A European getaway would not have to return with sky-high airfare. With many finances and legacy airways providing expanded transatlantic route schedules, competitors on pricing is intense. For frugal vacationers, meaning each extra choices for flights — and extra alternatives for offers.
Based on information offered to NerdWallet by Greenback Flight Membership, an airfare offers web site, sure routes provide persistently low fares. That makes cities like Reykjavík, Iceland; Lisbon, Portugal; and Barcelona, Spain, among the most reasonably priced European locations to fly to from the U.S.
The most affordable common routes between the U.S. and Europe in 2025
Utilizing airfare information from the ten largest U.S. airports primarily based on variety of passengers, Greenback Flight Membership recognized 14 routes the place common fares had been lower than $1,000 spherical journey.
These 14 routes (sorted by common fare) are:
Common fares had been primarily based on an evaluation of fifty,000 fares pulled on Jan. 27, 2025 for journeys from January by way of September 2025. The info included fares from a mixture of legacy and finances carriers.
Fares will fluctuate relying in your particular airport or journey date. However normally, figuring out these routes may be helpful in narrowing down the place in Europe to go. Iceland is likely one of the most cost-effective locations to fly into, making it an ideal alternative to guide that bucket-list journey to see the northern lights or go to the Blue Lagoon, a geothermal spa well-known for its ethereal milky-blue waters.
The most affordable flights to Europe in 2025
Common fares between Atlanta and Reykjavík, Iceland run simply $800 through the interval surveyed — and that’s simply the common. Precise costs can fluctuate by day. For instance, Greenback Flight Membership discovered flights on that very same route as little as $400.
Of the 50,000 fares that Greenback Flight Membership analyzed, right here had been another notable offers, damaged out by the ten largest airports within the U.S.:
Atlanta (ATL) → Reykjavík (KEF) from $400, London (LON) from $480, Helsinki (HEL) from $545.
Charlotte (CLT) → Rome (FCO) from $483, Dublin (DUB) from $545, Madrid (MAD) from $560.
Chicago (ORD) → Frankfurt (FRA) from $435, Rome (FCO) from $450, Dublin (DUB) from $510.
Dallas-Fort Price (DFW) → Amsterdam (AMS) from $525, Frankfurt (FRA) from $540, Rome (FCO) from $555.
Denver (DEN) → Paris (CDG) from $480, Amsterdam (AMS) from $525, Frankfurt (FRA) from $540.
Las Vegas (LAS) → Dublin (DUB) from $520, Madrid (MAD) from $535, Paris (CDG) from $550.
Los Angeles (LAX) → Paris (CDG) from $430, Barcelona (BCN) from $499, Dublin (DUB) from $515.
Miami (MIA) → Barcelona (BCN) from $410, Munich (MUC) from $412, Rome (FCO) from $420.
New York (JFK) → Lisbon (LIS) from $405, Milan (MXP) from $440, Berlin (BER) from $480.
Orlando (MCO) → Madrid (MAD) from $435, London (LHR) from $520, Rome (FCO) from $545.
Tips for touring cheaply in Europe
Be open-minded to lengthy layovers, stopovers and multi-city journeys
You don’t essentially must spend your European trip on the metropolis the place your transatlantic flight arrives or departs. These cities may merely be beginning and ending factors to your journey.
Georgia Fowkes, an avid traveler and self-described “flight deal hunter” says she as soon as flew from her dwelling in Pittsburgh to São Miguel Island within the Portuguese Azores archipelago. A day-long stopover in Boston helped her get there for much less cash.
“It was a well-planned route with a built-in aspect journey to Boston,” she says. “I used to be capable of squeeze in a mini-reunion with an outdated high-school pal… and eat clam chowder.”
She paid $387 for the round-trip flight. Had she not been keen to spend a day in Boston, her flight would have value almost $700.
Go throughout shoulder season
Summer time is usually a busy time to go to Europe as a result of children are out of college. Shoulder season, which is the interval between the excessive season and offseason, can provide the most effective of each worlds, with gentle climate and seasonal actions nonetheless open.
Think about a late spring or early fall journey to Europe for those who’re in search of decrease costs — and smaller crowds.
Save on lodging
As a substitute of staying at a resort, take into account a hostel. These are low-cost lodging choices, which usually have huge rooms, bunkbeds and shared facilities, although many additionally provide personal rooms. Some hostels provide stays as little as 12 euros an evening.
Huge-name accommodations are additionally including extra properties in Europe. Although they’re usually not the most affordable type of lodging, they’ll provide alternatives to spend factors and miles, usually earned by way of bank card spending. Hilton Motels & Resorts opened 10 resorts final summer time in Greece, Ibiza and Malta. And in January 2025, Hyatt Motels Company introduced it might open accommodations in additional European markets, together with Estonia, Iceland and Romania. The resort model has additionally expanded its presence in Spain from simply 4 accommodations in 2020 to 55 accommodations as of the tip of 2024.
After which there’s an ultra-affordable possibility.
“Couchsurfing remains to be alive and effectively too,” Fowkes stated. With couchsurfing, vacationers keep (sometimes without spending a dime) in locals’ properties, usually brokered by way of companies like Couchsurfing.com.
Journey by prepare by way of Europe
In addition to being a bit unconventional together with your lodging, transit doesn’t have to be merely touring by air. Prepare journey inside Europe is extra accessible than it’s throughout the U.S. For instance, it takes lower than two hours to go from Munich to Salzburg, Austria, and you may usually discover fares for lower than $20. You may also journey in sleeper vehicles, for in a single day journeys, which may trim your resort prices.