Travel Guide: Cheap flights to France
France Airlines and Airports
Airline and airport information plus insider tips for France
Watching old men play petanque in a small village square; eating steak-frites on the pavement outside a Parisian cafe; enjoying a hot chocolate on top of Mont Blanc before skiing down the mountain or watching the jet-set sun themselves in St Tropez – the very “Frenchness” of our closest European neighbour has always seemed appealing. Though just a short flight across the sea, culturally France feels a lifetime away.
But though all recognisably “French”, each region is very different. From the chic and sophisticated urban Paris to the small rural villages in Provence, there is a distinctive feel, and often dialect and food, everywhere you go. And, of course, the cuisine is as good a reason as any to find cheap flights to France.
Often acclaimed the best in the world, French food is a delight almost wherever you choose to eat. As well as the more exotic snails, frogs legs or foie gras, make sure you try the staples: cheese, crusty bread, wine, soup and meat. Even the vegetables seem to taste better than they do at home…
Find the best flight prices to France
When to fly to France
France is roughly divided into four climatic zones. The South enjoys a Mediterranean climate with hot summers and mild winters. Paris, the north of the country and the central regions have hot summers and cold winters. The Alsace, Lorraine, Rhone corridor and the mountains have a semi-continental climate: winters are very cold, with lots of snow in the mountains, but summers are hot. Finally, the area west of Bayonne and Lille has an oceanic and humid climate with cooler summers.
Peak season:
Spring is a very popular time to visit France (especially Paris) when the weather is usually warmer than in the UK and prices are affordable. Summer is peak season in the South with many families booking cheap flights to France for the school holidays. Beaches warm up from May onwards and tourists flock to the Cote d’Azur.
Wintertime is (obviously) peak season for skiing, both in the Alps and the Pyrenees. You can ski in the Alps from approximately December through to March or April. Peak prices are around the Christmas holidays and the February half term. Winter holiday periods such as Christmas are often popular in the major cities as well, especially Paris.
Off season:
Autumn time generally is off season throughout the country, so there is a greater chance of finding cheap flights to France, where idyllic getaways are possible throughout the year. Temperatures can still be warm though the days are quite short. Prices for skiing are lowest before Christmas, so it is the perfect time to find cheap flights to Lyon, Chambery and Grenoble. However, snow is not guaranteed at this time of year and the temperatures can be excruciatingly cold.
Getting Around
Trains are run by SNCF.They are excellent and speedy throughout the country and cover an extremely extensive network. Small towns without train stations are normally linked to the local station by bus.
The TGV is the high speed intercity train service. There are also many night trains which travel more slowly than their counterparts in the day so you can go to sleep in one town and wake up in another. You can book online at the SNCF website.
Driving is easy and often a pleasure if you're used to driving in the UK. Wide, well-maintained roads with little traffic run throughout most of rural France. Remember to keep some spare change to hand to pay for the tolls. Once you have booked your cheap flights to France, why not consider hiring a car during your stay.
Buses are cheaper than trains, but generally a lot slower and less comfortable. It is best to save bus travel for shorter trips.
Flights are available between major cities. Air France has many domestic flights.
Flying to France
Major airports in France:
There are 185 airports throughout France. No matter how remote you plan on going, chances are there will be an airport within a few hours drive. Major airports include:
Paris Charles de Gaulle International
Paris Orly
Lyon Saint Expurey
Strasbourg
Marseille
Nice
Bourdeaux
Toulouse
Airlines serving France:
Most, if not all, the low-cost and main airlines fly to Paris and other major French cities. Many of the low-cost airlines, especially Ryanair and EasyJet have routes to more “undiscovered” regions and smaller towns. If you're booking a flight to France, it really pays to shop around. Airlines flying there include:
Air France
Aer Lingus
British Airways
easyJet
bmibaby
bmi
flybe
Jet2.com
Ryanair
Thomsonfly
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In-flight Reading
A Year in Provence
By Peter Mayle
Mayle humorously and candidly details the highlights of each month of his first year living in Luberon.
Chocolat
By Joanne Harris
The bestseller about a chocolate shop owner in a small provincial French village.
Down and Out in Paris and London
By George Orwell
Orwell's semi-autobiographical first novel about a young Etonian slumming it in dirty back hotels of Paris and then London.
Les Miserables
By Victor Hugo
The book that was made into the hugely popular musical. The epic covers Paris in the revolution, thieves, prostitutes, mayors, war, love and redemption...
French Provincial Cooking
By Elizabeth David
In one of the most famous cookery books, now a Penguin Classic, David gives recipes and background essays on the foods she writes about.
Insider Information on France
The summer destination of choice in the south is often Nice and the Cote d'Azur region. Less brash, however, (and less expensive) is Biarritz and the surrounding area of the Basque region on the southwest coast. The beach in Biarritz is popular with the elite - Queen Victoria holidayed here many times over the space of 30 years, and there is a certain hauteur to many of the women who take walks along the beach front promenade - but also with surfers. The annual surf championships are held here every July.
The Ville Rose, or pink city, Toulouse is a vibrant metropolis with a huge student population. A beautiful, old and historical city, Toulouse is also the hub of the French aerospace industry. If you are a fan of the aerospace industry, book cheap flights to France for you and your family and visit the Aerospatiale to see where the Airbus A330 is assembled or the Cite de L'Espace to find out all about space travel. Details on visiting both are available from the Toulouse tourist office.
Lyon is France's second city and its situation near to the Alps, the Rhone and the south coast makes it the perfect base to explore the country. For something a little more unusual in the city itself, visit the Festival of Ancient Music. The festival takes place in the run-up to Christmas every year in the Chapelle de la Trinite.
Travel Tips
- Finding Cheap FlightsOur golden rules for finding a cheap flight
- Airlines with low-cost ticketsAn essential guide to how the main carriers operate
- Before You GoAdvice on everything you need to do before you set off
- Regional UK and Irish AirportsFlying from the four corners of the UK and Ireland
- Glossary of Flying TermsAn A-Z of common terms you’ll need to know
- Travel Sickness and DVTHow to stay happy and healthy in the air
Travel links
- Destination GuideLonely Planet's guide to France
- MapInteractive map of France from Multimap
- EventsLocal events calendar
- WeatherThe weather in France now
- Currency converterFind the current exchange rate