Looking for reliable air carriers

[Wendylet]

We are cruising on the Vista in May and I am looking to book a regional air carrier for a flight from Barcelona to Paris. Of course I don't want to pay a ton of money for a short haul flight but some of the airlines get terrible reviews in terms of reliability. Does anyone have a suggestion for me that won't break the bank but that can be reliably counted on to not have innumerable flight delays and cancellations?

[MarcelLucSell]

Try Kayak.com and look for airlines that have multiple flights that same route the same day. In case yours has trouble, you most likely could get bumped to a same day flight.

[MrPaulAR]

Go to the Wikipedia page for your airport and see what airlines fly out of it. Not everything shows on its, kayak, and Google flights.

[AdrenalineRush]

Air France and Vueling are two I have used over the years. You have to be careful with airlines like Easyjet and Ryanair they will kill you on luggage fees.

[Wendylet]

Thanks all for your help. I will have a look as suggested and see reviews on the various carriers. It's a great idea to look for carriers that have a number of flights on that same day. Thanks for the suggestions!

[Twickenham]

Or you could do what we're planning on doing next summer - take the train. Check out a video of the journey here:

[parody]

OP, to answer your original question, go to flightaware.com and search for flights between Barcelona and Paris. If you click on any of the flights shown you can get (in the free version anyway) a list of times that flight landed over the last 7 days and what their average is. From that you can get an idea of which flights are reliable.

[Chairsin]

Have you considered the high speed train? We did this in April of this year and adding in the time getting to the airport two hours pre flight, checking in and going through security, flight time and waiting for your luggage it was faster. And as we bought tickets when they went first went on sale we were in comfortable first class watching interesting scenery for less than the cost of a cattle car low cost carrier and taxi fare. I would do this again Ina heartbeat.

[Zach1213]

Nonstop flights are on: Air France, easyJet, and Vueling. I've not taken Vueling, but have had multiple fine experiences on the other two. I personally am an easyJet fan, but be aware of the extra costs associated with easyJet and do all of the math.

 

However, I too recommend the train. Trains in Europe are great, and it's nice to see the countryside go by.

[iancal]

We have used Vueling in Europe a few times. Very happy with them...especially since they do not seem to enforce their carry on weight limits (we travel w carry on only). We have also been very pleased with Air Malta but not certain that they fly this route.

[wowzz]

EasyJet have no weight restrictions on carry - on luggage, as long as it falls within the correct size perameters. Air Malta, as you might expect, do not fly this route.

[Wendylet]

Have you considered the high speed train? We did this in April of this year and adding in the time getting to the airport two hours pre flight, checking in and going through security, flight time and waiting for your luggage it was faster. And as we bought tickets when they went first went on sale we were in comfortable first class watching interesting scenery for less than the cost of a cattle car low cost carrier and taxi fare. I would do this again Ina heartbeat.

 

I agree with you totally. I think the train may be a really good alternative. Can you tell me if the cost was comparable to some of the really economical flights that are available and how long the train ride was?

[Chairsin]

We paid about 120 dollars per person for first class seats. As I recall the trip was just over 6 hours. We bought a lovely bottle of wine the day before as well as saucisson , bread and cheese and had a lovely meal en route as we watched the scenery. So much more comfortable -- not to mention less stressful.

[6rugrats]

I agree with you totally. I think the train may be a really good alternative. Can you tell me if the cost was comparable to some of the really economical flights that are available and how long the train ride was?

 

You can't check prices for the train for May yet. Nonstop would be around 6.5 hours. Prices in March for the cheapest train tickets I saw were around $157. I did not do an intensive search.

 

Plane ride is less then two hours, and many dates in May have a one way price of 39 Euros on AF.

[Twickenham]

I agree with you totally. I think the train may be a really good alternative. Can you tell me if the cost was comparable to some of the really economical flights that are available and how long the train ride was?

 

I'm getting pricing up to May 14 on the http://tgv.en.voyages-sncf.com/en/ website (if it tries to redirect you to Rail Europe, refuse, as you will almost certainly be quoted a higher price). Pretty easy to get tickets for 59 euros. When calculating costs (and time), remember to consider that Gare de Lyon is right in the centre of Paris, whereas both CDG and ORY are quite a ways away.

[Chairsin]

Of course with the plane you havelock add the cost of a much more expensive taxi or private car service to the airport. And the flight might be two hours but there is the additional time to get to the airport , go though security and wait two hours. Also need to factor in time on the other end to collect luggage, And while we bought first class train tickets you could buy second class for less and still be more comfortable than an airline economy flight.

[iancal]

If you can do downtown to downtown in six hours on the train I would most definitely opt for the train. No contest. The net price of both will be similar, the elapsed time will be similar but the train is so much more comfortable and convenient. Getting into Paris can be a nightmare unless you take the RER.

[zoncom]

Always had good luck and pricing. Book early for best fares.