Budget Travel - Is it cheaper to fly from Europe or India to Dubai?

I have some very cheap ways to get to anywhere in Europe there is a major airport or to Bombay or Chennai. Can you recommend any ways to buy a separate cheap ticket to Dubai? I saw Condor out of FRA, but the return trip is always high for that leg. Thanks for any information.

I saw Condor out of FRA, but the reurn trip is always high for that leg.

How expensive are the fares from Condor (just to have an idea what you're looking for...)?

Aer Lingus, Dublin-Dubai, nonstop from 423€ incl Tax
Alitalia, Belgrad-Dubai (1 Stop) from 398€ incl. Tax

With the exorbitant taxes and surcharges out of Europe, you won't find a lot of fares below 400€.

I have some very cheap ways to get to anywhere in Europe there is a major airport or to Bombay or Chennai. Can you recommend any ways to buy a separate cheap ticket to Dubai? I saw Condor out of FRA, but the return trip is always high for that leg. Thanks for any information.

So from any DL-metal to Dubai? It's cheaper from India but only marginally so. On a FF mileage earning basis however, the Europe-Dubai flights often provide a far better value than India-Dubai.

I've found Europe-Dubai deals in the 350-400€ range all inclusive. BOM-DXB would be less, but on a mileage earning basis it will stink. (Some would say -- at least in coach -- the flight stinks either way, but stinks more on BOM-DXB.)

Check out Air Arabia, www.airarabia.com .

They offer one-way tickets from Mumbai to Sharjah (which I believe is just outside of Dubai) for appr. 5,000 IR.

I can't offer any insight into the quality of their operations. Perhaps someone else on this forum has travelled with them and can provide info.

Air India Express, www.airindiaexpress.in/airindiaexpress/home.asp , also offers flights from several points in India (not Mumbai or Chennai) to Dubai.

Check out Air Arabia, www.airarabia.com .

They offer one-way tickets from Mumbai to Sharjah (which I believe is just outside of Dubai) for appr. 5,000 IR.

I can't offer any insight into the quality of their operations. Perhaps someone else on this forum has travelled with them and can provide info.

Air India Express, www.airindiaexpress.in/airindiaexpress/home.asp , also offers flights from several points in India (not Mumbai or Chennai) to Dubai.


Thanks. Great fares to/from Mumbai. Looks like a good a/l. 32" pitch on A320. They say they want their pax to be comfortable. I am going to give them a try next month and I'll report back after the flight.

Enjoy your trip.

When you are reporting on the AirArabia experience, please also let us know about the ground transport options between Sharjah and Dubai.

Also would appreciate any info. about LCC flights between middle-East and Europe.

Sharjah airport is a bit of a shambles really.
I flew BAH-SHJ-MCT last November. Transit time was 12 hours overnight. I slept in the airport overnight - on the cold, hard floor hidden behind an x-ray machine (the aircon made it very cold). I took a walk through immigration in the morning to see some sunlight, coming back into departures check-in looked aweful! A poorly designed airport in terms of functionality.

The airline itself was surprisingly ok. Nice legroom (I was given emergency exit row without request), clean and punctual. Nice cabin crew and those flights weren't to busy. They come round with free water for you too. No need to join the boarding rush as they issue you with specific seat numbers.

Sharjah airport is about 20 miles from Sharjah city IIRC.
If you plan to head to Dubai I've read previously that there is a more direct road than using the main road that heads west to Sharjah and then South to Dubia. I think transfer times are about 20 minutes at most by taxi. I think it shouldn't be more than about 70 Dhs direct.

Other cheaper shared taxis use the main Fukkaheria - Sharjah road and will cost less if you can get one. You will then have to catch another taxi or taxibus from the Sharjah stands in the centre of town (depending on your ability to cope with the heat, these are about 5-10 minutes walk from the shared taxi stands, otherwise they may drop you at them).

My short flights were comfortable and gave me an impression of a quality LCC airline [first LCC I've used mind]. I can't speak for there longer flights from India, but I don't imagine them to be anything to fear.

I hope that helps.