Flying Norwegian: 10 Tips for making your cheap flight to Europe more comfortable
We love a cheap airline ticket, and Norwegian Air has quickly become a leader in low-cost airfare to Europe since it launched its long-haul flights in 2013. With aggressive budget pricing, it’s getting easier to find affordable direct flights to London, Paris, Stockholm, Oslo, and Copenhagen. If you keep an eye out for sales (hint: sign up for their newsletter), you can book flights for as low as $99 each way!
Related: How we scored a cheap flight to London-Gatwick on Norwegian
I recently flew from New York-JFK to London for $168 and Paris to New York-JFK for just $220. Of course, there’s always a catch with such a nice price. And if you’re used to flying established carriers like Air France, Virgin Atlantic, or airberlin, you need to prepare yourself for a different experience, so don’t expect to be welcomed with a glass of Champagne.
However, we’ve enjoyed most of our flights on Norwegian despite the lack of perks. And after flying this low-cost airline a number of times, we’ve discovered a few easy ways to make your trip on Norwegian more comfortable.
Related: Search cheap flights to Europe
1. You don’t need to pay for a seat reservation
Unless you absolutely need an aisle or window seat, there’s no need to pay extra for your exact seat. They’ll assign you one on the day of your departure. If you really like a window or aisle seat, then you should go ahead and pay the $45 fee to secure your preferred seat, but we’d rather spend that money on our first meal of the trip.
2. Flying with someone? Check in early to (hopefully) nab seats together
If you’re traveling with a companion and don’t already have a seat reservation, it pays to arrive at the check-in counter early. Each time I’ve flown Norwegian with a companion, we’ve been able to get seats together. On sold-out flights from JFK to London and Paris to JFK, I was able to get two seats together without any hassle.
3. If you like views, nab a window seat
If you love gazing out over the landscape like I do (check out this shot of Greenland on a trip back from Iceland), you might want to request a window seat. Boeing 787s have oversize windows that you can control with an electronic shade. It’s a cool feature that may or may not be worth the extra money to reserve your seat.
4. You might want to pay to check your bag
We all know the agony of having to check your bag at the gate. The fees can kick off your trip on the wrong note — say goodbye to $65 when you fly Norwegian (as opposed to $45 if you pay for luggage online; check out all baggage fee details). Although Norwegian does have spacious overhead bins on their long-haul flights, if you have a big piece of luggage, it might be better to pay beforehand rather than getting stuck with a big fee at the counter.
Related: WOW Air $99 to Europe? Yes, but the devil is in the details
5. Buy water before boarding
Unless you purchased a meal online, you won’t be getting any free drinks or snacks — not even a cup of water. They don’t even come around with a drink cart, so grab a couple of bottles of water beforehand if you don’t want to shell out a few bucks. Or go super cheapo and fill up your own bottle at the bathroom water fountain.
6. Maybe skip the meals and bring your own
The food on Norwegian for LowFare tickets won’t win away awards. Expect your typical airline food. If you have time, swing by a bakery in Paris for a sandwich and pastry on your way to the airport. You’ll make your fellow passengers very jealous, especially the ones who paid for the chicken à la mode.
That said, sometimes Norwegian offers online combination specials (called LowFare+) for a three-course meal, drinks, seat reservation, and piece of baggage. I once scored a LowFare+ for an extra $50 on a flight to London. That might be a good time to upgrade your experience.
7. Order drinks and food right from your seat
If you start craving a snack, you can just browse the selections from your seat. Swipe your card, and your order is delivered by the flight attendants. The pricing is pretty standard for airlines ($6 for a beer, $3 for snacks, etc.), and a bottle of sparkling water from Iceland was actually cheaper than at the gate in JFK. I usually use the money I saved on the seat reservation to splurge on a glass of wine.
8. Free movies, TV shows and interactive maps help pass the time
For a budget airline, the on-board entertainment is surprisingly good. They offer free movies and TV shows but don’t expect the latest blockbusters or live TV (except for flights within Europe). Settle in for a few episodes of Friends or movies like Argo or Finding Nemo.
Also, I’m a huge cartography nerd, so I love Norwegian’s live map feature. You can zoom in on destinations around the globe to learn more about the attractions and choose different views from the plane during your journey.
9. Charge your laptop, tablet or smartphone from your seat
They don’t offer live TV on in-seat screen, but you can charge your mobile devices with ease. Get your smartphone juiced up with the plug just below the screen, so you can start snapping photos from the moment you get off the plane.
10. The 787 Dreamliner is quite comfortable and the crew very friendly
Norwegian flights to Europe all use the Boeing 787 Dreamliner for their routes. Mood lighting, a 3-3-3 seating arrangement across the plane, and several bathrooms make for a nice flight. The crews on all of my Norwegian flights have been quite friendly and enthusiastic at assisting in any way they can (despite the lack of free snacks). This can come in handy on a 6+ hour flight!
Your tips
Have you flown Norwegian? Tell us about your experience in our comments section below. What tips do you have for other travelers?
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We just got back from a trip to Paris direct nonstop from Orlando. The dream liner is great and the oxygen and pressure they keep it at on the flight dramatically present jet lag.
The only thing I would say is that almost every single person in line had to move clothes around due to the strict baggage weight requirements they have.
If you check a bag the weight is 20kg (about 44lbs) which is less than the usual 50lbs I was used to and you WILL pay if you are over.
The next thing is the carry on and personal item. The email looked like you were allowed 10kg for each but it is for BOTH combined not for each which is not much at all AND THEY WILL WEIGH YOUR CARRY ON bags and give you an Approved sticker to ensure they meet the weight requirements.
All in all though the plane was very nice and The crew was very friendly I just wish I would have been a little more diligent on the bags to save some money.
I will definitely fly them again due to the quality and cost and already bought a little luggage scale from Amazon. I hope this helps someone in the future!
Norwegian Air has given my family really enjoyable flights. Singapore to London, Copenhagen to Bangkok and Los Angeles to Stockholm have been great flights. They let each person have up to 10kg hand luggage. There have been video screens at each seat.
i flew Norwegian a few months ago and rebooked for this trip to Europe.
however, the snow storm canceled my flight and diverted it to another airport,
it is WELL worth paying for a ticket you can change or cancel………………and the seats in the front are not that private but FAR better than sitting in the back
when will they make all airports year round and not just seasonal???
I flew on Norwegian 2 years ago. I loved it . It was my first time flying to England by myself.
The staff’s uniforms were very nice and professional.
Staff also very nice and helpful. You can’t go wrong with the prices.
I’m planning on flying again this fall.
We flew Norwegian for the first time a couple of years ago. We were in Copenhagen, and flew up to Bardufoss, Norway to meet my cousins for the first time. The flight from Copenhagen to Oslo was wonderful. I don’t remember what plane it was, but it was newer, clean, and spacious. The flight to to Bardufoss was fine, but the plane was older, smaller, and needed a thorough cleaning. But we couldn’t argue with the fares.
Sidebar: Oslo airport was possibly the nicest and easiest to get around. However, the prices were astronomical! Soup, sandwich and beer for two people was about $100 USD.
Thanks for this article. It’s nice to see all the add-ons and possible price increases in one place.