flying out of Stanstead airport, England

My husband and I want to stop in England to visit with friends pre cruise leaving out of Athens. I've heard that Stanstead is a very small airport and has mostly Ryanair and Easy Jet flights out of it. Being that I don't really want to fly Ryanair, would we still find a dependable airline to fly out of Stanstead or would we be better off returning to Heathrow which has more airlines flying to Greece?

Barb

Stansted isn't all that small, and yes, it's served mainly by low cost carriers. Easyjet doesn't fly from STN to Athens; they fly from Gatwick instead; however their prices are competitive with "major" carriers operating out of Heathrow. Don't know where you're staying, but STN isn't all that convenient compared to LHR or LGW either.

STN is not a "very small airport", it handled more than 24m passengers in 2016 which would make it the second busiest airport in Canada.

I'd say it depends where you are planning on staying in the UK, and how much you want to avoid Ryanair and where you're trying to fly to in Greece.

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Hi,we live 30 miles from STN and use Ryanair frequently.Other than their recent cock up ,they are one of the most reliable airlines around.You can get the Stansted express from Liverpool st or buses from Victoria.Cheers,Brian.

If you do fly Ryanair make sure you fully understand their luggage rules, print out boarding passes etc. Also, plant to fly to Greece at least 24 hours, if not 48 hours before your cruise.

Personally I would drive 100 miles to another airport in preference to flying

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Last sentence should have ended " in preference to flying Ryanair"

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Thanks to all who took the time to reply. We will be staying in Essex but will most likely go back to Heathrow to pick up a flight to Athens.

Barb

Thanks to all who took the time to reply. We will be staying in Essex but will most likely go back to Heathrow to pick up a flight to Athens.

 

Barb

Enjoy your time in Essex - a much underrated county. Hopefully your hosts will take you to the Blackwater Marshes, Constable Country [OK, some of which is in Suffolk], and Frinton on Sea, the height of seaside sophistication.

Thanks to all who took the time to reply. We will be staying in Essex but will most likely go back to Heathrow to pick up a flight to Athens.

 

Barb

There's a direct bus from Colchester to Heathrow.

Enjoy your time in Essex - a much underrated county. Hopefully your hosts will take you to the Blackwater Marshes, Constable Country [OK, some of which is in Suffolk], and Frinton on Sea, the height of seaside sophistication.

We love England and I can't imagine that Essex will be any less quaint and interesting than other areas we have visited. We will be with friends in both Suffolk and then Essex and I'm sure we'll enjoy seeing new towns and sights along the way. I'll keep your suggestions in mind as destinations to explore.

Cheers,

Barb