects all the luxuries and is used to it may be disappointed. I personally almost always fly Southwest, so to me they are almost the European equivalent. There are slightly more fees, but their fares are ridiculously low, so it makes up for it. Stewart airport is incredibly easy to get to as well, and so small it makes Albany look like a major airport. I will continue to use Norwegian from Stewart as a gateway to Europe, because once in Dublin, you can take Ryanair anywhere in Europe for around $100 or under. What I am hoping, is that since it has been such a raging success out of Stewart they may consider flying out of Albany, to Dublin in the future. That would be amazing!
... said Scott on Sep 4, 2018 at 10:58 AM | link