Low Cost Airlines

A number of low cost airlines have stirred up air travel within Europe by radically cutting fares in exchange for eliminating many traditional passenger services. A Ryanair flight from Hahn, Germany, to London Stansted can cost as little as €30.

The low fare concept originated in the United States before spreading to Europe in the early 1990s. The most notable successes here are Ireland's Ryanair, which began low-fares operations in 1991, and easyJet, formed in 1995.

The cheapies save money in a number of ways. They eliminate free onboard meals, charging for them instead. They fly to cheaper, less-congested secondary airports. They emphasize short flights, fast turnaround and maximum utilization of aircraft. They're tough on excess baggage. A few extra kilograms can double the cost of your flight.

They emphasize direct sale of tickets, especially over the internet, avoiding travel agent fees. They have only one passenger class, and don't bother with First or Business class. Nor do they bother with Frequent Flier miles. They even give employees multiple tasks. Flight attendants may also clean the cabin or act as gate agents.

In order to compete with these cheapies, main carriers have cut their fares on competing routes. Sometimes they are only 20 percent more expensive than discount airlines, and that could mean that the total trip cost may be the same, or even cheaper, with the main carriers. Don't forget the cost, and inconvenience, of getting to those out-of-the-way airports.

Here are some of the main low cost carriers:

Ryanair

Ryanairwas the first European low fare airline, and it is still the largest. It has a hub at the former US air base at Hahn, Germany, and other hubs at Shannon, Dublin, Cork. Glasgow (Prestwick), Liverpool, East Midlands, London (Stansted and Luton), Brussels (Charleroi), Stockholm (Skavsta), Milan, Pisa, Rome, Barcelona (Girona) and Marseilles. It serves 22 European countries with 344 routes. (www.ryanair.com)

Germanwings

Germanwings, of which Lufthansa is a major shareholder, has hubs at four German airports; Berlin-Schönefeld, Cologne-Bonn, Hamburg and Stuttgart, and flies to some 35 airports in Eastern and Western Europe. (www.germanwings.com)

Air Berlin

Air Berlinstarted as an American-operated charter airline back in the days when only the World War II victors could serve Berlin. Now it has grown to be Germany's second biggest airline, after Lufthansa. It still has charter-type destinations, flying 200 times a week in the summer to Palma de Mallorca from 16 German airports. It flies to other southern vacation destinations, too, but also offers service to 75 airports in Western and Eastern Europe and North Africa. Its principal transfer points are Berlin-Tegel, Nürnberg, Palma de Mallorca, London-Stansted and Düsseldorf. (www.airberlin.com)

Hapag-Lloyd Express

Hapag-Lloyd Express, is a descendant of venerable shipping lines and travel bureaus dating back to the 19th century. It flies from Berlin, Hamburg, Hannover, Cologne-Bonn, Munich, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Leipzig-Halle and Sylt to 38 airports in ten European countries. (www.hlx.com)

EasyJet

EasyJet, based at London's Luton Airport, is Europe's second biggest low cost carrier, after Ryanair. In contrast to Ryanair it flies mainly to the leading airports, a strategy that attracts business travelers. It has hubs in three London airports (Gatwick, Stansted and Luton) and two in Paris (Charles de Gaulle and Orly). Other hubs are Berlin, Dortmund, Liverpool and Bristol, and it flies from these to more than 65 European airports. (www.easyJet.com)

DBA

Formerly a subsidiary of British Airway called Deutsche BA, this Munich-based airline has changed management. As Germany's third biggest airline, after Lufthansa and Air Berlin, it sees itself now as a business airline that despite low prices has an extensive service offer. It serves mainly inner-German routes between Hamburg, Hannover, Berlin, Düsseldorf, Cologne/Bonn, Leipzig, Dresden, Stuttgart, Munich, Münster/Osnabrück, Bremen, Karlsruhe, Nürnberg and Frankfurt. But it does have a few international flights to Nice, Moscow, Thessaloniki, Athens, Rome, Florence and Paris. (www.dba.de)

Condor

Condor, partly owned by Lufthansa and by one of the world's leading travel agencies, Thomas Cook, is unique in that it also offers long stretch flights at low prices. You can fly to America, the Caribbean, Africa and Asia for as little as €99. It connects 25 airports inside of Germany. (www.condor.de)

There are very many other low cost airlines and more are being established with regularity. Here are some others: AirBaltic, Austrian-Airlines, Blue1, BMI Baby, Centralwings, Dauair, Helvetic, Intersky, LTU, SkyEurope, SmartWings, Transavia, Virgin Express, VLM and Wizz Air.