Exploring Allgäu from “Munich West”

Canny Cheapos know that Germany’s Frankfurt Hahn airport is nowhere near Frankfurt. Likewise, one discount airline has now decided that the name “Memmingen Allgäu” airport just does not have the necessary appeal, so styles the airport “Munich West”—slightly to the surprise of folk locally who are all too well aware that their regional airport is not near Munich at all.

The cachet of a big city name has become important. So much so that it obscures the fact that the communities which lie on the very doorstep of those airports are interesting destinations in themselves. The name “Munich West” is misleading, and hides the fact that the Allgäu region, so close to the airport, is a stunning area of Germany well worth visiting.

Discovering lesser known gems in Germany, Italy, and beyond

Girona Airport. Photo: Lorentey

But as airlines and airports create their own mysterious cartographic realities, sensible travellers exploit these secondary airports to visit spots that really are well served by them.

If you fly to what Wizz Air or Ryanair euphemistically call “Hamburg-Lübeck” airport, you will land a long way from Hamburg but happily very close to Lübeck. The medieval center of one of northern Germany’s most historic and engaging towns is just an eight minute train ride away from the airport (which has its own rail station).

And the same argument holds for other secondary airports across Europe. If you are bound for Barcelona, don’t be seduced by the publicity that suggests that Barcelona Girona Airport is close to Barcelona. It is not! But Girona, just twenty minutes away on the bus, is really worth a visit in its own right. It boasts a particularly well preserved medieval Jewish quarter.

Few of those who jet into Orio al Serio airport near Bergamo, Italy have any intention of visiting Bergamo, just a ten minute bus ride from the airport. No, the airlines market the airport for its rather remote proximity to Milan. Yet Bergamo is an absolute gem, and for first-time visitors to Italy an infinitely better introduction to the country than Milan.

Exploit the system

So does anyone really fly to Frankfurt-Hahn on purpose? Well, they should. The out-of-the-way airport, utterly inconvenient for Frankfurt, is just ten miles east of the most beautiful stretch of Germany’s Moselle Valley.

For those in the know, the wayward cartographic fictions of Europe’s discount airlines throw up a few unusual travel opportunities.

The post Europe’s minor airports offer interesting travel opportunities appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

In the spring of 2006, I was able to score some super-cheap tickets on Ryanair for a last-minute getaway to Barcelona from London, where I was living. It had been a great weekend, made possible I only had to pay the airport tax. The catch? I had to fly into and out of two less-than-central airports, London’s Stansted and Barcelona’s Girona airport. It was worth it, right?

What follows is a diary of my flight experience en route from Barcelona to London.

4:30 PM: I arrive early at the airport for a 6 PM flight. We all know you have to get to the gate before the other passengers in order to snag the best seat.

5:00 PM: Shortly after check-in, an announcement is made. The flight has been delayed an hour.

Ok, some extra time to score a panini at Girona’s atmospheric café. (In the above photo, do I look like I’m ready for take-off?)

Tip: Stock up on food, just in case. Girona’s airport café closed at 9 p.m. I’m glad I grabbed a sandwich when I did. Others would not be so lucky.

7 PM: A second announcement. The flight has been delayed for another hour. All assembled groan and pull out iPods, books and approved electronic devices. One nearby traveler starts clipping his nails over a waste basket, violating all manner of social codes (are clippers even allowed on airplanes?).

8:15 PM: A third announcement. Drum roll, please: The flight has been delayed for another two hours. The announcer says, with a tinge of exhaustion in her voice, “We hope to leave by 11. Thank you for your patience.” The thought of work the next morning was beginning to make me vaguely nauseous.

Around 10 PM: Boredom sets in. All other flights have taken off. The airport feels empty, save the other poor souls flying to Stansted. With hardly anyone around, I attempt to fit myself, horizontally, into a row of seats in any way that could lead to sleep. I am not successful.

Above: Nothing happening under flourescent lights.

Tip: Bring back-up diversions. That could mean catching up on your trip journal, watching all the TV shows you earlier loaded up on your iPod, making progress on that novel, or even flipping through some celeb mags. In short, have something to do. I had packed “Madame Bovary,” which only helped put me to sleep.

11:30 PM: All other flights have left the Girona airport, and there’s still no sign of our airplane. The 20 Stansted-bound passengers are told we will not take off until after midnight. No excuse is given.

Tip: Make friends…if there are any out there. At some point after midnight, I found myself chatting with a couple from Los Angeles. A bottle of vodka became open. (Glad they took advantage of Duty Free when it was open…hours ago.) I pass up a shot (work seems ludicrously close), but others around happily partake. The mood lifts… and distorts.

1:30 AM: We take off, nine hours after my arrival at the airport.

Tip: Know when to go! Turns out there’s more than one good reason not to check any luggage on a budget flight. If you’re delayed, you could risk missing the last bus out of the arrival airport.

2:30 AM: We arrive at Stansted and immediately there’s a mad dash for the bus to London. And for good reason: The last one leaves the airport at 3 am (and sometimes earlier, depending on reasons I couldn’t quite understand). If you miss the last bus, you have to get a taxi, which can cost upwards of £60, or wait until 7 am when the buses start up again. I make the bus.

3:30 AM: I’m dropped off at Marble Arch on Oxford Street. What’s my name? Who am I? And how do I get a taxi? Work the next morning was, well, another story…

In the end, this experience didn’t deter me from flying on budget airlines. Over the next year, I’d often take cheap flights, including easyJet and Aer Lingus, for quick getaways. But I learned something about flexibility that long night in Girona.

Read another Cheapo’s tale of a long night in Stansted. Got a good airport story? Leave a comment or send us a note.

The post Ryanair diary: One Night in Barcelona’s Girona Airport appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.