So, you’ve found your budget-friendly flights, you’ve found an Airbnb or hostel room that ticks your boxes, and all you need to do is work out how to get from the airport to the city centre. Suddenly you’re faced with expensive taxis and private transfers. So, here’s my guide for how to travel to and from European airports on a budget.

We’re going to go into the best tactics for using:

  • Public Buses
  • Private Bus Companies
  • Trains and Metros
  • Shared Shuttles
  • Ubers and Local Taxis
  • What to do with after-hours flights.

Let’s get into it!

Public Buses

Most of the time you can find a public bus that goes between the city centre and the airport. It’s often the cheapest option because it’s what the locals who work there use. Of course, it depends if you’re staying in the centre of your chosen city, or out in the suburbs where the main bus might not go.

Some of the European airports I’ve been to on public buses are:

European bus timetables can be awkward to read. There are usually a couple of starred columns that only exist during school term time or on festival days, which can confuse tourists. Instead, use an app like Omio or Rome2Rio to check the right bus companies and timings.

Some public bus companies will let you buy a ticket in advance using Omio and some will make you use their local ticket machines at the airport, or bus stop, or buy directly onboard. Everywhere varies on this, so once you find out who the local bus company is who runs the route you want, jump on their website and find out.

Top Tip: Make sure you have cash on you for the buses, especially in places like the Greek islands, Montenegro, and Sicily. This is less of a concern in places like Stockholm or the UK which are largely cashless now.

Private Bus Companies

When you’re traveling from major European airports, you’re likely going to see companies like FlixBus, National Express, and Bla Bla Bus. These private bus companies are some of my favourite ways to get around on a budget.

Some of the European airports I’ve been to on private buses are:

  • Marseille, France
  • Manchester, UK
  • London Heathrow, UK
  • Stockholm, Sweden

You can book these buses in advance online and they’re usually the second cheapest option after a public bus, however, sometimes they’re even cheaper. You can also enjoy comfier seats and WiFi on most of these buses which is a nice bonus.

Unlike the public buses, these private bus companies often travel at weird or unsociable times, which is great for getting budget flights which often get in late or leave early. However, they don’t have a set schedule and sometimes only run once a day, so there is some luck involved with being able to use them for your airport transfer.

Trains and Metros

If you’re coming into a popular airport like Paris CDG, Manchester, Bologna, Stockholm, or Barcelona, there are train or metro connections. These are usually the fastest ways to get from the airport to the city and normally run a little later than the buses.

Some of the European airports I’ve been to on trains and metros are:

With trains, you can buy tickets in advance from sites like Omio and Rail Europe, or buy from the machines when you get there. At the airport, most of the machines have language options to make things easier for travelers.

For the metro, you need to buy your tickets when you land. For some places, like Stockholm and London, you can use your contactless card or Apple Pay to pay for travel by tapping in and out again on the barriers. Make sure you remember to tap out again, otherwise you get charged for a full day pass, rather than a single journey.

Shared Shuttles

Look, sometimes public transport isn’t an option. Whether it doesn’t exist at the particular airport you’re going to (especially if it’s the city’s second or third-tier airport), or the flight times don’t add up, it can and does happen.

For those occasions, book a shared shuttle in advance. Use sites like Viator and Get Your Guide to find the best deals and liaise with your chosen company to make sure they pick you up on time and have your flight number in case of delays.

For example, we did this in Montenegro, because we arrived in Podgorica, the capital, but we were staying on the coast in Budva. If we were going to get public transport, we’d have to get a 20-minute taxi from the airport to Podgorica and then get an hour-and-a-half bus to Budva.

We also had a late flight time so the buses weren’t running and we didn’t fancy a night in the capital. In the end, because it was split between the two of us, the price was only around £8 more expensive, and we got there in around an hour.

Uber and Local Taxis

Okay, although Uber and taxis are rarely a budget option, I have to mention them. Some cities and airports have agreed to flat rates for local taxis between the airport and city centre. This is to stop people getting ripped off and undercut. These flat rates are prominently advertised and easy to find, so have a look before you travel.

Conversely, a lot of airports do not all Ubers, Lyfts, or local equivalents into the airport taxi rank. This means you have to walk outside the airport and find a reasonable pull-over spot. Given that airports are usually in the middle of nowhere off a major motorway, this can feel sketchy.

Realistically, airport taxis are my last resort a lot of the time. We took one in Naples because it was late and there were two of us to split the cost. The only other time I’d recommend it is if you can’t get a shuttle and you have a ton of baggage that you don’t want to mess with on public transport.

After hours flights

Let’s round this guide to getting to and from European airports with a word on after-hours flights. Realistically, if you’re on a low-cost airline like Ryanair, Wizz Air, or EasyJet, you’re likely going to be leaving at around 6am or earlier, or landing after 11pm. This doesn’t leave a lot of room for public transport.

This is why it’s important to look at the availability and cost of your airport transport while you’re looking at flights. A flight with a more sociable time might be an extra £10-20 but you’ll be able to use the cheaper public transport rather than relying on local taxis.

Also, with low-cost airlines, check which airport they’re going to. For example, Ryanair often flies into Oslo Torp Airport instead of Oslo Airport, and Paris Beauvais rather than the more central and popular CDG. These smaller airports have less public transport support and they’re further away from the main cities, so the transfer cost could be the same as the budget flight itself!

Published by Rebecca Crowe

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